Program Overview

Program Overview

The Classics Ph.D. program at Cornell University is designed to provide students with a comprehensive education in the field of Classics, with a focus on original research and academic excellence.

Field of Study

The program is offered in the Field of Classics, with concentrations in Ancient History, Ancient Philosophy, Classical Archaeology and Art, Classical Literature and Philology, Greek and Latin Languages and Linguistics, and Interdisciplinary Classics.

Program Description

The Ph.D. degree requires six semesters in residence and the successful completion of one of the programs listed below:

• Ancient History: This concentration aims to train students both as historians and as classicists, with a focus on the ancient world.
• Ancient Philosophy: The study of ancient philosophy at Cornell is administered jointly by the Fields of Classics and Philosophy, with a focus on training productive scholars and effective teachers of ancient philosophy.
• Classical Archaeology and Art: This concentration aims to provide the training and context to produce scholars ready to engage in cutting-edge archaeological research and teaching about the Greek and Roman worlds.
• Classical Literature and Philology: This concentration provides students with the opportunity to follow a traditional training in philology and textual criticism, to explore Classical literature in the light of modern literary critical methodology, or to do both.
• Greek and Latin Languages and Linguistics: Graduate applicants to the Field of Classics whose primary interest is in the Greek and Latin languages per se may choose to pursue the Concentration in Greek and Latin Languages and Linguistics.
• Interdisciplinary Classics: This concentration fully promotes an interdisciplinary approach to the ancient world by training students in three different disciplines of Classics through course work and reading lists.

Concentrations by Subject

The program offers concentrations in the following subjects:

• Ancient History
• Ancient Philosophy
• Classical Archaeology and Art
• Classical Literature and Philology
• Classical Myth
• Classical Rhetoric
• Greek and Latin Language and Linguistics
• Indo-European Linguistics

Application Requirements and Deadlines

The application deadlines are:

• Fall: December 15
• No spring admission The requirements for application include:
• An academic statement of purpose
• A personal statement
• Three letters of recommendation
• A ten to twenty-page writing sample GRE scores are not required or accepted. All applicants must submit transcripts of all attended colleges or universities.

Learning Outcomes

The program aims to produce scholars who can:

• Make an original and substantial contribution to the field
• Think originally and independently
• Identify new research opportunities
• Achieve breadth and diversity of knowledge in the field
• Communicate research findings effectively
• Demonstrate effective skills in undergraduate teaching
• Design appropriate learning outcomes and relevant assessments for a variety of courses
• Engage effectively with students to help them reach learning goals, through both direct communication and feedback on assessments

Tuition

Tuition information can be found on the Graduate School's Tuition Rates page.