ILAC-PHD - Iberian & Latin American Cultures (PhD)

Overview
Pro gram Overview
Graduate Degrees describes university requirements for the PhD.
Studying Iberian and Latin American cultures at Stanford means engaging in a deep and compelling exploration of the languages, literatures, and
cultures of the Iberian Peninsula, Latin America (including Brazil), and Latinx communities in the United States. To train students as experts in these
areas, the department balances an emphasis on literary studies with philosophical, historical, and social approaches to cultural issues.
Direct o r o f G raduat e S t udies Undergraduat e/G raduat e
Lisa Surwillo Graduate
S imple Requisit es

Pro g ram Requirem ent s

T ype
Completion Requirement

Degree Overview

A total of 135 units is required for the Ph.D. During each quarter preceding advancement to TGR status, students must complete (for a letter grade)
at least two graduate courses (200- or 300-level) offered through the department. These are taken for at least three units each.
All courses counted towards the 135-unit requirement for the Ph.D. must be at the graduate level.
Students should plan on taking a course with a departmental faculty member each quarter and are encouraged to take courses with as many
department faculty members as possible during the first six quarters of study. While students are expected to demonstrate breadth across areas,
accommodations in coursework can be made in consultation with the Department Director.
During the first three years of study, students must meet with their primary advisor and the Department Director or their designee early in spring
quarter of each year to plan a course of study for the units to be completed during the summer quarter. Students who transfer graduate units from
another institution may adjust the course of study outlined below. For more details, see the Graduate Handbook corresponding to the studentʼs
first year of enrollment.
Doctoral students in the department must take required courses for a letter grade if available, and they are expected to earn a grade of B+ or
better in each course taken. Any grade of B or below is considered to be less than satisfactory. Grades of B or below are reviewed by faculty, and
the following actions may be taken:
The grade stands, and the studentʼs academic performance is monitored to ensure that satisfactory progress is being made
The grade stands, and the student is required to revise and resubmit the work associated with the course
The student may be required to retake the course

In consultation with the Department Director or their designee, students in their first year choose one major field and two minor areas of study
from the following:
A1. Medieval and Early Modern Iberian Literature and Culture
A2. Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Iberian Literature and Culture
A3. Twentieth- and Twenty-First-Century Iberian Literature and Culture
B1. Colonial and Nineteenth-Century Latin American Literature and Culture
B2. Twentieth- and Twenty-First-Century Latin American Literature and Culture
B3. Luso-Brazilian Literature and Culture
C. U.S. Latinx Literature and Culture

Areas of Study Coursework:

At least four graduate-level courses must be taken in the major field.
Students must select one minor area from a group (A, B, C) other than their major field.
At least two graduate-level courses must be taken in each minor area

First Year
During autumn, winter, and spring quarters students must enroll in at least 18 graduate units. During summer quarter, students enroll in one unit
of independent study with a departmental faculty member (ILAC399 Individual Work). Required coursework:
One 200-level or above course in literary or cultural theory.
The 300-level ILAC seminar offered each quarter.
Four 200-level or above courses in ILAC. At least one in Latin American (including Brazilian or Latinx literature and culture) and at least one
in Iberian literature and culture.
DLCL301 The Learning and Teaching of Second Languages.
Intermediate-high proficiency in Portuguese or Catalan (equivalent to one year of university study) by the end of spring quarter.

