Graduate Admission and Financial Support

Applying for admission If you have explored our MA and PhD programs and are thinking about applying, you may want to consult our frequently-asked questions about our graduate programs to assist you in making your plans.  Our advisers are always willing to meet with prospective students to discuss the department and your potential place within it, as well; click here to find out how to contact them for a telephone or in-person appointment. Once you are ready to apply, you should consult the Graduate Admissions section of the CUA university website for more information.  Click here to learn more about online application and to see the contents of a basic graduate application packet, to which you will need to add the following supplementary materials:		The Arch of Septimius Severus and the Temple of Saturn in the Forum Romanum, Rome

Supplementary materials required for a graduate application to the Department of Greek and Latin
1.  An essay of approximately 1000-1500 words detailing your academic interests and goals, the sort of career you hope to pursue, and the reasons that have led you to apply to this particular program at the Catholic University of America.  This essay replaces the "Statement of Purpose" requested in the "Application for Admission to Graduate Studies."

Suggestions:  The essay is one of the most important parts of your application.  It represents an opportunity to present a coherent narrative of your academic career to date, to discuss your plans, and to demonstrate why CUA in particular is an appropriate bridge between your past and your future.  It is particularly recommended that you discuss your skills and background in the broader field, describe the levels that you have attained in the ancient languages, mention any special educational experiences you may have had (e.g. an honors project, study abroad, experience as a research assistant or museum intern, etc.), and explain any items in your academic record that may not be representative of your current goals and interests.

2.  A writing sample of previous academic work.  This should be a paper of at least seven pages, based on research in both primary and secondary sources and offering full references (footnotes or endnotes) and a bibliography.  For best consideration, you should submit your most sophisticated work to date, preferably a project which has been well-received by your former teachers.  Please submit a clean, unmarked copy.

Suggestions:  The writing sample, if at all possible, should show direct engagement with primary sources in the ancient languages; ideally, it should also be fairly recent.  Writing samples completed as an undergraduate should generally be selected from the upperclass years.  A section of an undergraduate senior thesis or an MA thesis in progress is acceptable if the section itself is completely finished and polished, with all references complete.

3.  A list, on a separate sheet, of the modern languages you have studied or know.  You should indicate whether your competence is (e.g.) mainly oral/aural, only in reading, or in reading and writing, and approximately what level of competence you feel you have attained.

Suggestions:  It would be useful to note if you have plans to pursue work in a modern language during the summer prior to entering a graduate program.  If you have prior studies in an ancient language other than Greek or Latin (e.g. biblical Hebrew, Coptic, etc.), you may also feel free to list it here.

4.  A list, on a separate sheet, of all works, classical, patristic, or medieval, you have read in the ancient languages.  If only sections of a work were read in the original, please indicate the percentage of the whole.

Suggestions:  These Greek and Latin lists are of particular importance in assessing candidates' linguistic attainment.  It is understood that some applicants at the MA level, in particular, may have more limited language experience (see the FAQs about graduate admission for a discussion of how the department addresses this situation).  If you have only studied a language at the elementary level, or if you have background in self-study or in high school, please enter it and describe it on this list as precisely as you can.

All supplementary and regular application materials should be sent to the following address:

 

Office of Graduate Admissions

The Catholic University of America

102 McMahon Hall

620 Michigan Avenue, NE

Washington, DC  20064

 

Phone: (202) 319-5305
Toll-free: 1-800-673-2772
Fax: (202) 319-6533
General email: cua-admissions@cua.edu

 

Will I be admitted?

As you can see from the frequently-asked questions about our graduate programs, there is no set formula for successful results in the admissions process to the department.  The faculty consider prior academic achievement (as witnessed by previous studies and by the writing sample), past experience in the general field of classics and in the study of foreign languages, GRE scores, letters of recommendation, seriousness of purpose, and potential for future success when evaluating applications.  Some of our current students have followed comparatively traditional academic paths to and through CUA; others have come to us from the professional world to start a second career.  If you are interested in what we have to offer, we are interested in learning more about your potential.

 

Financial support

 

Graduate students in the Department of Greek and Latin at both the MA and the PhD levels are eligible for a variety of types of financial support which basically fall into four categories: merit-based aid awarded by the university, need-based aid acquired through the university, wholly external scholarships and fellowships, and departmental support.

 

Financial aid of all types for graduate study requires advance planning and early application.  At CUA, you must apply before February 1 for fall entrance in order to receive full consideration for financial aid.

 

Merit-based and need-based aid through CUA

The best way to learn about what the university has to offer graduate students is to explore the detailed Graduate Financial Aid website: click here to access it.  There you will find information about both merit-based and need-based university-associated aid.

 

Student candidates are nominated for university-wide competitions for merit scholarships by their respective individual departments and programs.  In order to be considered for university merit-based aid, you must have GRE scores available by February 1 for fall admission.

 

External scholarships and fellowships

External scholarships and fellowships are a common way for many US graduate students to fund part or even all of their educations.  CUA maintains a partial list of such opportunities here; the Department of Greek and Latin maintains its own opportunity page here.

There are, of course, many other sources of funding beyond those listed under the above links, including smaller or partial scholarships and fellowships funded by e.g. benevolent, ethnic, and business organizations, and these are well worth the effort required to research them, since they can add up quickly.  Some time on the internet will help you discover some of these, as will paging through the many large scholarship directories still readily available in university and Foundation Center (there is one of these in downtown Washington, DC) libraries.  Be prepared to commit significant time and energy to this endeavor, but also be comforted that it really does reward most industrious students on some level.

In no case whatsoever should you pay an independent 'service' or website to locate sources of external financial aid for you.  If you need assistance in determining whether a given source of funding is 'legitimate,' an academic adviser or university career counselor should be able to help you.

Departmental support
The Department of Greek and Latin regularly employs graduate students who are in their second year or higher as teaching assistants, or TAs.  TAs serve either as grading and review assistants (particularly in their earlier years) or, more frequently, as solo instructors of sections of elementary and intermediate language courses.  Both types of TA positions are compensated with stipends, and TAs receive substantial supervision and mentoring as they hone their own teaching skills.