Department of Greek and Latin

DEPARTMENT OF GREEK AND LATIN

Graduate Studies

Goals and Assessment of Student Outcomes

Introduction

The instructional and research focus of departments of Classics in the United States has traditionally been the long period of cultural history that begins roughly with the poetry of Homer (8th-7th century B.C.) and continues until approximately A.D. 200. Some of the larger departments may also have one or two specialists in the later period, i.e., from A.D. 200-600, which includes the rise of Christianity and is often labeled “Late Antiquity,” but the usual emphasis is on the languages, literatures, archeology, history, philosophy, fine arts, and civilization of pre-Christian classical antiquity. The postclassical development and use of the Greek and Latin languages are often ignored by Classics departments, even though, as is well known, Greek is the European (and Indo-European) language with the longest attested history, and Latin was Europe’s lingua franca until late in the 17th century.

By contrast, CUA’s Department of Greek and Latin, while sharing this classical or pre-Christian focus at the undergraduate and M.A. levels, has, uniquely among Classics departments, always focused at the doctoral level on the teaching of postclassical Greek and Latin and on the study of the classical tradition as it was reshaped by Christianity. Thus, the department’s faculty study and teach Greek language and literature from Homer through late antiquity, Latin from its beginnings in the 7thcentury B.C. through the late medieval period, and the history, archeology, fine arts, and civilization of both classical and Christian antiquity. Ph.D. dissertations must focus on a late antique or Medieval Latin topic.

This postclassical focus of the department is best exemplified by such publications as The Fathers of the Church, a well-known series of English translations of Greek and Latin patristic texts with more than 100 volumes to date, and by a second series, recently initiated by CUA Press and entitled The Library of Early Christianity, which has facing-page English translations and is edited by a member of the department’s faculty. Another publication, Medieval Latin: An Introduction and Bibliographical Guide (1996), co-edited by a second member of the department’s faculty, is now the standard guide to that field throughout the English-speaking world. The department has also sponsored two series of published dissertations—Patristic Studies and Studies in Medieval and Renaissance Latin Language and Literature—that have likewise enhanced its reputation as a center for the study of later Greek and Latin.

At the graduate level, the department offers three degree programs, leading to the M.A. in Greek and Latin, the M.A. in Latin, and the Ph.D. in Greek and Latin, and three certificate programs, in Greek, Latin, and Greek and Latin. It also participates in the graduate degree and certificate programs of the university’s Center for the Study of Early Christianity and Center for Medieval and Byzantine Studies, and contributes to the linguistic and historical training of graduate students in many other programs in the humanities. The department is small and benefits greatly from the participation in its programs of several affiliated faculty members from other departments, schools, and programs, who may be asked to serve as dissertation supervisors or members of dissertation committees. Moreover, a student exchange program, initiated in 1987 between the Department of Greek and Latin at CUA and the Department of Classics at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, enables graduate students in either of the departments to take courses for credit at the other. Graduate-level courses are also available, through the Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area, in the Department of Classics at the University of Maryland (College Park), the only other graduate program (M.A.) in Classics in the Washington area.

The department’s website ( provides detailed descriptions of all its graduate programs as well as much other information. All graduate students work under the direct supervision of the department’s Director of Graduate Studies.

To prepare enrolled Ph.D. students for careers in academia, the department provides them with carefully supervised opportunities to teach as sole instructors in their own classes or to serve as teaching and research assistants to regular faculty members. The department promotes the publication by its graduate students of distinguished research papers produced in courses, and will pay the registration fees of those who wish to participate in, and present papers at, scholarly conferences. It invites graduate students to participate in lunchtime colloquia initiated in 2012 and also strongly encourages their involvement in all the activities, including lectures and presentations of research in progress, sponsored by the nearby Center for the Study of Early Christianity. One graduate student is selected every year by the Chair to represent the department at meetings of the Graduate Students Association, and there are many opportunities for personal growth through service on campus committees, membership in campus associations, and participation in the religious life of the university.

