Graduate Programs

The Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies offers four graduate degree programs: a Doctoral of Philosophy in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, a Master's in Brazilian Studies, a Master's in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies and a Master's in Portuguese Bilingual Education and Cross-Cultural Studies or English as a Second Language and Cross-Cultural Studies.

Applications may be obtained by writing to the Brown Graduate School, Box 1867, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, 02912 or downloading it from the Graduate School web site at http://www.brown.edu/Divisions/Graduate_School. Applications must be submitted by January 2 to be considered for the next academic year.

The Ph.D. Program in Portuguese and Brazilian is advanced graduate study in the language, literatures and cultures of the Portuguese-Speaking World, with concentration on one or more the following areas: Continental and Insular Portugal, Brazil, Lusophone Africa, and Luso-America. Students enrolled in this program are able to take advantage of the diverse expertise of the Department's faculty, which embraces specializations in Literature, Language, Philosophy, Comparative Literature, History, Ethnic and Cross-cultural Studies, Anthropology, Judaic studies, and Bilingual Education. It is the Department's philosophy that all students should grasp the global nature of the Portuguese-Speaking World and study its language, literatures, and cultures as well as apply the tools of research and scholarship to their individual programs of study. While this doctoral program will allow for an interdisciplinary component, the emphasis of the core program will be in the Portuguese language and Luso-Brazilian literature and culture.

The standard route to the Ph.D. is the successful completion of sixteen courses, a general examination (second year), a preliminary examination (third year), a pre-dissertation colloquium, and a dissertation.

Coursework: Doctoral students normally complete sixteen courses at Brown. Although it is expected that most of these courses will be taken in the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, with particular emphasis on the Department’s graduate seminars, students are allowed to take courses in related departments. It is expected that students will select their courses in such a way as to acquire a comprehensive knowledge of the literary, historical and cultural traditions of the Portuguese-Speaking World. All doctoral students should discuss their course selection with the Director of Graduate Studies during pre-registration. Students should also consult the DGS regarding adjustments to their original course selection.

General Examination: a four-hour written examination (half of it in English and half of it in Portuguese) covering a reading list of twenty basic works in the field. Students are expected to take this examination during their third semester in residence. Sample questions are available from the Director of Graduate Studies.

Preliminary Examination: a two-day written, in-depth examination on two broadly defined areas, developed by the student in consultation with a committee made up of at least three faculty members. The preliminary examination is normally held at the conclusion of the student's coursework (third year). Students should start developing their prelim areas by the end of their second year. Proposals for the preliminary examination include two-page narratives conceptualizing each area and a bibliography of primary and secondary materials.

Students are encouraged to examine copies of previously submitted proposals, which are available from the Director of Graduate Studies and are also kept in a folder in the graduate students’ lounge (third floor). In preparation for the preliminary examination, students should meet regularly with the members of their committee.

The content of the preliminary examination will vary, depending on each student's program, with the stipulation that half of the exam will be written in Portuguese and half in English. The exam will be prepared and evaluated by each student’s committee. A decision on the candidate's performance on the exam must be given within two weeks.

Upon completion of the preliminary examination, students are officially advanced to candidacy (ABD) and qualify for a Master of Arts degree in course (see below).

Pre-Dissertation Colloquium: a public oral presentation of the student’s dissertation proposal, open to all faculty and graduate students in the Department, normally to be given within the semester following the preliminary examination. The colloquium consists of a twenty-to-thirty-minute presentation by the candidate followed by a discussion with the members of the dissertation committee (see below under “Dissertation”).

(1) Introduction: Overview of main ideas, hypotheses, objectives and themes
(2) Contexts: (a) Theoretical considerations; (b) Comparative or historical/literary treatments of this theme/topic in the context of the Portuguese-speaking world; (c) Research sites and/or archives if applicable.
(3) Narrative (10-15 pages): Specifics about the development of the dissertation with a tentative outline of chapters and conclusion; contents of the thesis regarding authors, corpus of texts, materials, and other relevant items; main arguments and relation of these to overall objective.
(4) Working Bibliography (approximately 10 pages): Primary and secondary materials, including theory and relevant criticism on specific author, texts, movements, etc.

Students are encouraged to consult copies of previously accepted dissertation proposals, which are available from the Director of Graduate Studies and kept in a folder in the graduate students’ lounge (third floor).

Language Requirement: Ph.D. candidates will be expected to have achieved native or near-native fluency in Portuguese. In addition, candidates should demonstrate reading ability in a second foreign language, which normally will be French, Spanish, Italian or German.

Teaching Requirement: Ph.D. candidates are expected to acquire sound pedagogical skills by participating in the department’s teaching-mentoring program (see below).

Dissertation: The dissertation is expected make an original contribution to the field of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, consistent with the high research and scholarship standards of the Department. The dissertation may be written in English or in Portuguese.

