Applicable only to students admitted during the 2025-2026 academic year.

Classics

College of Letters and Science

Graduate Degrees

The Department of Classics offers the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree in Greek, the Master of Arts (M.A.) degree in Latin, and the Master of Arts (M.A.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Classics.

Latin

Admissions Requirements

Master’s Degree

The M.A. in Latin is not a standalone degree. All students entering the Department of Classics’ doctoral program, including those with an M.A. in Classics or a closely related field from another institution are required to complete the requirements for the M.A. degree in Classics. In accordance with university policy, students who are admitted to program with an M.A. in Classics or a closely related field may not receive another M.A. in Classics from UCLA. The M.A. in Latin is offered to students leaving the doctoral program without completing Ph.D. requirements.

Advising

During the first two years of the Classics doctoral program all students are supervised by the department’s Graduate Advisor, a member of the regular departmental faculty. Students are required to consult the Graduate Advisor (or the Department Chair when the Graduate Advisor is unavailable) at the beginning of each quarter to plan their programs, and as needed to discuss changes in programs, and are required to notify the Graduate Advisor of plans for examinations. Students also should consult with the Advisor about problems they are experiencing in the program. Twice during each academic year, the Graduate Advisor conducts a review of all graduate students at a full departmental faculty meeting. The results of the review are recorded in the departmental minutes. Students with serious problems noted at the midyear meeting are sent a warning letter within 30 days. At the end of each academic year, the substance of the evaluation of each individual student is communicated in writing to the student by the Graduate Advisor within 30 days.

Areas of Study

The department offers the M.A. degree in Classics (Greek and Latin) as a preliminary to the Ph.D. degree. The program that leads to an M.A. degree in Classics is considered the first step toward the Ph.D. degree in Classics. The M.A. degree in Latin may be awarded to students whose academic goals shift during the course of graduate study.

Foreign Language Requirement

In addition to taking courses in Greek and/or Latin, students must demonstrate proficiency in one of the following three languages: German, French or Italian during the first two years. Students must consult with the Graduate Advisor to determine their choice of languages. In addition, students may petition to substitute one of the above languages with a different modern language, depending on its relevance to the student’s research and on departmental expertise. Proficiency may be demonstrated either by passing German 3, French 3, or Italian 3 at UCLA with a minimum grade of B, or by passing a one-hour written translation examination administered by the department. Students may petition, with departmental approval, to use equivalent coursework completed at other institutions to meet this requirement.

Course Requirements

Students must complete nine courses (36 units) of graduate level coursework (200 series) for the M.A. degree in Latin. The nine courses must include (1) four units of Classics 287; (2) Latin 200A-200B-200C (3) four four-unit graduate seminars (two-unit seminars may not be counted); and (4) one four unit-elective selected in consultation with the graduate advisor. Students must receive a grade B or better in each core courses (1-3 above). No 500-series courses may be applied toward the requirements for the M.A. degree.

Teaching Experience

Consult the department.

Field Experience

Not required.

Capstone Plan

During first two years students will complete a Capstone Paper, which has two components: (1) the composition of an original research paper (7-12k words) under the supervision of two faculty members, to be submitted at the end of Winter Quarter in their second year; (2) the oral presentation of the paper (20 mins) to the department at the end of Spring Quarter in their second year. The Capstone Paper must be a development of research undertaken at UCLA (i.e., not a development of a prior MA thesis undertaken at another institution), and will most likely emerge out of graduate seminars taken during the Coursework Stage. In addition to focused mentorship from the two faculty members overseeing the project, students will be supported in structuring their research and writing time by the Graduate Advisor in Classics 287 (Proseminar).

Thesis Plan

None.

Time-to-Degree

Adequately prepared students taking a normal course load of three courses per quarter are expected to complete the requirements for the M.A. in Classics degree in six quarters. As noted above the M.A. in Greek degree is offered to students leaving the program without completing the Ph.D. requirements. Entering students whose initial level of preparation is not fully adequate may be allowed one year to remedy deficiencies before beginning the regular M.A. program. Students whose diagnostic examination upon entry indicates need may be required to take additional courses.

DEGREE	NORMATIVE TIME TO ATC (Quarters)	NORMATIVE TTD	MAXIMUM TTD
M.A.	6	6	9

Academic Disqualification and Appeal of Disqualification

University Policy

A student who fails to meet the above requirements may be recommended for academic disqualification from graduate study. A graduate student may be disqualified from continuing in the graduate program for a variety of reasons. The most common is failure to maintain the minimum cumulative grade point average (3.00) required by the Academic Senate to remain in good standing (some programs require a higher grade point average). Other examples include failure of examinations, lack of timely progress toward the degree and poor performance in core courses. Probationary students (those with cumulative grade point averages below 3.00) are subject to immediate dismissal upon the recommendation of their department. University guidelines governing academic disqualification of graduate students, including the appeal procedure, are outlined in Standards and Procedures for Graduate Study at UCLA.

Special Departmental or Program Policy

A student may be recommended for academic disqualification for failure to correct deficiencies in performance the term following notification of these deficiencies by the Graduate Advisor. A student may appeal a recommendation for academic disqualification by the Graduate Advisor to the departmental faculty.