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MASTERS’ DEGREE PROGRAMS

M.A. in Greek and Latin

(30 credit-hours)

Program Description

This aim of this M.A. program is to provide students with opportunities to build securely upon their previous study of Greek and Latin, to acquire broader philological expertise in both the ancient languages and a deeper exposure to Greek and Latin literature, and to develop their skills as scholars, interpreters, translators, and teachers of ancient texts. Degree candidates also receive training in research methodologies and the preparation of formal research papers. Degree requirements consist of two courses in the composition of grammatically correct Greek and Latin prose (GREEK 511, LATIN 511), two surveys of the ancient literatures (GREEK 655, LATIN 655), and six other approved courses selected in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies to reflect students’ specific academic needs and interests, as well as their plans beyond the M.A. degree. Reading competence in Greek and Latin and in French or German must also be demonstrated in sight examinations. Formal coursework and sight examinations are followed by comprehensive examinations in each language. As this program does not require completion of a master’s thesis, two research papers completed in courses must be submitted for review and approval by the faculty.

Applications for admission to this degree program are evaluated by a committee of the department’s faculty. Successful applicants must ordinarily have completed a bachelor’s degree in Classics and must provide evidence of significant prior academic achievement in the field. (Applications of high quality from others who did not major in Classics but incorporated Greek and Latin studies in their undergraduate programs, or acquired equivalent training in some other way, are also reviewed.)

In addition to the application materials required by CUA, every graduate applicant for admission to the Department of Greek and Latin must also submit an essay of approximately 1000-1500 words detailing academic interests and goals, desired career, and the reasons that prompted an application to this particular program. In this essay applicants discuss their skills and backgrounds in the broader field of Classics, describe the levels attained in both classical languages, outline any special educational experiences they may have had (e.g., an honors project, study abroad, employment as a research assistant or museum intern, etc.), and explain any items in their academic records that may not be representative of current goals and interests. A writing sample of previous academic work, perhaps a section of an undergraduate senior thesis (completed or in progress), is also required. This should be at least seven pages in length, provide evidence of direct engagement with primary sources in the ancient languages, demonstrate familiarity with relevant secondary studies, and include full references and bibliography. Two additional supplementary requirements are lists of all writings—classical, patristic, or medieval—read by the applicant in the ancient languages, and of all modern languages known or studied, with indications of the level and kind of competence attained. The Greek and Latin list is especially important, along with the academic transcript and faculty testimonials, in assessing an applicant’s linguistic training, skills, and potential for studies at the graduate level. Admitted students may also be required to take the department’s placement examinations in Greek and Latin and must make up any deficiencies in training for graduate work before they are eligible for admission to courses conferring graduate credit.

The M.A. program in Greek and Latin provides the strongest possible foundation for additional work in the broader field of Classics and the essential background for the study and interpretation of the Greek and Latin writings of the postclassical era. Graduates often continue their studies toward CUA’s Ph.D. in Greek and Latin or seek admission to doctoral programs in Classics elsewhere. One recent graduate immediately entered a Ph.D. program in Ancient History, equipped with the philological competence needed to work with the Greek and Latin sources of his chosen field of study and expertise. Others choose to pursue teaching careers at the middle or secondary school level. Graduates are also well prepared to proceed to careers in law, business, government, publishing, librarianship, and other fields that value those who have a firm command of a broad and diverse body of knowledge and have honed their skills in critical thinking, research, and writing by working closely with complex and challenging materials.

Goals for Student Learning

Students who graduate with the degree of Master of Arts in Greek and Latin will:

demonstrate advanced proficiency in the disciplinary content taught and studied in all courses, both required and elective;
read and write both ancient languages very competently and translate Greek and Latin prose and poetic texts at very high levels of accuracy and efficiency;
read and evaluate very competently Greek and Latin texts and associated scholarly studies, and produce intelligent, clear, and carefully synthesized accounts of their research that demonstrate an advanced knowledge of the field;
demonstrate mastery of the literary history of both the Greek and Latin languages and of the history of ancient Greece and Rome;
demonstrate a secure working knowledge of the fundamental tools of classical scholarship, both traditional and electronic;
demonstrate a reading knowledge of either French or German as found in scholarly journals and studies and in other academic publications.
assemble a working set of relevant professional and academic skills.

