Admissions Requirements

Application Process

The admissions requirements listed below are particular to this Department and must be read in conjunction with the general requirements of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS). For more information about the application process, see the GSAS website. Please note that all applications must be filed online through the GSAS website.

For a list of required application materials and deadlines, see the Slavic Department page on the GSAS website.

General Requirements

For all Slavic graduate programs, an undergraduate major in the appropriate Slavic language and literature is desirable but not required. The Department will also consider applicants with solid backgrounds in other literatures, history, philosophy, religion, or other disciplines in the humanities. Non-native speakers of English must demonstrate proficiency in English on the TOEFL examination, unless their undergraduate degree is from an institution in a country whose official language is English.

Students interested in combining the study of any of the Slavic literatures with the study of comparative literature should refer to the admissions information on the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society website, as well as the pages on the Slavic website describing our various graduate programs. Students interested in combining the study of any of the Slavic literatures with area studies should see the requirements for the Harriman Certificate.

Language Requirements

Admission to the Russian track of the programs in Slavic Languages and to the program in Russian Translation normally presupposes four years of college-level Russian (or; the equivalent). Graduate students in the Russian Literature track are expected to read both Russian literature and literary criticism in the original and be able to participate in graduate classes conducted in Russian. Admission to the Czech, Polish, South Slavic, or Ukrainian track of the program in Slavic Languages, requires two or three years of college-level instruction (or the equivalent) in the relevant language. The M.A. program in Slavic Cultures does not have an explicit language requirement for admission.