The dissertation defense is open to all members of the university community. It consists of a twenty-to-thirty-minute presentation by the candidate, followed by a discussion with the members of the candidate’s dissertation committee.

The dissertation committee consists of at least three faculty members, at least two of whom must hold appointments in the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies, to be chosen by the student in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. The chair of the dissertation committee is usually a faculty member in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies with particular expertise in the area of the dissertation.

Our Department is a community of individuals committed to the highest standards in teaching and scholarship in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies. Doctoral students are an integral part of this community. Working closely with supportive faculty members as mentors, doctoral students are encouraged to develop research and pedagogical skills that will prepare them for careers as outstanding teachers and scholars. Besides regular meetings with the Director of Graduate Studies, doctoral students are urged to meet with other departmental faculty to discuss their research and pedagogical interests.

In addition to advice on the research and preparation of term papers, from early on in their graduate studies our doctoral students receive guidance on how to convert their course papers into conference presentations and/or journal articles. Doctoral students are also offered the opportunity to partner with faculty members in research projects, the design of undergraduate courses, the planning of academic conferences and symposia, and the publication of our two scholarly journals, Gávea-Brown and Brasil/Brazil.

It is the Department’s philosophy that teaching and research go hand in hand and are mutually enriching. Our commitment to teaching is reflected in the multiple educational programs of instruction and teacher training supported by the Department and included as part of its curricular offerings and as a service to the surrounding community. The Master’s program in Cross-Cultural Education, co-sponsored by the Education Alliance, is a testimony to this pedagogical position and may serve as a methodological and material resource for our students. Furthermore, the emphasis on language in both our undergraduate and graduate programs rests on our belief that the acquisition of a foreign/second language contributes to what Pierre Bourdieu calls the expansion of one's cultural capital in a material, cultural, and symbolic sense. The conviction that language and culture are facets of the same process and cannot be separated permeates all aspects of our graduate program –– courses, research, examinations, and extra-curricular activities. Doctoral students emerge from our program with linguistic expertise as well as mastery of foreign language pedagogy, in addition to sound research skills. Such combination has proven to be highly attractive to universities seeking junior faculty to fill positions in foreign language, literature and cultural studies, as attested by our very successful record in placing the graduates from our Ph.D. program.

Our doctoral students participate in a mentoring program designed to pass the Department’s pedagogical legacy in foreign language, literature and culture on to them while enhancing their teaching skills. According to our longstanding practice, from the very beginning we impart to our doctoral students the belief that immersion in and constant use of Portuguese as the target language, following the principles of a communicative and natural approach, represent crucial steps in the acquisition of a second/foreign language. Furthermore, through both orientation and hands-on experience, our doctoral students quickly learn that foreign/second languages are to be used as media of instruction and not as ends in themselves (such as the traditional objective of solely mastering grammar skills).

The teaching mentoring program consists of a series of steps designed to acquaint our students with various pedagogical approaches and methodologies, while also exposing them to different instructional experiences and course formats:
1. Intensive group orientation before the start of each academic year, consisting of a packet of readings in methodology and applied linguistics as well as an in-house seminar with members of the Department’s faculty, culminating in a mock practice teaching session.
2. For each new course that a graduate student will teach or co-teach, an orientation session specific to the goals of each course will be offered prior to the beginning of each semester.
3. In addition to this basic preparation, there will be group and/or individual meetings throughout the semester between teaching assistants/fellows and the faculty member(s) in charge of teacher training, as well as class visitations followed by a discussion between the graduate student and the evaluator. Doctoral students will receive guidance on how to plan lessons, develop a course syllabus, design and grade exams and assignments, etc.

PB 10-20: Elementary Portuguese – A yearlong course for students with little or no preparation in the Portuguese language. Stress upon fundamental language skills: understanding, speaking, reading, and writing. Aspects of Portuguese and Brazilian culture are also presented. Method: situational/natural approach.

PB 11: Intensive Portuguese – Designed for students with little or no preparation in the Portuguese language, it covers the same amount of material as PB10-20 in just one semester. Stress upon fundamental language skills: understanding, speaking, reading, and writing. Aspects of Portuguese and Brazilian culture are also presented. Method: situational/natural approach.

PB 40: Writing and Speaking Portuguese - Designed to improve the student's ability in contemporary spoken and written Portuguese, using such cultural items as short stories, plays, films, videos, newspaper and magazine articles, and popular music. Method: situational/natural approach.

PB 61/62: Mapping Portuguese-Speaking Cultures - Selected literary and cultural texts that serve as vehicles for a deeper understanding of Portuguese-speaking societies. Literary materials are taken from several genres and periods with special attention to contemporary writings. Other media such as film and music are also included. Considerable emphasis on strengthening speaking and writing skills.