Second Year
During autumn, winter, and spring quarters students must enroll in ten graduate units, including enrollment in the 300-level ILAC seminar offered
each quarter. Students must complete at least two additional graduate seminars (200- or 300-level) offered in the department each quarter and
enroll in DLCL311 Professional Workshop during one quarter (but attend all year). In the summer quarter, students enroll in one graduate unit of
ILAC399 Individual Work with a departmental faculty member.
Third Year
During the autumn, winter, and spring quarters students who have not reached Terminal Graduate Registration (TGR) status (135 units) must
enroll in ten graduate units each quarter. Students must complete at least two graduate seminars (200- or 300-level) offered in the department
each quarter until they have completed their Comprehensive Exam. In the summer quarter, students enroll in one graduate unit of ILAC399
Individual Work with their advisor.
Fourth Year
Students who have not reached TGR status must enroll in ten units of graduate work during the autumn and winter quarters of their fourth year.
Co m plet e ALL o f t he f o llo wing Co urses:
DLCL301 - The Learning and Teaching of Second Languages
DLCL311 - Professional Workshop

Language Requirement
All students are required to have advanced-high proficiency in English and Spanish by the end of winter quarter of the third year. In addition,
students specializing in Iberian literature and culture must attain intermediate-mid proficiency in Catalan and Portuguese (equivalent to two
quarters of university study for each language); for students specializing in Latin American and/or U.S. Latinx literature and culture, the level of
advanced-low or (C1) proficiency in Portuguese (equivalent to four quarters of university study) must be attained. Alternatively, students may
study Portuguese for three quarters and Catalan or a Native American language such as Nahuatl, Quechua, or Tupi for one quarter. This
requirement must be fulfilled before students take the Comprehensive Examination. Students wishing to satisfy the language requirements in
Catalan and/or Portuguese may do so by passing a proficiency exam administered by the Language Center. Further explanation of the language
requirements and options for satisfying them can be found in the Graduate Handbook corresponding to the first year of enrollment.

Qualifying Exam
In autumn quarter of their first year, students receive a digital reader with a selection of texts related to all areas of Iberian and Latin American
literature and culture. These texts serve as the basis for the Qualifying Exam, administered the first week of autumn quarter of the studentʼs
second year of study. During the one-hour oral examination, students meet with a faculty committee. They must answer questions in English
and/or in Spanish submitted by all active members of the ILAC faculty. Students who fail this examination may request to retake it during winter
quarter of the same year. A second failure of the qualifying examination results in dismissal from the Ph.D. program. See Guidelines for Dismissal
of Graduate Students for Academic or Professional Reasons for more information.

Comprehensive Exam

This exam consists of two parts:

The submission of a written paper
An oral question and answer period.

It is designed for students to demonstrate intellectual competence in multiple areas of study. This exam occurs during spring quarter of the third
year of graduate study and must be completed before the last day of instruction in that same quarter. Students with transferred credits may take
this exam earlier in the third year. Students must select a major field and two minor areas for the exam from the following options:
A1. Medieval and Early Modern Iberian Literature and Culture
A2. Eighteenth- and Nineteenth-Century Iberian Literature and Culture
A3. Twentieth- and Twenty-First-Century Iberian Literature and Culture
B1. Colonial and Nineteenth-Century Latin American Literature and Culture
B2. Twentieth- and Twenty-First-Century Latin American Literature and Culture
B3. Luso-Afro-Brazilian Literature and Culture
C. U.S. Latinx Literature and Culture

Students must select one minor area from a group (A, B, or C) other than their major field.
The committee for the Comprehensive Exam consists of three ILAC professors, one for each of the three examination areas chosen by the student.
Students are responsible for forming their committee.
In consultation with each committee member, the student must develop a list of 130 texts (approximately 60 for the primary field and 35 for each
minor area) and propose organizing themes in discussion with the committee. In addition, the student must submit a 6,000-word research
paper. This paper must be written in English. The Comprehensive Exam reading list and research paper must be presented to committee
members and the Student Services Manager at least two weeks before the oral portion of the comprehensive exam. The oral exam is based on
the submitted list and research paper and lasts no more than two hours. Students who fail this examination may request to retake it at the
beginning of the fall quarter of the next academic year. A second failure of the qualifying examination results in dismissal from the Ph.D. program.
See Guidelines for Dismissal of Graduate Students for Academic or Professional Reasons for more information.
Addit io nal Co m m ent s:

