Charles University Faculty of Arts

Ph.D. in Anglophone Literatures and Cultures

Basic structure of study requirements within the PhD programme

ANGLOPHONE LITERATURES AND CULTURES

All study requirements are set in bold. Unless stated otherwise, the examination takes the form of a course credit (“zápočet”). Apart from the requirements listed below, students are obliged to consult with their supervisors on a regular basis, develop international contacts, and cooperate in the research tasks of the department, including those within appropriate research grants.

1. REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO THE MONITORING OF THESIS PROGRESS

1.1 Doctoral Seminar (AXALDOS03–06, from Year 5 onwards AXALDOS03 registered repeatedly)

- The seminar consists of the following semester-long modules:

a) 2 semester-long courses (1 year in total) covering basic theoretical and methodological topics of the programme’s specialization, in the first and second year of study. While Rhetoric in Philosophy and Literature is a course typically on offer, a different course may be available (for instance, Literate Technologies). The courses are supplemented with lecturers’ presentations concerning practical issues of PhD studies (so-called “transferable skills”), such as types of publications and their registration in databases, sources of grant funding and information on application procedures, presentation of research results at conferences, creation of an academic portfolio in view of the job market, etc.

b) 3 years of presentations on the details of the thesis outline or individual thesis chapters, and the outcomes of the student’s other research activities, as well as discussions with the supervisor(s) about methodology, under the general supervision of the PhD Programme Board Chair, or a member of the PhD Programme Board appointed by the Chair.

- In case of a research stay abroad, the student’s absence from the doctoral seminar is excused; however, the requirements to complete 2 courses (see “a”) and present the results of the work on the thesis (see “b”) remain in place.

- Required time of completion: The Doctoral Seminar requirement will be automatically registered in the Student Information System (SIS) in Years 1-3 of study.

1.2 Submission of an Extended Dissertation Proposal (AXALDIS01)

- The extended dissertation proposal must follow the supervisor’s suggestions and comments on the provisional proposal presented at the entrance exam. These include namely: (a) specification of the overall topic and aims of the dissertation based on research in primary and secondary sources, (b) hypotheses, expected outcomes, and an argument as to their significance, (c) a detailed discussion of and argument supporting the methodologies applied, (d) a detailed description of the dissertation structure together with a time schedule of the individual stages (chapters) completion, (e) a detailed list of secondary sources, and any optional addenda. The extended dissertation proposal is to demonstrate that the student has completed the majority of tasks associated with the work on the thesis. This requirement is crucial for the assessment of the student’s work on the dissertation topic against the agreed research schedule. It ascertains whether the student will be able to successfully continue working on the dissertation topic. Formally, the submitted extended proposal may be structured into individual points, or presented as a continuous text (based on prior arrangement with the supervisor). The required extent is 15-20 standardized pages (1 standardized page = 30 lines per page, 60 characters per line).

- Required time of completion: Year 2 of study.

1.3 A Dissertation Chapter or Another Concise Dissertation Output (AXALDIS02-03, from Year 5 onwards AXALDIS02 registered repeatedly)

- Minimum extent: 35 standardized pages. The student may present their work in progress as part of the Doctoral Seminar.

- Required time of completion: Every year from Year 3 onwards.

2. BASIC STUDY REQUIREMENTS

Requirements mandatory for all students of the PhD programme

2.1 Foreign Language

- Based on a consultation with the supervisor, the student chooses to sit for an exam in one of the following languages: German (AXJAZ0005), French (AXJAZ0002) or Spanish (AXJAZ0007).

- Required time of completion: Year 1 to Year 3 of study, as agreed with the supervisor.

2.2 Philosophy (AXOBEC002)

- Graded paper on a philosophy topic related to the dissertation project.

- Required time of completion: Year 1 to Year 3 of study, as agreed with the supervisor.

Requirements assigned individually upon consulting the supervisor

2.3 Individual Study Requirements

- In accordance with the nature of the dissertation topic, the supervisor assigns at least one, and at most three additional requirements: the completion of 1-3 optional specialization seminars, theoretically and/or methodologically relevant to the dissertation topic. The supervisor may also assign a third Other Research Activity (see below, section 3.4) instead of Individual Study Requirements.

- Required time of completion: Year 1 to Year 3 of study.

3. RESEARCH ACTIVITIES

The submission of the dissertation for a defence (viva, “obhajoba” in Czech) is conditional upon the completion of the following: (1) acceptance of at least one article in a peer-reviewed journal or monograph for publication, (2) active participation in at least one conference, (3) at least one research stay abroad, (4) a minimum of two other activities (as listed below).

