Deadline: January 15, 2020
The
Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures at the University of
Virginia welcomes applications for three graduate programs, the MA in
Contemporary Russian Studies,
the MA in Slavic Languages and Literatures, and the PhD in Slavic
Languages and Literatures.
The MA in
Contemporary Russian Studies offers courses in Russian literature,
language, culture, history, politics, art history, religious studies,
and sociology, as
well as further study in advanced Russian language.
The MA and PhD in Slavic Languages and Literatures train graduate students primarily in Russian literature, culture, and advance language skills toward professional-level proficiency. At the PhD level students take secondary offerings in Polish language and Polish and Central European literature and film. Students may also take courses in related areas in other language departments, English, History, and Religious Studies, among many others.
Among the distinctive aspects of UVA’s graduate programs in Slavic is rigorous training to a high level of proficiency in Russian language. Students have Oral Proficiency Interviews at each level of study. Students may attend regular Russian teas, take a role in the Russian play, participate in meals and events at the 24/7 Russian-language Russian House, and a host of other events. The University has ample funds for graduate students to organize events related to Slavic cultures and to support foreign-language study and dissertation research abroad.
Other strengths of the UVA Slavic program include the opportunity to work with distinguished faculty. Areas of faculty expertise include museum studies, prison-camp literature and gulag studies, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Nabokov, intellectual history, Russian philosophy and religion, digital humanities, and literary cartography. Students enjoy an effective faculty-student mentorship program and an excellent library collection with highly responsive acquisition services.
UVA’s Slavic graduate students form an active community. They run a speaker series, host professionalization workshops, organize an annual conference, publish a newsletter, and enjoy convivial social gatherings.
UVA offers generous five-year funding packages for PhD students. The Department occasionally has partial funding and work opportunities for MA students. Depending on their language proficiency, UVA PhD students typically gain experience teaching language at various levels, as well as assisting in teaching undergraduate literature and folklore courses. Other opportunities for support are available through related departments and programs.
The deadline for on-line applications is January 15, 2020.
For information about Slavic programs and the application process, please visit the Slavic Department website at: http://artsandsciences.virginia.edu/slavic/, or contact Director of Graduate Studies Edith W. Clowes at: clowes@virginia.edu or eec3c@virginia.edu.