Graduate Handbook

DEPARTMENT OFFICERS AND STAFF, 2008-2009

 

PART I: LIFE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE

          

 

PART II: THE FACULTY

PART III: DEPARTMENTAL ACADEMIC REGULATIONS

 

IV. DEGREE REQUIREMENTS

         
            For the Spanish Linguistics program, please click here.

            For Literature and Cultural Studies, please click here.

 

 

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Dear Student:

As department chair, I am delighted that you have chosen us for your graduate studies. Graduate education has been a vital part of our department for many years; recent trends have only heightened the importance we attach to it. Thanks to the department’s focus on research and the training of excellent graduate students, we have become one of the leading Spanish and Portuguese departments in the country.

In this handbook, you will find all sorts of useful information. At its core, you have the policies and procedures (nuts and bolts) that govern all aspects of graduate life in the department. It is crucial that we all adhere to these policies to ensure the consistency and high quality of our degrees. That said, if you feel you have special needs and circumstances that may warrant a waiver of a departmental policy, please raise them with the appropriate Director of Graduate Studies and, within reason, we will try to accommodate your requests.

Please read and familiarize yourself with the information provided in this handbook. Keep it handy for those occasions when you have questions or need specific information about requirements, deadlines, specific forms, etc. For additional information, please visit our web site. This handbook is a source of departmental information. You are still required to be informed about other Graduate School and University policies. Communicate regularly with your Director of Graduate Studies to ensure that you are interpreting policies correctly and following the right set of norms.

Graduate study brings with it great opportunities and challenges that require informed decisions. We have drafted this handbook to assist you with many of these decisions by providing essential information on department policies and resources available to you. I invite you to help us by providing feedback as we continue to improve it.

Your success is our ultimate goal. The department’s faculty and administrators can, and will, put at your disposal the means to fulfill your potential and achieve your academic objectives. It is up to you to meet the challenge and seize this opportunity.

 

Sincerely,

 

Alfonso Morales-Front, Chair

 

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Dear incoming graduate student:

 

On behalf of all the members of the Graduate Spanish and Portuguese Students Organization (GSPSO), we would like to welcome you to Georgetown and to the Department of Spanish and Portuguese! We are glad you are going to be with us the next few years. We would also like to take this opportunity to invite you to join our organization.

The GSPSO is an organization open to all graduate students in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. It was founded in 2000 with the aim of creating a forum for discussion of issues of common interest among graduate students and also a channel for communication with faculty, administration, and other relevant organizations.

Our organization holds periodic meetings in which important matters are undertaken concerning students’ funding and responsibilities as well as changes to the graduate guidelines and academic progress requirements. Both the Department’s Chair and the Directors of Graduate Studies have expressed their desire to give graduate students an active role in the Department and to improve communication with them. In order to facilitate this interaction, periodic meetings with the students’ representatives have been established as well as informational meetings for all graduate students. We hope to continue extending this dialog over the next year.

Our intention is just to make the graduate students’ experience in this department as fruitful as possible. We hope you will want to be a part of this, and will bring your own energies and ideas to bear in the GSPSO.

Please watch for upcoming announcements of meetings and other opportunities. In the meantime, feel free to contact any of us below for more information. We look forward to meeting you!

 

Sincerely,

 

The GSPSO Officers

[Please click here to see the GSPSO website]

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Department Officers and Staff, 2008-2009

 

Department Chair: Alfonso Morales-Front (Interim Spring 2009 Chair: Veronica Salles-Reese)

 

Directors of Graduate Studies

Literature: Veronica Salles-Reese

Linguistics: Elena Herburger

Director of Undergraduate Studies: Barbara Mujica

 

Language Program Directors:

          Standard: Ronald Leow   

          Intensive: Cristina Sanz  

 

Department Administrator:  Veronica Colón

 

Graduate Program Assistant: TBA

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I. LIFE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF SPANISH AND PORTUGUESE

 

 

Our website is your primary resource for information about the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. It contains announcements, academic guidelines, course offerings, and administrative policies and procedures.

 

 

Departmental assistantships may be awarded to students who show promise of excellence in graduate studies. Assistantships, which carry a service obligation, provide a stipend and tuition (typically for three courses a semester for three years and two years of thesis research fees). Assistantships are normally renewable for five years, subject to review of performance. Departmental aid recipients are usually assigned Research Assistantships in their first year, if Department staffing needs permit, and fulfill their teaching requirements in subsequent years. Research Assistants (RAs) are expected to work 15 hours per week (averaged over the course of the semester). Assistantship assignments and responsibilities vary. RAs may be assigned to work with faculty members on a particular research project, a department-level project or task (such as data gathering, coding or transcribing for a linguistics project or with planning for a conference). We attempt to accommodate student and faculty requests for particular assignments, but students should be aware that this is not always possible.  Teaching assistants are assigned two three-credit or one six-credit undergraduate language courses. All students, except those with prior teaching experience, must complete SPAN-500 (Spanish Teaching Methodology) before they are eligible to teach. In some cases, students who have completed all Ph.D. exams or papers (ABD’s) may be eligible to teach literature survey or linguistics courses. Language courses are generally limited to eighteen students, while survey courses generally have fewer than eighteen students. Course assignments are made by the Chair in consultation with the DGS and the faculty members who coordinate the courses. All graduate students are required to take SPAN 500: Spanish Teaching Methodology. In exceptional cases, graduate students with experience are given teaching assignments prior to taking SPAN 500. SPAN 500 provides teacher education that comprises a combination of theoretical, empirical, and methodological information designed to raise an awareness of many variables that contribute to foreign language learning and teaching.

