EAST ASIAN LANGUAGES AND CIVILIZATIONS
The First Two Years
The department considers applications only for the PhD degree.
Residence
Minimum of two years of full-time study, sixteen half-courses or the equivalent. A “half course” is any single-term course offered for credit. For financial residence requirements, see the application booklet.
Program of Study
Each student is required to engage in a program of study that involves at least three fields of knowledge. One of these fields should be chosen to demonstrate breadth in regard to a different area, discipline, or period. The program will be determined in consultation with the student’s advisor. Courses in other departments may be included whenever appropriate. Two research seminar papers with a grade of A-and above, one of which must be in the student’s primary field, are required of all students prior to taking the General Examination.
Language Requirements
The department sets specific language requirements for the degree that are intended to ensure that all students are proficient in the primary language(s) needed for professional scholarly research in the field. These requirements are the same for EALC and HEAL PhD candidates.
The minimal language requirements for the PhD involve mastery of one East Asian language and advanced work in a second East Asian language. What those languages are depends upon a student’s regional and disciplinary specialization, and there is variation across the department. Standard requirements are defined for the different regional specializations as follows:
China: Fourth-year level in modern Chinese; second-year level in literary Chinese; third-year level in modern Japanese or, in exceptional cases, equivalent ability in another East Asian language.
China/Inner Asia: The same as for China, with the addition of two years’ study of one or more of the spoken or literary languages of Inner Asia (Manchu, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur, Chaghatay).
Japan: Fourth-year level in modern Japanese; first-year level in classical Japanese; second-year level in literary Chinese for students of pre-modern Japan; first-year level in literary Chinese for students of modern Japan. Note: In exceptional cases, a second year of classical Japanese may be substituted for the fourth year of modern Japanese.
Korea: Third-year level in modern Korean; third-year level in modern Japanese; first-year level in literary Chinese for students of modern Korea; second-year level in literary Chinese for students of pre-modern Korea.
Tibet: Third-year level in literary Tibetan; first-year level in modern Tibetan; combined three years’ study of literary and modern Chinese, depending on specialty. Note: In some cases, the equivalent background in either Manchu or Mongolian may be substituted for Chinese.
Incompletes
Students must not carry more than three.
Advising
Students are assigned advisors appropriate to their fields when they first arrive, and will continue to work closely with them throughout their program. They will also consult periodically with the director(s) of graduate studies. Students may change advisors in consultation with the department.
General Examination
The student must pass a two-hour oral examination in at least three fields. In addition to the oral examination, the student will be required to demonstrate proficiency in the primary language to be used in his or her research. Each subfield within the department will determine the means to test such proficiency.
Students are expected to pass the general examination by the end of the third year in the department, but no later than the beginning of their fourth year. For those students who have previously gained the AM at Harvard, at the end of the second year in the PhD program of the department but no later than the beginning of the third year.
The Dissertation Prospectus
A prospectus of a student’s dissertation, between fifteen and twenty-five pages, will be required by the end of the term after the general examination has been passed. At the end of the G-4 year, students are normally expected to present their prospectuses at a conference of faculty and students.
Dissertation
The dissertation, which must make an original contribution to knowledge, may deal with any subject approved by the department. It must demonstrate the student’s capacity to make critical use of source material in one or more East Asian languages.
Dissertation Defense
To qualify for the degree of doctor of philosophy, students are required to present their dissertation at a public defense.
PhD in History and East Asian Languages
In addition to the degree in EALC, the department also accepts applications from students who wish to study for the PhD in History and East Asian Languages. The requirements for the degree are similar to those for the PhD in East Asian Languages and Civilization. The principal difference is the additional requirement of a passing grade in one of the first-year colloquia (e.g., History 3910) offered in the Department of History. Students in this program are overseen by EALC’s Committee on the PhD in History and East Asian Languages, which includes faculty from both the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations and the Department of History.