Germanic Languages & Literatures

Non-Thesis Master's Degree

1. 30 credit hours of graduate work in German* (this requirement may be reduced for students in high standing), including GERM 700, GERM 702, GERM 712, and at least 1 literature course from each of the following periods:
   • Age of Goethe or Romanticism,
   • 19th century,
   • 20th century,
   • or, in exceptional cases, equivalent seminars (GERM 960 - GERM 966) must be included in the minimum. Equivalent courses may be substituted with the approval of the departmental graduate committee.
   • The remaining 12 hours may be taken from departmental course offerings in literature, philology, and linguistics at the graduate level. 
2. A reading knowledge of Danish, Dutch, or French.
3. A written and oral examination.

*Additionally, Graduate Teaching Assistants normally must enroll in GERM 800 concurrently with their first semester of teaching.

Thesis Option Master's

The department also offers all M.A. students the option to complete a Master's thesis. The requirements for students in the thesis track M.A. are the same as those for the non-thesis track M.A., except they also include the successful defense of a completed and approved master’s thesis (3 hours of GERM 899 Master's Thesis). 

Students must declare whether they will choose the thesis or non-thesis option by the end of their second semester of study. For further details about the thesis track M.A. and the declaration process, see the Graduate Handbook.