Requirements listed here are in addition to requirements listed in GCAC-208 Dual-Title Graduate Degree Programs.
Admission Requirements
For admission to the dual-title Ph.D. degree under this program, a student must first apply and be admitted to the English PhD program. Once accepted into the English PhD program, before taking their qualifying exam the student can apply to the Admissions Committee of the Department of Asian Studies. The admissions committee reviews applications and recommends students for admission to the Department of Asian Studies to the Fox Graduate School. There are no additional application materials required for admission into the dual-title program beyond the requirements of the Fox Graduate School and English, though applicants interested in the program should also make their interest in the dual-title program known clearly on their PhD applications and include remarks in their narrative essays that explain their training, interests, and career goals in an area of Asian Studies.
Degree Requirements
To qualify for an Asian Studies degree, students must satisfy the requirements of the English PhD program in which they are primarily enrolled. In addition, they must satisfy the requirements described below, as established by the Asian Studies graduate committee. Within this framework, final course selection is determined by the students, their Asian Studies advisor, and their English program advisor.
Upon a student’s acceptance by the Asian Studies admissions committee, the student will be assigned an Asian Studies academic advisor in consultation with the Asian Studies chair. As students develop specific scholarly interests, they may request that a different Asian Studies faculty member serve as their advisor. The student and advisor will discuss a program of study that is appropriate for the student’s professional objectives and that is in accord with the policies of the Fox Graduate School, the English department and the Department of Asian Studies.
The minimum course requirements for the dual-title Ph.D. degree in English and Asian Studies are as follows:
- The Ph.D. degree in English does not require a specific number of credits although all students are required to have completed ENGL 501 (or the equivalent) and five additional courses, one in each of the following categories: Pre-1800, Post-1800, Rhetoric or Media and Digital Studies, Historical Methods, and Cultural Analysis/Theory. Reading proficiency in a language other than English is required.
- 15 credits of Asia-related coursework at the 400 or 500 level. At least 6 of these 15 credits will be from ASIA 501 and 502. As many as 6 may come from English, as approved by the student’s doctoral advisor and the Asian Studies director of graduate studies. The remaining credits can be taken in Asian Studies or in any department other than English.
Particular courses may satisfy both the English requirements and those of the Department of Asian Studies. Within this framework, final course selection is determined by the students, their Asian Studies advisor, and their English program advisor.
Students must show strong all-skills proficiency in one Asian language (including English) and either two years’ college study (or equivalent knowledge) of another Asian language or an alternative proficiency appropriate to the student’s field. All-skills proficiency in an Asian language can be assessed through the following mechanisms: 1) native speaker status, 2) completion of graduate-level research using the language, 3) study abroad, and 4) independent study or examination. All final determinations of all-skills proficiency will be made by a student’s Asian Studies doctoral advisor in consultation with the Asian Studies director of graduate studies. Students must demonstrate successful completion of a competency examination in both languages before sitting for the qualifying exam.
The dual-title field must be fully integrated into the qualifying exam for the doctoral program. The qualifying examination committee for the dual-title Ph.D. degree will be composed of Graduate Faculty from English and must include at least one Graduate Faculty member from the African Studies Department. Faculty members who hold appointments in both programs’ Graduate Faculty may serve in a combined role. In addition, students in the dual-title Ph.D. in Asian Studies will be required to present to their committee a portfolio of work in Asian Studies which includes:
- a statement of the student’s interdisciplinary research interests;
- a program plan; and
- samples of writing that indicate the student’s interest in questions taken up by scholars of Asian Studies.
Because students must first be admitted to a graduate major program of study before they may apply to and be considered for admission into a dual-title graduate degree program, dual-title graduate degree students may require an additional semester to fulfill requirements for both areas of study and, therefore, the qualifying examination may be delayed one semester beyond the normal period allowable.
The doctoral committee must include at least four members of Penn State’s graduate faculty. One of these members must be a faculty member with majority appointment falling in a department other than English or Asian Studies. The other three members of the committee normally are the dissertation advisor (who is the chair and must have titles in both English and Asians Studies) and two members of the English faculty who represent minor areas of the candidate’s fields of study. If the dissertation advisor/chair is not dually appointed in both English and Asian Studies, the student must have co-chairs—one in English and one in Asian Studies, and another member of the English faculty. The committee should be formed soon after a student passes the qualifying exam. Before the committee is appointed, the student should consult with their advisor concerning the committee membership and meet with all potential committee members to see if they agree to serve.
After completing all course work, doctoral candidates for the dual-title doctoral degree in English and Asian Studies must pass a written comprehensive exam. The Department of Asian Studies representative on the student’s doctoral committee must have input into the development of and participate in the evaluation of the comprehensive exam, and the comprehensive exam administered by the major program must incorporate the dual-title offering.
Upon completion of the doctoral dissertation, the candidate must pass a final oral exam (the dissertation defense) to earn the degree. Ph.D. students enrolled in the dual-title degree program are required to write and orally defend a dissertation on a topic that reflects their original research and education in both English and Asian Studies.
Contact Information
Asian Studies Interim DGS: Nicolai Volland < nmv10@psu.edu >
Administrative Assistant: William Whitesmith < wmw5235@psu.edu >