Graduate Programs
The MA Program in English at Boğaziçi University is designed to be a rigorous education in modern English literature and an exploration of the very idea of the modern – one that has its roots, it goes without saying, in the literature and culture of the past. Building upon the broad base of an undergraduate education in literature or the humanities, the MA in English focuses upon the major genres of English literature, while at the same time demanding a thorough training in the most significant and influential critical approaches to the literary text.
Courses in critical theory, fiction, poetry and drama offer students the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of particular modes, historical moments, or motifs in modern literature. The 29-credit (110 ECTS) program is composed of seven 4-credit courses – two courses of theory, one of fiction, one of poetry, one of drama and one elective course – and a 1-credit course on methods of research, proposal and paper writing. The coursework requires intensive reading and research as well as seminar reports and discussions. Upon completion of the 29-credit coursework, students write a thesis supervised by their academic advisor. They defend their theses in front of a committee. Students who graduate with an MA in English will be ideally placed to begin a doctoral program in any number of fields in the humanities and the social sciences, including programs in English language and literature, comparative literature, and cultural criticism.
The aim of the Ph.D. program in English Literature is to prepare students to be productive scholars, intelligent critics of literature, and competent academics.
Candidates for admission must fulfill the requirements specified in the regulations of the Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences. Candidates are required to take a written and an oral exam to prove their grasp of the field.
The program requires the successful completion of 29 credits, followed in turn by a qualifying examination, the formal proposal, the writing of a dissertation and its defense.
The student chooses three areas of concentration, building upon his/her master’s background, and then focuses upon a field of interest which may be a historical period, a genre, or literary theory and criticism. The qualifying examination tests knowledge in-depth of the areas of concentration and also awareness of the methods of critical interpretation. Each student submits a dissertation in a form approved by his/her dissertation director and by a committee appointed by the department.
The major areas of concentration are Medieval Literature, Renaissance Literature, 17th and 18th Century Literature, Romantic and Victorian Literature, Modern English Literature, and Theory of Criticism.
Each student must take one course in three of these areas followed by two special study courses or doctoral seminars in his/her area of special interest designed to give an early focus to his/her work on the dissertation.
A final public oral examination is given after the candidate’s dissertation has been read and approved. The following topics are to be covered in the examination: a justification of the subject treated and the methods chosen, an account of any new contributions made. The student must develop and answer a series of questions growing out of subjects presented in the dissertation.
Candidates for admission must fulfill the requirements specified in the regulations of the Institute for Graduate Studies in Social Sciences. Candidates are required to take a written and an oral exam to prove their grasp of the field.
The program requires the successful completion of 29 credits / 195 ECTS (seven 4-credit courses and one 1-credit course), followed in turn by a qualifying examination, the formal proposal, the writing of a dissertation, and its defense.