Graduate students teaching in one of the several language tracks are obligated to adhere to the Departmental policies. These include providing a minimum of 2 office hours per week, attending all program meetings, actively participating in the preparation of quizzes and exams, closely liaising with their coordinator/ supervisor, strictly following the Registrar’s class schedule, and demonstrating a professional approach to teaching. Departmental assistantship recipients are expected to maintain an excellent academic record in their graduate work and to complete the assignments given to them under the terms of their assistantship. Reviews are performed annually by the Graduate Progress Committee. The committee takes into account a variety of indicators but, typically, a student with a grade average below A- would only have the assistantship renewed under exceptional circumstances. Students who fail to maintain satisfactory performance in their course work or assistantship assignment will be placed on probation for one semester. If performance improves, the student will be restored to good standing. If performance does not improve, the assistantship will not be renewed.

New awards are assigned each spring for the following academic year. For more information on the application process, check the Graduate School’s admissions website. In the Department, admissions are handled by the Graduate Admissions Committee. As a norm the committee awards new assistantships only to new applicants. Students who were not awarded financial aid when they first applied may apply for an assistantship but only when they are formally accepted to the Ph.D. program (i.e., passed M.A. exams or qualifying papers). Current students who wish to be considered for a doctoral assistantship should apply in writing to the Director of Graduate Studies by Jan. 1, 2009. These Departmental applications will be reviewed by the Graduate Admissions Committee at the same time as the new applications.

 

2.2. University Fellowships

Each department may nominate two applicants to its Ph.D. program for the prestigious, and highly competitive University Fellowships. Recipients of these awards are designated ‘University Fellow’, have a higher stipend, and participate in a program that includes mentoring, special lectures, and other activities. Out of the five years in which they receive the award, University Fellows are required to provide service to the Department, either as research or teaching assistants, for a total of 3 years. It is the Department’s decision which years of the fellowship will be used for Department service. Fellows, as all other students receiving financial aid, are reviewed annually.

 

2.3. Healy Fellowships

 

The Patrick Healy Graduate Fellowship is a competitive award designed to attract and support the most talented students from those groups least represented in the professoriate. Named in honor of Georgetown’s 28th president, the first African American president of an American university, the Fellowship’s goal is to increase the cultural, ethnic, and economic diversity of persons being prepared for careers as college and university professors.

Support will be provided to Patrick Healy Fellows for twelve months per year for up to five years, assuming satisfactory progress toward the Ph.D. The Graduate School expects to matriculate one candidate per year, with a maximum of five students on support at one time once the program is in full operation. All stipend and scholarship funds for the Fellowship will be provided by the Graduate School.

 

2.4. Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships

 

These awards include a full academic year tuition scholarship, plus a stipend. Applicants must intensively study a less-commonly taught language in order to qualify for this award. Only US citizens or permanent residents are eligible for these fellowships.

 

You will find information on external sources of funding on the Department web site at (URL T.B.A.). They are organized by nationality requirement. There is funding available for dissertation completion, travel, and data gathering expenses (software, hardware, participant compensation). Please consult the Office of Student Financial Services, and the Graduate School for more information about external grants and fellowships.

 

3.1. Mailboxes

 

The Department of Spanish and Portuguese assigns student mailboxes each semester. Please do not use the Department’s address as your personal mailing address.

 

3.2. E-mail and Computing Facilities

Georgetown students automatically receive a free account on the university computers which provides access to the Internet, university-supported software, the online library catalogue, and other useful services. Students may also apply for free Web space to develop personal homepages and academic projects here. For computer questions or problems contact the Student Help Desk at (202) 687-4949 or at help@georgetown.edu.   

 

 

4.1. Graduate Student Organization

 

The Graduate Student Organization exists to provide a forum where graduate students can address the issues that concern them. In addition, the GSO organizes social events, and provides TA/RA training and professional development workshops. All graduate students are members of the GSO. As GSO members, graduate students at Georgetown are also members of the National Association of Graduate and Professional Students (NAGPS). The GSO is your organization. If you have an issue that you would like addressed, or if you are interested in becoming involved, please contact one of the GSO Officers here.