Graduate students will normally progress from co-teaching with a regular faculty member (generally in PB11 and/or PB40) to teaching their own courses (generally PB10-20 and/or PB40) under the supervision of a faculty mentor. Whenever possible graduate students will be given the opportunity to teach a module of one of the introduction to literature courses (PB 61 and/or PB62) and, in some cases, to teach such courses on their own.

Depending upon the research and pedagogical interests of individual students, there are also opportunities to teach and conduct research in local public schools as well as to serve as an intern with the Educational Alliance, a Brown unit charged to conduct applied research on educational reform and cultural diversity.

When doctoral students first arrive on campus, they meet with the Director of Graduate Studies, who explains the doctoral program to them in detail and guides them in their initial selection of courses. At the end of the first semester, each student’s academic performance during the preceding semester and progress towards the completion of the degree are assessed by the Department’s faculty. This evaluation is transmitted to students at individual meetings with the DGS. This process occurs every semester of the student's graduate experience at Brown. Ordinarily students will receive a written assessment of their performance and progress towards the degree at the close of each academic year.

Financial Aid and Assignment of Teaching Assistants,
Teaching Fellows and Proctors

The Graduate School and the Department generally offer five years of financial aid for doctoral students in good academic standing, who are making the expected progress towards the completion of their degree.

For the first year financial aid is generally in the form of a university fellowship, covering tuition for eight courses, a monthly stipend and the health fee. Support for the second, third and fourth years are usually in the form of a teaching assistantship, teaching fellowship or a proctorship, covering tuition, a monthly stipend and the health fee. When students serve as Teaching Assistants, Teaching Fellows or Proctors, they are allowed to enroll in only three courses per semester.

Although we are committed to providing different types of teaching and research opportunities for all students, the assignment of teaching assistants, teaching fellows and proctors must also take into account the needs of the Department in a given semester.

Since financial support for the fifth year normally consists of a dissertation fellowship, it is essential that students submit their dissertation proposals no later than the end of their seventh semester so that they can apply for a dissertation fellowship at the beginning of their eighth semester. Dissertation fellowships cover tuition or the registration fee, as applicable, a monthly stipend and the health fee. Under normal circumstances, students who do not complete their dissertation proposals in time to apply for a dissertation fellowship are not considered to be in good standing and therefore cannot be guaranteed financial support for their fifth year.

In addition to academic year fellowships, assistantships and proctorships, the Graduate School provides support for three summers during each doctoral student’s career at Brown. Students choose the three summers during which they would like to be supported by the Graduate School.

The Department encourages and provides guidance for students to apply for outside fellowships either for academic year or summer support.

Graduate work completed at other institutions and not used in fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy elsewhere may, on the recommendation of the Department, be counted towards the fulfillment of the three-year residence requirement (reducing the number of years of full tuition) and the coursework requirement (reducing the number of courses to be completed at Brown). The reduction of the residence requirement and the coursework requirement are treated separately. A student who desires credit for work done elsewhere should file an application after completing one semester at Brown. Forms are available in the Office of the Registrar

No more than the equivalent of one full year of graduate study may be counted towards the three-year residence requirement. The Department’s sixteen-course requirement may be reduced by no more than six courses to a minimum of ten courses. Nevertheless students who choose to reduce their residence and/or coursework requirements must still fulfill all other requirements for the Ph.D.

Students who enter our doctoral program in possession of a Master’s degree in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies or a related field are advised to request a reduction of the three-year residence (tuition) requirement to two years. Reduction of the residence requirement does not affect the number of courses students may take for credit at Brown unless students also request a reduction in the number of required courses (see below).

In consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies, students who enter our doctoral program in possession of a Master’s degree in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies or a related field may request to have the sixteen-course requirement for the Ph.D. reduced by a maximum of six courses. Students who receive permission to reduce their course requirement by four or more courses, however, will be expected to take their preliminary examinations no later than their fifth semester in residence and to be ready to apply for a dissertation fellowship by the beginning of their sixth semester. Normally students who request a reduction of four or more courses will be covered by four instead of five years of financial support since such course reduction is the equivalent of advanced standing.

1. The expected route toward the Ph.D. normally follows this pattern of landmarks:

2. By the fourth semester of the Ph. D. program, students should form their preliminary examination committee in consultation with the Director of Graduate Studies. During the preparation period for the prelims, students should meet regularly with all committee members to discuss their chosen areas, review reading lists and plan details of the exam. Once students successfully complete their prelims, they are officially advanced to candidacy (ABD) and qualify for a Master’s degree in course.

3. In preparing for the Colloquium, students will select a committee of at least three faculty members, one of whom will serve as the student’s primary advisor. Students will meet regularly with their committee to discuss the dissertation proposal to be submitted in advance of the Colloquium.

4. Based upon the dissertation proposal, the Colloquium consists consisting of a twenty-to-thirty-minute presentation, to be followed by questions and suggestions from the committee as well as other faculty members and fellow graduate students. After the successful completion of the Colloquium, the candidate proceeds to completing further research and writing the dissertation.