T eaching Requirem ent

T ype
Completion Requirement

Teaching Requirement
Teaching is core to our programʼs academic and professional training of doctoral students. As such, all students must complete three quarters of
language teaching in their second year in the program as part of their degree requirements. An additional quarter of language teaching and one
quarter of teaching in literature or culture are required to further pedagogical and professional skills development and as part of the studentʼs
funding package. These courses will be determined in consultation with the Department Director and based on departmental and Language
Center needs. Typically, students complete more than the required number of teaching quarters.
A student who does not complete the five-quarter teaching requirement fails to meet academic requirements and is thus not making
satisfactory academic progress. When a student is not making satisfactory academic progress, this will be documented in writing – first as a
warning and then following the steps outlined in GAP 5.6.1 Dismissal for Academic and Professional Reasons.
Co m plet e ALL o f t he f o llo wing Co urses:
DLCL301 - The Learning and Teaching of Second Languages

Addit io nal Co m m ent s:

Advancem ent t o Candidacy

T ype
Completion Requirement

Admission to Candidacy
Admission to candidacy is an important decision by the department based on the department facultyʼs overall assessment of a studentʼs ability
to complete the Ph.D. program. According to university policy GAP 4.6.1 Admission to Candidacy, students are expected to follow department
qualifying procedures and apply for candidacy by the end of the second year in residence. In reviewing a student for admission to candidacy, the
faculty considers a studentʼs academic progress, including but not limited to:
Advanced language proficiency
Performance in courses and completion of required coursework
Performance on departmental examinations and milestones
Successful completion of teaching assistantships
Completion of at least three units of work with each of four Stanford faculty members

In addition to successfully completing departmental requirements for years one and two a student is only admitted to candidacy if the faculty
makes the judgment that the student has the potential to complete the degree program requirements successfully. Candidacy is determined by
faculty vote. Failure to be admitted to candidacy results in the studentʼs dismissal from the Ph.D. program. See GAP 5.6.1 Dismissal for Academic
and Professional Reasons for more information. Candidacy is valid for five years, and students must maintain active candidacy through the
conferral of the Ph.D. degree. All requirements for the degree must be completed before candidacy expires. Additional information about the
university candidacy policy is available in GAP 4.6 Doctoral Degrees, Candidacy.

Annual Review
The Department conducts Annual Reviews of each studentʼs academic performance at the end of spring quarter. All students are given feedback
from the Department Director, helping them identify areas of strength and potential weakness. In most cases, students are simply given
constructive feedback. However, if it is determined that a student is failing to make satisfactory progress, the Department Director will
communicate a set of requirements the student must meet within three months, at which point, the student's progress is again reviewed. If the
student has not met these requirements, the student will be dismissed from the program at the end of the current quarter.
Students leaving the program at the end of the first or second year are usually permitted to complete the requirements to receive an M.A. degree,
if this does not involve additional residency or financial support.

TGR
Co m plet e t he f o llo wing Co urse:
ILAC802 - TGR Dissertation

Doctoral students who have been admitted to candidacy, completed all required courses and degree requirements other than the University oral
exam and the dissertation, completed 135 units, and submitted a Doctoral Dissertation Reading Committee form, must request Terminal
 Graduate Registration (TGR) status to complete their dissertations. Once a student has gone to TGR, they Each quarter, all TGR students must
enroll in ILAC802 TGR Dissertation for zero units, in the appropriate section for their adviser. For more information, see the section on TGR in GAP
3.1.1. Registration, Enrollment and Academic Progress: Policy.
Co m plet e ALL o f t he f o llo wing Co urses:
ILAC802 - TGR Dissertation

Addit io nal Co m m ent s:

