University of Pennsylvania Fully Funded PhD in French and Francophone Studies

About PhD Program,

Interdisciplinary study is encouraged through participation in the wide range of seminars, lectures, and colloquia sponsored by the various Graduate Groups and affiliated research institutes and centers at Penn. Students may complement their studies with up to four courses outside the French section by earning a certificate in addition to the Ph.D. Certificate programs are available in the areas of Women and Gender  Studies, Cinema Studies, African Studies, and Urban Studies. Earning a certificate indicates a specialty in one of the aforementioned areas, but is not required as part of the student’s course of study.

Graduate students in French also participate in The Penn Humanities Forum which also provides a venue for doctoral students to interact with colleagues from across the disciplines.

In addition to being within a 100 mile radius to more than a dozen  institutions (such as Temple, Drexel, Haverford, Swathmore, Bryn Mawr, Princeton, Rutgers, Columbia, New York University, City University of New York, Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland, and the University of Delaware), The University of Pennsylvania enjoys reciprocal agreements with several other nearby institutions including Princeton and Columbia which allow students to complete a number of courses there while enrolled in a graduate program at Penn. Locally, the University’s location in Philadelphia provides easy access to the social and cultural resources of a dynamic and affordable metropolitan center

PhD Program Degree Eligibility with GPA,   

Students will be required to complete satisfactorily 17 courses, for a total of 17 course units (CUs). All students should take at least one course in each period of French literature. The choice of courses should also reflect a diversity of theoretical, critical, and methodological approaches. Papers should be presented following MLA guidelines and, in at least half of the French courses, should be written in French. Students may take up to three courses outside of French, either in another language or in another field pertinent to the prospective area of specialization. Comparative literature courses that are not cross-listed with French but partially deal with French texts should be discussed with the instructor and the Graduate Chair; such courses may be given French credit, depending on the amount of reading and writing done in French. Students are expected to meet each semester with the Graduate Chair to discuss seminar selection and for approval of extra-departmental courses.

Normally a student will register for eight courses in the first year and three courses per semester for four additional semesters, or until all course requirements are met. Please find below a typical breakdown of coursework, including seminar electives and required courses covering exam preparation and pedagogical training.

PhD Funding Coverage,

All students admitted to the Graduate Program in French & Francophone Studies receive a Benjamin Franklin Fellowship, which guarantees five years of financial support (tuition remission, Penn’s health insurance, and a 12-month stipend) to students who continue in good academic standing. The fellowship requires a two-year teaching assistantship as service to the department.

In addition, the Graduate School has made funds available to the Department to subsidize students’ travel and research expenses as follows:

• Up to $500 per conference for a limited number of students delivering papers at scholarly conferences, to be awarded competitively on a yearly basis. A student may receive up to three such awards from the department during his/her graduate career. Students should first apply for Graduate Student Travel Subvention through the School of Arts and Sciences (SAS), which grants a maximum of $500. Students are then eligible for up to $500 beyond the SAS award if their travel expenses exceed that award.
• Financial assistance for a limited number of students undertaking short-term research abroad or summer academic programs to be awarded competitively on a yearly basis. Funds may not be used solely for the purposes of enhancing language proficiency.
• Up to $600 each for students attending the MLA Convention for the purpose of job interviews (awarded once to all such students).

Please see the Graduate Coordinator for application details.

Students can also apply for travel grants from GAPSA.

Students who have finished all pre-dissertation requirements and who no longer receive fellowship support are eligible for a lectureship. These awards provide a stipend for every course taught and may cover the dissertation tuition. The Department also has a small number of one-year, non-renewable full-time lectureships reserved for recent graduates.

Both forms of financial support described above are awarded on the basis of academic merit.  For need-based financial assistance, such as student loans, please contact Student Financial Services at (215) 898-1988; E-mail: SFSMail@sfs.upenn.edu.

Application Requirement,

Candidates for admission to the Ph.D. program should have fluency in French as well as an excellent undergraduate record, strong letters of recommendation, and demonstrated skill in academic writing.

• Following are the required components of the application, which MUST be received by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences via an online application no later than January 1 at 11:59pm PST.
• Copies of all undergraduate and graduate transcripts- Your application must include an UNOFFICIAL transcript from the institution(s) where you did previous academic work at the undergraduate or graduate level. The transcripts should be scanned and submitted electronically with your application. If you are admitted to the program, you will be required to confirm the information by sending an official copy of the transcript before matriculating.
• Three letters of recommendation
• A personal statement(1-2 pages in length) -Your personal statement is an important part of your application. The admissions committee looks not only at the general background and qualifications of the applicants, but also at the fit between your specific goals and interests, and the kind of research conducted by the members of the graduate group.
• In the personal statement, all Ph.D. applications within the Graduate Division of Arts & Sciences should address the following:
• Please describe how your background and academic experiences have influenced your decision to pursue a graduate degree and led you to apply to Penn. Your essay should detail your specific research interests and intellectual goals within your chosen field. Please provide information about your educational trajectory, intellectual curiosity and academic ambitions. If you have overcome adversity and/or experienced limited access to resources or opportunities in your field of study, please feel free to share how that has affected the course of your education. We are interested in your lived experiences and how your particular perspective might contribute to the inclusive and dynamic learning community that Penn values and strives to create.
• A writing sample in French(10-15 pages in length) – A writing sample, such as a substantial term paper or thesis from previous undergraduate or graduate work, is necessary for the faculty to assess your research experience. The document should be converted to .pdf format and submitted electronically with your application. In the event that your writing sample exceeds the application platform’s file size limit, you may e-mail the document to the Graduate Coordinator.
• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores– This applies to all international students who are not native speakers of English, unless they have received a post-secondary degree at an American college or university. Please arrange to take the TOEFL test (if applicable) by a date that will guarantee that your scores will be forwarded to the University of Pennsylvania by the December 16 deadline.  For testing dates and locations, refer to TOEFL. The Institution Code for the University of Pennsylvania is 2926. You do not have to include the Department/ Major Field Code.
• The application fee is $90.00. Payments must be made by credit card, check, or international postal money order written in U.S. currency and made payable to the “Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania.”
• Application fee waiver inquiries and requests can be sent to gdasadmis@sas.upenn.edu.

Application Deadline,

Jan 01, 2025

Application Fee

The application fee is $90.00. Payments must be made by credit card,