5. During the research for and writing of the dissertation, doctoral candidates are expected to consult regularly with their dissertation advisor and the other readers. Academic progress during this phase constitutes regular consultation and submission of written chapters. After the dissertation committee agrees that the dissertation has been completed, a date and time for the defense are scheduled. For the defense, the candidate is expected to deliver a twenty-to-thirty-minute presentation to be followed by questions and recommendations from the committee and other faculty members. Once the dissertation has been accepted and the student is recommended for the degree, a final version of the dissertation, following the Graduate School's "Ph.D. Dissertation Submission Checklist,"* should be prepared and filed with the Graduate School. Copies of the file version should also be provided to the dissertation advisor and readers.

6. For students who intend to receive their degrees at Commencement, the deadline for the submission of the Ph.D. dissertation to the Department is April 15, thereby allowing enough time for the defense and the filing of the final version with the Graduate School.

7. Students must be registered for their last semester at Brown in order to graduate.

*[Students should consult with Graduate School (x32843) for details on this checklist.]

This interdisciplinary degree program is designed to provide recent graduates, as well as mature professionals holding an A.B. degree and possessing a reading and spoken knowledge of Portuguese, with a humanities/social science curriculum in Braziliana. The program offers graduate level training with special focus upon Brazil for careers in academia, foreign service, and international organizations, including transnational business and foundations. Drawing upon a candidate's knowledge of Portuguese, this program will develop a unique combination of linguistic and interdisciplinary skills via course offerings in English and Portuguese.

Candidates will complete a program of eight graduate courses. Including two in the social sciences, and two in the humanities, plus a Master's Research Project. Students will be expected to complete at least three of their courses via the Portuguese language.

This interdisciplinary degree program is designed to provide recent graduates as well as mature professionals holding an A.B. degree and possessing a reading and speaking knowledge of Portuguese with a humanities/social science curriculum focusing on the Portuguese-speaking world.

The requirements for this degree follow those of the A.M. in Brazilian Studies with the difference that students will be required to take at least three courses in Portuguese literature, history and culture and at least three courses in Brazilian literature, history and culture. Students will satisfy a Portuguese language proficiency requirement by taking PB103 or passing a proficiency examination. As in the case of the other Master's degrees in the Department, a Master's Project is required unless the student is receiving this degree “in course” (see below).

MASTER OF ARTS IN PORTUGUESE BILINGUAL EDUCATION AND
CROSS-CULTURAL STUDIES
OR ESL EDUCATION AND CROSS-CULTURAL STUDIES

This interdisciplinary program offers graduate level study in advanced language and bilingual education for bilingual teachers of Portuguese as well as ESL training for teachers of ESL. This graduate degree program does not provide candidates with elementary and secondary teaching certification. It does, however, offer specialization courses that will satisfy R.I. Bilingual and ESL state endorsement requirements. Candidates for this degree may be part-time or full-time. In the former case, students will be required to complete at least two courses per semester thereby enabling them to complete their requirements in two years. Specific requirements for this two- track curriculum are:

1. -1 course in Bilingual Education Methodology (212, 01);
2. -1 course in Problems and Current Issues in Bilingual Education (202, 01)
3. -1 course in Foundations of Bilingual Education (201, 01);
4. -Plus 3 Basic required courses (160P; 202, 01; 202, 04 or 172); Plus 2 other related courses to be selected from offerings in Portuguese and Brazilian, Education, Anthropology, Linguistics, Psychology, and Sociology.
5. -Bilingual Education candidates must take a written proficiency exam in Portuguese.

1. -1 course in ESL Methodology for Assessment and Evaluation (212, 03);
2. -1 course in Problems and Current Issues in E.S.L. (202, 02);
3. -1 course in Applied Linguistics for E.S.L. (202, 02) or Linguistic Theory and Practice (AN 280);
4. -3 Basic Required courses (160P; 202, 01; 202, 04 or 172)
5. -2 other related courses to be selected from offerings in Portuguese and Brazilian, Education, Anthropology, Linguistics, Psychology and Sociology.

Graduate students pursuing a doctorate in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies may apply to receive a master's degree upon completion of the preliminary examination and advancement to Ph.D. candidacy. Students selecting this option will not be required to write a Master's Project.

Graduate work done in graduate residence at other institutions and not used in fulfillment of the requirements for a degree may be offered in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Master's degree on recommendation by the department. However, the equivalent of at least seven semester courses must be completed in residence at Brown University. Students who wish to transfer credit for work done elsewhere should file an application with the Registrar as soon as possible. Forms are available in the Office of the Registrar.

Professor Nelson H. Vieira Director of Graduate Studies

Professor Nelson H. Vieira
Director of Graduate Studies