Graduate Admissions Requirements

Apply for Graduate Studies in French through The University of Alabama Graduate School. The application deadline for best consideration for all funding opportunities is December 1.

General requirements for admission to the Graduate School are set forth in the “Academic Policies” section of the Graduate Catalog. In addition, all applicants to graduate degree programs in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics must submit:

  • A writing sample, uploaded with the application. The sample, in the target language, should be about 10 pages (double spaced) in length.  In it, the candidate seeking admission will need to demonstrate a commensurate level of proficiency in the target language as well as critical thinking skills.
  • Statement of Purpose. Describe how your prior academic experience has prepared you for graduate study in French at the University of Alabama and specify the fields in which you are interested. Indicate how the profile of our graduate program and the courses offered align with your goals while a student at UA and after graduation. For PhD applicants, in describing your research goals in more detail, please refer to the French professor whose research most aligns with your interests. If you wish to be considered for GTA support, please indicate why you are interested in teaching and how pedagogical training in the French Graduate Program will help you achieve your professional goals.
  • Video recording in French. Submit a 3-5 minute (.mp4 or .mov formats) video recording in which you speak freely about yourself in a conversational manner in French (do not read a prepared text). Then read a paragraph from a French text of your choice or a short poem.
  • Language score requirements for non-native speakers of English: please see information from UA’s Graduate School.

For applicants with insufficient undergraduate preparation, admission may be contingent upon completion of designated undergraduate requirements. Qualified students who are holders of an appropriate undergraduate degree may be admitted directly to the doctoral program in Romance languages. However, in such circumstances completion of all requirements for the appropriate Master of Arts program, including comprehensive testing and subsequent awarding of the Master of Arts degree, will be a prerequisite for completion of the Doctoral degree.

Qualified students can seek dual admission to the School of Law and to any Master of Arts program offered in the Department of Modern Languages and Classics. If admitted to both, the student will be exempted from six hours of coursework for the juris doctor degree.