Oral Exam
T ype
Completion Requirement

University Oral Examination

Ph.D. candidates must take the University Oral Examination after successfully completing the Comprehensive Examination and before the end of
spring quarter of their fourth year. Students with transferred credits may take this exam earlier in the fourth year. This examination is a defense of
the dissertation prospectus. During the examination, the candidate speaks for approximately 20 minutes on the proposed dissertation, the
methods to be used in research, and the conclusions the candidate expects to reach. Afterward, in an order established by the chair of the
committee, each committee member questions the candidate further. The examination lasts no more than two hours.
The University Oral Examination committee must be finalized no later than the last week of the quarter during which the student successfully
completes the Comprehensive Examination (spring of third year). The examination committee should include the dissertation advisor and three
other members, usually from the reading committee, and a chair from outside the department, for a total of five members. A majority of the
members must belong to the Academic Council. The advisor and at least one other member must be ILAC faculty. Once a committee and date
are finalized, the student must submit the University Oral Examination form to the Student Services Manager. The oral examination committee
members must receive copies of the dissertation prospectus no later than three weeks before the examination.
The dissertation prospectus should consist of approximately ten pages (3,000 words). It must contain a title along with the following sections:
Statement of thesis
Statement of project significance, both for the studentʼs chosen sub-field(s) and the humanities at large
Chapter outline
Preliminary bibliography
Timetable for completion

Procedures for dealing with unsatisfactory performance on the University Oral Exam are outlined in GAP 4.7.1. Doctoral Degrees, University Oral
Examination & Committees: Policy. Students dismissed from the program at this stage are usually awarded an MA degree.

Addit io nal Co m m ent s:

Dissert at io n
T ype
Completion Requirement

Dissertation
The doctoral dissertation should demonstrate the studentʼs ability to carry out original research and to organize and present the results in
publishable form. A copy of the completed dissertation must be submitted to each reading committee member at least eight weeks before the
university filing deadline in the quarter during which the candidate expects the Ph.D. degree to be conferred. Committee members have three
weeks to read the dissertation before determining whether to approve or require changes. Ph.D. dissertations must be completed and approved
within five years from admission to candidacy. Students taking more than five years must apply for reinstatement of candidacy, which is reviewed
on a case-by-case basis.
The dissertation may take different formats. The standard format in our field is a monograph comprising five chapters, including the introduction
and dissertation. Depending on the topic and approach, other structures may be considered and should be discussed with the advisor as the
project develops. In consultation with their advisor, students may submit a collection of three to four published or publishable articles, together
with an introduction. If published articles are to be reused for the dissertation, see the guidelines at Student Services: Format Requirements for
Your Dissertation or Thesis (Published Papers and Multiple Authorship).

Addit io nal Co m m ent s:

Program Policies
Ext ernal Credit Po licies
PhD students coming to Stanford with a graduate degree from another university may petition for graduate residency transfer credit. They may be
awarded up to 45 Stanford units toward their Stanford PhD in French. The department director will decide about such a petition as early as the first
week of winter quarter based on the studentʼs work in autumn quarter. The petition should indicate the courses for which transfer credit is requested.
Per university policy, courses must have equivalent Stanford course numbers listed on the form, unless contributing to the non-equivalent unit
maximum. Submission of syllabi, reading lists, and a transcript is required. If the department director believes it is too early to decide, they will wait
until the first week of spring quarter to review the petition again.
IMPORTANT: Obtaining graduate residency transfer credit for graduate-level work does not waive any departmental degree requirements. Transfer
credit benefits students by reducing the minimum residency requirement needed for the PhD degree. Students who have earned a Stanford masterʼs
degree or are concurrently earning one with the PhD and who add transfer credit to their student record will increase their PhD residency requirement
from 135 to to 180 units. See the Stanford Bulletin Policy on Graduate Transfer Credit and GAP Policy on Graduate Residency Transfer Credit.

