Head of the Department: James M. McGlathery
Correspondence and Information: Head, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 3072 Foreign Language Building , 707 South Mathews Avenue, Urbana, IL 61801
GRADUATE FACULTY
Professors: E. H. Antonsen, U. H. Gerlach, H. G. Haile, M. Kalinke, H.
Knust, R. Lorbe, J. W. Marchand, J. M. McGlathery, K.-H. Schoeps
Associate Professors: J. Lalande, M. Wade, R. Wright
Assistant Professors: D. Chirita, A. E. Wright
GRADUATE PROGRAMS
The Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures offers graduate programs
leading to the degrees of master of arts, master of arts in the teaching of
German, and doctor of philosophy.
MASTER OF ARTS
Applicants should have completed undergraduate studies similar to the
concentration in German at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, have
a grade-point average of 4.0 (A = 5.0) for the last 60 hours of undergraduate
course work plus any graduate work completed, and be able to follow lectures in
the German language. Acquaintance with German history and culture in their
relation to the general European background is desirable. Admission to the
program is on a competitive basis.
Candidates for the master of arts in Germanic languages and literatures may emphasize either German or Scandinavian literature or linguistics. All candidates must take course work in both literature and linguistics.
The master's degree requires 8 units of graduate work, although deficiencies in undergraduate preparation may necessitate more than 8 units to meet the requirements. Residence and other requirements of the Graduate College must be met. Candidates for the A.M. degree must demonstrate proficiency in reading one language other than English and German (usually French). Required courses (or approved equivalents) are German 365 and 366 (Structure of the German Language I, II), German 311 and 312 (German Literature 750-1770), German 415 (Middle High German) or Scandinavian 405 (Old Norse-Icelandic), German 420 (History of the German Language), German 410 (Introduction to Graduate Study), and two graduate literature courses at the 400 level. Electives may be chosen from within or from outside the department with the approval of the graduate adviser. The degree is awarded upon the successful completion of a three-hour written and a one-hour oral comprehensive examination, or upon successful defense of a thesis. More detailed information may be obtained from the departmental office.
MASTER OF ARTS IN THE TEACHING OF GERMAN
Applicants must meet the same admission standards as those for the master of
arts in German. Candidates for the M.A.T. degree must earn 5 units in German
emphasizing either language and linguistics or literature and culture, 2 units
in approved courses in educational policy studies, 1 unit of studies in
educational foundations, and 2 courses in foreign language education.
Candidates must also complete all undergraduate requirements for a teaching
certificate, although no graduate credit is given for undergraduate courses. In
some cases, with proper advance approval, graduate courses may be applied to
the teaching certification requirements. Contact the certification officer of
the Council on Teacher Education (110 Education Building, 333-7195) for
information pertaining to pursuing certification while enrolled in the graduate
program. Residence requirements are those of the Graduate College. The degree
is awarded after the successful completion of a three-hour written and a
one-hour oral examination. More detailed information is available from the
departmental office.
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Applicants must meet the admission standards outlined for the master of arts
and, in addition, hold a master of arts in German (or equivalent) with a
graduate grade-point average of 4.5 (A = 5.0). Admission to the program is on a
competitive basis.
Candidates for the Ph.D. in German may specialize in older German literature, modern German literature, Germanic linguistics, German and Scandinavian literature, or German language pedagogy.
Students working toward the Ph.D. degree must have completed all requirements for the A.M. degree given above and must complete an additional 8 units of course work approved by the graduate adviser. Residence requirements are those of the Graduate College. Candidates must demonstrate proficiency in reading two languages other than English and German that are considered useful in their area of specialization.
After passing the written preliminary examinations (three three-hour comprehensive examinations), the student is admitted to the oral examination, the successful completion of which admits the student to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree. The candidate must then complete 8 units of thesis research and successfully defend the thesis in an oral examination. All candidates for the Ph.D. degree must have taught the equivalent of three one-semester courses on the college level (i.e., teaching one-half time for one academic year) before being admitted to the final oral examination (thesis defense). An additional option in second language acquisition in teacher education (SLATE) is available to candidates with an A.M. degree (or equivalent) in German and at least one year of experience in teaching German as a second language. Candidates selecting this option are required to complete courses in psycholinguistics, education, and language teaching methodology in addition to advanced study in German language and culture. Also required are 4 units in research methodology selected from one of several options including linguistics, psychology, computer science, or statistics. More detailed information is available from the departmental office.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The department faculty includes nationally and internationally recognized
scholars in all areas of research within the field. These areas include older
and modern German literature, medieval studies, Scandinavian literature, German
film, computerized instruction, historical and synchronic Germanic linguistics,
and German language pedagogy. The University Library has one of the nation's
outstanding collections of works pertaining to study and research in German and
other literatures of all periods and in Germanic and general linguistics.
FINANCIAL AID
Teaching assistantships are awarded on a competitive basis to promising
candidates with strong academic records. Preference may be given to students
who have lived in a German-speaking country or have had some teaching
experience. Teaching assistantships are usually awarded at one-half time for
the academic year. Each year the department may nominate one or more
outstanding students for a University fellowship. A limited number of tuition
and service fee waivers may also be available. Full details on amounts of
financial aid and time limitations for eligibility may be obtained from the
departmental office.
For continuing graduate students, the awarding of financial aid of all types is contingent upon the maintenance of satisfactory progress toward a degree.
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