3.1 Research Stay Abroad (AXALOAK09)

- Typically, this is a formally confirmed research stay at an academic institution, including research libraries, of one month duration at the minimum. The year of completion is not specified, as the stay abroad depends upon current scholarship calls which cannot be fully predicted. This requirement may be met also subsequent to passing the Final Exam (see 4 below); its completion is only required before signing up for the thesis defence.

- In justified cases, e.g. childcare, the research stay abroad may be replaced, based on a written petition endorsed by the Dean, with some of the following research activities: active participation in a conference, scholarly editorial work, translation of an academic text, teaching at university level, or an academic publication.

3.2 Academic Publication (AXALOAK10)

- One academic article in a peer-reviewed journal or a chapter in a collective monograph accepted for publication.

- The year of completion is not specified. This requirement may be met also subsequent to passing the Final Exam; its completion is only required before signing up for the thesis defence.

3.3 Active Participation in a Conference (AXALOAK11)

- Only international conferences where paper proposals are subject to peer-review are eligible.

- The year of completion is not specified. This requirement may be met also subsequent to passing the Final Exam; its completion is only required before signing up for the thesis defence.

3.4 Other Research Activity (AXALOAK12-13)

- The student chooses two of the following activities:

o a grant application (including work on a subsequently unsuccessful application),

o scholarly editorial work (collaboration in editing conference proceedings, thematic journal issues, specialized dictionaries, or collective monographs),

o translation of an academic text (such as scholarly articles, monograph chapters, etc.),

o participation in hosting a conference (involving the preparation of the academic programme; assistance with logistics only is not eligible),

o teaching at university level: elective seminars at undergraduate or graduate level, strictly under the supervisor’s guidance, provided that the student expresses their interest and is in a position to present the outcomes of their research to undergraduate and graduate students.

- The year of completion is not specified. This requirement may be met also subsequent to passing the Final Exam; its completion is only required before signing up for the thesis defence.

- The supervisor may assign a third Other Research Activity instead of one Individual Study Requirement, as per 2.3 above.

4. FINAL EXAM (ASDZK0001)

- Required time of completion: Year 3 of study

- Completion of ALL study requirements from the Basic Study Requirements section of the plan is a prerequisite for submitting an application for the Final Exam.

- The state doctoral examination is set to test the knowledge of the methodological and factual issues of the specialization as a whole. The subject matter of the examination is related to the complete development of the studied branch of literature, with possible comparative overlaps into other Anglophone literatures. Emphasis is being put on mastering the methods and terminology of critical theory. The examination takes approximately 1 hour, with a 30-minute student presentation on a topic assigned in advance, and a 30-minute discussion about the presentation led by the chair of the Board of Examiners.

5. THESIS DEFENCE (viva, “obhajoba disertační práce”) (AX0007305)

- Completion of ALL study requirements prescribed in the Individual Study Plan is a prerequisite for submitting an application for the defence.

Standard duration of study: 4 years.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE INDIVIDUAL STUDY PLAN (ISP)

The template of the ISP is created in the SIS by the Information Systems Office (“Oddělení informačních systémů”), assigning automatically to every doctoral student the requirements common to all students in the PhD programme (i.e., those items in the general curriculum above that feature a code). Once this basic ISP is created, the student – having consulted the supervisor – must add the following in the SIS:

1. Foreign Language, choosing from languages associated in the SIS with the respective study plan.

2. Individual Study Requirements as specified above. These requirements may be added either by choosing an already existing course, or (in case the course does not appear in the SIS yet) by entering a so-called “course description” (“popis předmětu”) which outlines the given requirement, and will be paired with an appropriate course in the SIS later.

3. Year of completion for any requirements in the plan above that do not have the year of completion set by default.

Graduates are highly qualified specialists in literary and cultural studies focused on Anglophone countries, especially the literatures and cultures of the British Isles and North America. They have a solid command of contemporary theoretical and methodological approaches to the analysis and interpretation of texts in an interdisciplinary framework, are able to conduct independent research and to work at tertiary level in the areas of literary and cultural histories of the United Kingdom, USA, Ireland and other English-speaking countries, and in related literary and cultural areas. They have mastered the use of a wide range of sources and data and are able to communicate research results within academia as well as to the wider public. They are able to participate in group research projects and work in international research teams.