Advising Expect at io ns
The department is committed to academic advising to support graduate studentsʼ scholarly and professional development. The overall goal of
advising, both in the department and the Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages (DLCL), is to help graduate students make academic and
career choices wisely and think ahead to craft a long-term plan for their graduate student career and beyond.
Given the interdisciplinary nature of the PhD program and the opportunity it affords each student to create an individualized program of study, regular
consultation with an advisor is of the utmost importance. The advisor for all entering graduate students is the department director, who is responsible
for assisting students with their course planning and keeping a running check on progress in completing the course, teaching, and language
requirements. By the end of the second year of study, each student should have chosen a faculty advisor whose expertise is appropriate to their own
area of research and interests.
When most effective, the advising relationship entails collaborative and sustained engagement by the advisor and the advisee. As a best practice,
advising expectations should be periodically discussed and reviewed to ensure mutual understanding. Both the advisor and the advisee are expected
to maintain professionalism and integrity. Advising is academically invaluable for transmitting expertise and is an essential aspect of creating a strong
departmental and Stanford community. See the VPGE for university information regarding advising.
Facult y Adviso rs
Faculty advisors guide students in critical areas such as selecting courses, designing and conducting research, developing teaching pedagogy,
navigating policies and degree requirements, and exploring academic opportunities and professional pathways.
Upon enrolling, students plan their work under the direction of the department director, or their designee. When the student selects a more
specialized advisor, the transition must involve oral or written communication between both advisors and the student concerning the
studentʼs progress, goals, and expectations. PhD students -may choose two primary advisors at the dissertation stage, provided all agree this
is academically sound.
Faculty advisors are expected to meet with assigned students to discuss their selection of courses and to plan from a broader, longer-term
perspective, including: a discussion of program milestones and a basic timeline; an overview of department and DLCL offerings beyond
courses; student goals and interests and DLCL or Stanford programs that may be relevant; and (for PhD students) how to transfer previous
graduate coursework.
Faculty advisors and graduate students are expected to meet at least once per quarter to assess the adviseeʼs course of study, performance
over the past quarter, and upcoming and longer-term plans. If a student has two advisors, the student is expected to meet at least once per
quarter with each advisor and at least once per year with both advisors simultaneously.
Faculty are obligated to help their advisees plan for exams, research grant applications, develop research projects, and prepare for the
academic job market and the job search beyond academia.
Faculty advisors are required to provide feedback about the studentʼs progress to the department during the annual review process. For more
information about the annual review, see the Graduate Handbook.

G raduat e St udent s
Graduate students are active contributors to the advising relationship, proactively seeking academic and professional guidance and taking
responsibility for informing themselves of policies and degree requirements for their graduate program.
Upon enrolling, students plan their work under the direction of the department director, or their designee. When the student selects a more
specialized advisor, the transition must involve oral or written communication between both advisors and the student concerning the
studentʼs progress, goals, and expectations. PhD students may choose two primary advisors at the dissertation stage, provided all agree this is
academically sound.
As the student develops a field of expertise, the student chooses a program advisor to replace the department director, or their designee. The
transition must involve oral or written communication between advisors and the student concerning the studentʼs progress, goals, and
expectations.
Graduate students and faculty advisors are expected to meet at least once per quarter to assess the adviseeʼs course of study, performance
over the past quarter, and upcoming and longer-term plans. If a student has two advisors, the student is expected to meet at least once per
quarter with each advisor and at least once per year with both advisors simultaneously. It is the studentʼs responsibility to schedule an
appointment with each advisor at least once per quarter.
Students are expected to consult with their advisors on all academic matters, including coursework, conference presentations and
publications, research travel, and teaching plans.
Students are required to provide a thorough self-evaluation each year for the annual review. For more information about the annual review, see
the Graduate Handbook.

Learning Outcomes
Learning Outcomes
Pro gram Learning Out co mes
The PhD in Iberian and Latin American Cultures is conferred upon candidates who have demonstrated substantial scholarship and the ability to
conduct independent research and analysis in the areas and traditions taught by the department. By completing advanced coursework and rigorous
skills training, the doctoral program prepares students to develop innovative research and present the results of this research to the world in
compelling ways.