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Current
Graduate Students
Recent
Dissertations
Graduate Courses
Applying
to the Graduate Program through the History Department and the Department of Religious
Studies:
(For other department options, such as Near
Eastern Langugages and Civilizations, Spanish and Portuguese,
for example, consult the chair of the Program or other
core members of the faculty.)
The
guidelines for graduate students are intended to assist
students in developing a suitable program of study within
the field. All graduate students in Judaic Studies must
consult with the Director of Graduate Studies for Judaic
Studies (Steven
Fraade), and with the Director of Graduate Studies
for the relevant department in order to meet departmental
requirements. Graduate students are required to meet
with the faculty in Judaic Studies early in their academic
program in order to discuss prerequisites and requirements
and to design a course of study which will best prepare
them for their qualifying examinations and subsequent
work.
The
standard procedure for applying to the Yale Graduate
School must be followed. Applications must be submitted on the website. Applicants should go to Graduate Admissions; you may contact the office by phone for more information: 203-432-2770. Previous language study should be described
in full. Applicants
are strongly urged to insure that recommenders have
mailed their letters of recommendation not later than
the end of January at the latest in order for them to
be taken into account, since admission decisions are
normally made in the second week of February.
The
Program FAX number is 203-432-4889. Prospective applicants
may schedule a visit to Yale by contacting the Director
of Graduate Studies in the Program (Steven Fraade) at
203-432-0828. (Please note that official letters of
admission are not mailed until mid-March, and that the
office will not be able to provide application results
by telephone in advance of that date.)
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Language
Requirements
Students
are expected upon entering the program to have attained
a mastery of Hebrew, both of primary sources an modern
Israeli scholarship, appropriate to their field of study.
Proficiency in two other scholarly languages, usually
German and French, must be demonstrated before the beginning
of the third year and proficiency in at least one of
those languages must be demonstrated before the end
of the first year of course work. Proficiency is demonstrated
by (1) passing an examination administered by the department;
(2) by accreditation from a Yale Summer School course
designed for this purpose; or (3) by achieving a grade
of A or B in one of Yale's intermediate language courses.
Other languages appropriated to the student's field
of study (e.g., Greek, Aramaic, Arabic, Yiddish, Polish)
may be required. Limited funding is available through
the Graduate School and the Judaic Studies Program to
offset the expenses of intensive summer language study.
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Course
Work
Students
should complete a minimum of twelve term courses during
the first two years, including at least one major research
paper per semester. Students must normally achieve Honors
in at least two term courses during each of their first
two years. Courses are to be selected in consultation
with the student's faculty adviser. Students may be
required to take more than two years of course work,
but no more than three, if deemed necessary by their
adviser.
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Distribution
Course Requirement
All
students must take at least one course in each of the
following historical periods: ancient, medieval and
early modern, and modern. For periods other than a student's
specialization, this requirement can be satisfied through
a survey course, an appropriate seminar, or a reading
course, with the choice approved by the faculty member
who specializes in that period.
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Study in Israel
Where
feasible, study at an Israeli university as part of
one's program may be encouraged.
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Yearly Review
The faculty will review the work of each student at
the end of each academic year, communicating to the
student areas of strength and weakness.
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Qualifying Examinations
Exams
are typically either three-five hours written or two
hours oral, or some combination thereof, to be determined
in consultation with faculty examiners. All exams, whether
written or oral, must have two faculty examiners. They
are to be completed by the beginning of the student's
fourth year, or by January of the fourth year if the
student was required to take third-year courses.
A.
Examinations in two areas of specialization: These
two exams will cover two aspects of the student's field
of study (e.g., literature and history, or two adjacent
historical periods). The specific range of subjects
covered is to be determined through consultation with
the faculty adviser.
B.
Ancillary field: Each student, in consultation
with the faculty adviser, will define at least one ancillary
field outside of Judaic Studies, representing one ancillary
field outside of Judaic Studies, representing a broader
historical or methodological context of his or her field
of study. Where feasible, a faculty member from outside
of Judaic Studies will assist in composing and reading
this exam.
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Dissertation
Prospectus
After completing the above requirements,
the student in close consultation with the faculty adviser,
will write a dissertation prospectus, to be approved
by a colloquium of faculty members from Judaic Studies
and other relevant fields. The prospectus itself ordinarily
should include a statement of the precise nature of
the topic, its significance, its relationship to previous
work, and the method and sources to be employed.
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Dissertation
Students normally begin writing their dissertation in
the fourth year and normally will have finished by the
end of the. The completed dissertation must be approved
by a committee of three readers and the departmental
faculty. There is no oral examination on the dissertation.
Recent
Dissertations.
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Teaching
Fellowships
Teaching fellowship are often available, and they offer
an opportunity to gain fluency with the subject matter
of the program and to develop pedagogical and lecturing
skills under the supervision of an experienced teacher.
Students are required to serve as teaching fellows for
two semesters, preferably in courses related to their
field of study. Teaching fellowships are usually available
during a student's third and fourth years of study.
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The
Judaic Studies Faculty and Graduate Student Seminar
Approximately once every other week, faculty and graduate
students interested in Judaic Studies meet over lunch
in the Whitney Humanities Center for an informal seminar,
the topic of which changes every semester. Presentations
are made by Yale faculty, visiting faculty, and invited
guests on subjects of their research relating to the
semester's topic, with ample time for discussion by
all of the participants. This provides an important
opportunity for conversation across temporal and disciplinary
boundaries within Judaic Studies as well as an informal
opportunity to integrate Yale's impressive resources
in Judaic Studies. Regular attendance is expected
of all students enrolled in the Judaic Studies graduate
program and of participating faculty. Lunch is provided.
Topic for Spring, 2007.
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