Student Assessment Outcome Measures

All of the department’s graduate students work under the direct supervision of the Director of Graduate Studies, who closely monitors their academic performance by (a) being in regular contact with both the students and their teachers; (b) offering advice about appropriate course selection; (c) reviewing grades; (d) ensuring that students meet all the requirements and expectations of the program; (e) identifying, and seeking to remedy, problems associated with a student’s preparation or approaches to studying and learning; (f) transferring, in accord with CUA’s regulations, graduate credits earned at other accredited institutions. In consultation with the Chair, the Director of Graduate Studies also appoints the two faculty members who will set and grade comprehensive and other qualifying examinations (see below) and the member who will be the second reader of the research papers required for completion of the degree. (In the case of comprehensive examinations, the Chair serves as third reader and evaluator.)
Students’ progress in their individual courses is measured by means of quizzes, tests, examinations, essays, papers, or other exercises and assignments, at the discretion of the individual instructors. Final grades are awarded in accordance with CUA’s mandated grading system, and graduate students are expected to receive no grade lower than B-, which falls between the university’s “satisfactory” designation for a grade of B and “passing but marginal” for a grade of C. Those who receive a grade of C in any course are subject to review by the department’s faculty and may be required to repeat that course or to substitute another designated by the Director of Graduate Studies; those who receive a grade of F, or a second grade of C, are subject to dismissal.
Candidates for this degree must pass, with a very high level of accuracy, sight translation examinations in Greek and Latin and in either French or German. These are taken by arrangement with the Director of Graduate Studies. The sight translation examinations in Greek and Latin, taken without a dictionary, are each one hour in length and consist of a single passage in prose and a single passage in poetry. To pass the sight translation in French or German, students must be able to translate, within one hour and with the aid of a dictionary, approximately one full page of academic French or German into standard formal English. Students who have not previously studied one of the modern languages at the college level are advised first to take and pass the graduate-level reading courses (FRENCH 500, GERMAN 500) offered by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures.
Students who have successfully completed all their required coursework and passed the sight translation examinations may proceed to take written comprehensive examinations, which are offered by arrangement on the days determined by the department and published in Cardinal Station. These consist of (a) two three-hour translation examinations, one in Greek and the other in Latin, based on official departmental lists of representative Greek and Latin texts from the classical era; and (b) two three-hour essay examinations, in Greek and in Roman literature and history, based on the texts listed in (a) and on official departmental lists of secondary scholarship, with essay questions (one or more required) drawn from official departmental lists of questions known in advance and focusing on issues and topics considered central to the study of the literature and history of the classical era. (All these lists are accessible at the department’s website.) The translation examinations evaluate students’ knowledge of the forms, syntax, and vocabulary of both the classical languages and their ability to translate efficiently and effectively selections from a wide range of representative texts. The essay examinations provide opportunities for students to demonstrate their familiarity with both primary sources and secondary studies and their ability to write critically and with clarity and imagination. A passing grade on comprehensive examinations is 80 % (B-). Each examination is graded separately and receives a “high pass” (90-100), “pass” (80-89), or “failure” (below 80). “High Pass” denotes a translation examination that demonstrates a mastery of the forms, syntax, and vocabulary of the original language; an awareness of the author’s style and diction; and an avoidance of literalism and “translationese.” A grade of “high pass” on an essay examination is awarded for excellent work that clearly and persuasively answers the questions posed, reveals familiarity with all the conventions of essay composition and standard academic prose, and displays a deep knowledge of the material. Students who fail any one of the comprehensive examinations may take it a second time.
In lieu of an M.A. thesis, students must submit two research papers completed in their courses for review and approval first by the Director of Graduate Studies, and then by one other member of the faculty.

Use of Results to Improve Student Learning

All the department’s courses are formally and anonymously evaluated twice each semester, by means of one instrument required by the School of Arts and Sciences and a second designed by the department and specific to its programs. Course instructors and the Chair then review the results to identify any instructional weaknesses. In addition to asking students to evaluate their teachers in 16 areas associated with classroom performance, the department’s evaluation form invites recommendations for specific changes and improvements.
The department’s small size—with only five regular, full-time faculty members and about fifteengraduate students in residence at any one time—permits and encourages frequent conversations among the faculty about the academic progress of all its graduate students. And more formal discussions about their performance, and about the effectiveness of the department’s programs, are held at regular monthly faculty meetings.
As part of the department’s ongoing assessment of the quality of its graduate programs and the learning experience of its students, the Chair and Director of Graduate Studies conduct exit interviews with all students who have reached the end of their programs and/or are leaving the department. These interviews help to identify areas of concern and ways in which the department may better meet the needs of its students and the educational goals of its programs. This information is shared with faculty either privately or in formal group discussions about the design of individual courses, the content of the department’s programs, the expansion or reduction of course offerings, the structure of the assessment process, and other related issues.
The Chair is charged with implementing all curricular and other program changes.

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