Admission to Graduate Studies

An applicant seeking to pursue graduate study in the College may be admitted as either a degree-seeking or non-degree seeking student. Policies and procedures of Graduate Studies govern the process of Graduate admission. These may be found in the Graduate Studies section of the online catalog.

Please consult the Departments & Programs section of the online catalog for information regarding program-specific admissions criteria and requirements. Special admissions requirements pertain to Interdisciplinary Studies degrees, which may be found in the Graduate Studies section of the online catalog.

Admission to the M.A. Program in French

In addition to the general admission requirements from the Office of Graduate Studies, applicants should have the equivalent of a major in French at the B.A. level, with a minimum of 9 hours of advanced undergraduate course work in French literature.

Submit your graduate application online.  For further information regarding the application process, including department-specific deadlines and required supplemental documentation, please visit the Admissions page of the department website, or contact the department's Graduate Program Coordinator, Aley Pennington, aleypennington@ku.edu.

M.A. Degree Requirements

1. 30 credit hours, including*

   Course List

   Code	Title	Hours
   FREN 704	Methods in Foreign Language Instruction	3
   FREN 720	Introduction to Graduate Studies in French	3
   FREN 610	Theme et Version	3
   Select one of the following:
   FREN 900	Seminar in French: _____ (2 seminars of 3 hours each, totaling 6 credits)
   FREN 899	M.A. Thesis (3 credits of enrollment over 2 semesters, totaling 6 credits)

   As part of the 30-hour requirement, students may also take: *In the event that a required course cannot be offered during the time when the student completes coursework, the student will take a substitute course in consultation with the DGS.
   • A maximum of two graduate-level courses (up to 6 hours) outside the department. (e.g. Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies, Linguistics, Art History, Film Studies, etc.) This selection should be determined in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies.
   • A maximum of 3 hours of FREN 795 Investigation and Conference.
   • Current elective offerings can be found on the departmental website. 

2. A reading knowledge of a second Romance language, Greek, Latin, German, Arabic, or other relevant language.

3. Comprehensive written and oral examinations. 
   1. Students are expected to complete their M.A. written and oral examinations in the fourth semester of their studies. No graduate student who has an outstanding “Incomplete” in a course will be allowed to take the qualifying exams. The exam is given two times a year: in the spring semester before April 1 and in the fall semester before November 1. Students have 5 hours to complete the written examination, which is based on a reading list covering all periods of French and Francophone literature. The first day will include identifications and short essay questions (2 hrs.); the second day will be devoted to long essay questions (3 hrs.). Exams are taken on computer. Students will not be allowed to use any other electronic devices, the internet, or any outside resources while taking the exam. Any violation of this rule will result in a charge of academic misconduct, which could result in a failing grade for the exam. The examination is graded as follows: “Strong pass,” “Pass,” “Weak pass,” or “Fail.” Once the candidate’s exam has been read and graded (normally within 7 to 10 days), the DGS confers with the graduate faculty to discuss and confirm the evaluations, and then informs the student of the results.
   2. After the written examination is passed, an oral exam will be scheduled (typically within 2 to 3 weeks), with a committee of 3 faculty members. The oral exam lasts approximately 2 hours and consists of (a) the candidate’s commentaire de texte, followed by discussion, and (b) questions covering all areas of French and Francophone literature. One week before the oral examination, the candidate, in consultation with the graduate director, will choose the author for the commentaire de texte. The Director of Graduate Studies, in consultation with the members of the examination committee, will choose the short text or passage to be analyzed and will give a copy of the text to the student 2 hours prior to the examination. The commentaire de texte must be given in French. In the discussion and question period that follows, the candidate should expect to speak both French and English and normally should answer in the language in which a question is asked.
   3. Grading categories for the oral exam: “Honors,” “Pass,” or “Fail.”
   4. A student who passes the M.A. exams and who wishes to pursue a doctorate at the University of Kansas should so inform the Director of Graduate Studies, who will convene the graduate faculty. The student will submit a 15-20 page writing sample, a statement of intent, a transcript, and one letter of recommendation from a department faculty member. The graduate faculty will evaluate the materials and vote to admit or deny admission into the Ph.D. program.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

At least 50% of coursework for the master’s degree must be taken at the 700 level or above. 

Handbook for Graduate Students

A detailed presentation of departmental processes and regulations is included in the department’s Graduate Student Handbook.

Summer Language Institute in Paris

The department conducts a 6-week summer institute in Paris focusing on French language and culture. Students take courses in intermediate and advanced French language at L’Etoile, a private language institute in the center of Paris. Before the stay in Paris, students spend 10 days to 2 weeks touring regions such as Normandy, Brittany, and the château country along the Loire River. Some scholarship aid is available. Consult the department or the Office of Study Abroad for information.