All students in the School of Philosophy’s Ph.D. program must demonstrate reading proficiency in two foreign languages relevant to their dissertation research—normally, any two of French, German, Latin and Ancient Greek. With advance approval from the faculty, other languages may be counted toward this requirement.
For more in-depth information about the Ph.D. language requirements, see the Foreign Language Examination Guidelines.
Demonstrating Language Competency
There are several ways of demonstrating language competency:
- Passing an exam administered by the School of Philosophy
- Successfully completing courses as approved by the Language Committee (Latin and Greek)
- Receiving a certification approved by the Language Committee (Goethe Institute, Institute Français etc., with a score of C1 or higher)
- In exceptional cases, providing other clear proof of proficiency, as approved by the student’s Dissertation Committee in consultation with the Language Committee
Language Examinations Administered by the School
The School of Philosophy translation examinations in French and German are given once in the fall and once in the spring. They are administered in two parts, each of which is a three-hour session in which the student is required to translate a passage. Dictionaries are allowed in the exam.
More Information
If the Examination Guidelines are unable to answer your questions, please email the chair of the foreign language examination committee: Dr. Cristina Ionescu.
For information regarding the admistration and grading of the exam, click here.
Copies of past Language Examinations may be found below:
French: Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Fall 2019
German: Spring 2021, Fall 2020, Fall 2019