Ph.D. Program An M.A. degree is normally required for admission to the Ph.D., and the candidate must have passed a sight-reading examination in either Latin or Greek. The emphasis in the early stages of the program is on wide reading in Greek and Latin, in order to promote fluency, and to acquire the elements of the broad first-hand knowledge of the ancient world necessary for professional work as a Classicist. Reading courses are offered in both languages to help achieve these ends, together with courses on the principal authors and genres. Within one year of the M.A., students must pass a second modern language sight examination. One of the two modern languages must be German.
Seminars are a key part of the program.
It is especially in the seminars that the professional techniques of classical scholarship are conveyed, while the students' presentations and papers train them in the skills necessary for effective communication and research. These examinations are normally taken in a two-semester period, beginning two years after the M.A. is completed. Each student must write a dissertation which makes a significant contribution to scholarship. There is a two-hour oral examination. Catullus All Cicero Orations Pro Caelio, Cat.