 

4.2. Graduate Spanish and Portuguese Student Organization

 

The Graduate Spanish and Portuguese Student Organization (GSPSO) was established for the purposes of creating a forum for discussion of issues of common interest among graduate students and serving as a channel for communication with faculty, administration, and other relevant organizations. A letter from the organization’s officers is included in this handbook. Please see the GSPSO website for further information.

 

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Héctor Campos, Ph.D., University of California, Los Angeles
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Generative syntax, Romance Languages, Balkan Romance, Greek
Office: ICC 401     Phone: (202)687-5748

 

Michael J. Ferreira, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin
Assistant Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Paleography, Textual Edition, Lexicography, and Historical Linguistics
Office: ICC 406     Phone: (202)687-4281

 

Emily C. Francomano, Ph.D., Columbia University
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Literature
Research Interests: Medieval Iberian literature, medieval studies, manuscript culture, critical theory, gender studies
Office: ICC 432     Phone: (202)687-8026

 

Elena Herburger, Ph.D., University of Southern California
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Semantics, syntax semantics interface, pragmatics
Office: ICC 436     Phone: (202)687-7293

 

Francisco LaRubia-Prado, Ph.D., Cornell University
Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Literature
Research Interests: Critical Theory, Intellectual History, Modern Spanish Literature (18th-Century to the present), American Studies
Office: ICC 409     Phone: (202)687-5787

 

Ronald Philip Leow, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Language curriculum development, teacher education, second language acquisition research
Office: ICC 411     Phone: (202)687-5840

 

Joanne Rappaport, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Literature
Research Interests: Colombian/Andean ethnography and history, literacy, intellectuals
Office: ICC 434     Phone: (202)687-7170

 

Verónica Salles Reese, Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Literature
Research Interests: Latin American literature and culture: colonial period, Andean studies, women writers
Office: ICC 405     Phone: (202)687-5884

 

Vivaldo A. Santos, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Literature
Research Interests: Brazilian literature, culture, cinema, popular music, Latin American literature
Office: ICC 430     Phone: (202)687-5694

 

Cristina Sanz, Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Bilingualism and cognition, instructed second language acquisition
Office: ICC 412     Phone: (202)687-7213

 

Thomas J. Walsh, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley
Associate Professor
Concentration Affiliation: Linguistics
Research Interests: Comparative romance linguistics, history of Spanish, Ibero-Romance languages and dialects
Office: ICC 407     Phone: (202)687-3061

 

1.1. Advising

 

Each graduate student is assigned a faculty advisor, who helps the student plan an academic program at Georgetown. The advisor must approve course selection at registration and pre-registration, and usually must sign any paperwork a student needs to complete. If a student finds another faculty member with whom he or she would rather work, and who is willing to serve as an advisor, such requests for changes will generally be honored. Requests for new advisors should be made to the Director of Graduate Studies via a student request form which can be obtained from the Graduate Program Assistant or on our website. As the student is preparing to write a Master’s Research Paper or dissertation, he or she will also choose a mentor, who will provide research guidance and supervision.

 

1.2. Registration, leaves of absence, and extensions

 

Students must register or be on an approved leave of absence every semester from matriculation until all degree requirements have been completed. Information on how to obtain leaves of absence is provided in the Graduate Bulletin. Each student is assigned an expected graduation date by the Graduate School: when this date is reached, the student may not register again unless an extension of time to complete the degree is granted. Students who fail to register are terminated by the Graduate School.

 

1.3. Transfer of credit

 

In the case of students with graduate credits which have not been applied to a previous graduate degree, the Graduate School, on recommendation of the Department, may allow up to 25% of the credits required for a degree to be transfer credits. The basis for the 25% is 66 credit hours minus any credits of Advanced Standing that have been granted. The Graduate School currently requires students to wait until they have completed 12 credits in the program (usually the second term) to formally request transfer credits. Since both students and the department will want to know earlier than this what courses are likely to transfer, the department requires students to consult with their advisors during the first semester of study at Georgetown to determine if any transfer credits can be recommended. Note that any courses taken in the Georgetown School for Summer and Continuing Education prior to matriculation are not automatically transferred to the current degree program. An original transcript must be submitted along with the request for transfer of credit, using a form available from the Graduate Program Assistant.

Advanced Standing A student who has been awarded a relevant master's degree by another institution may petition for advanced standing toward the coursework required for a doctoral degree program. Advanced standing is not available to students pursuing only a master's degree. A maximum of 30 credits of advanced standing may be awarded; some doctoral programs may impose a lower limit, or may not permit advanced standing at all.

Requests for advanced standing should be made during the student's first year of enrollment in the Graduate School. Requests for advanced standing must be made in writing through the Director of Graduate Studies of the student's doctoral program, who will forward a recommendation to the Graduate School for its review. This recommendation should include the number of advanced standing credits to be awarded, and the number of credits of coursework that remain to be completed for the degree through registration in the Graduate School or through transfer. The number of approved credits of advanced standing will be recorded on the student's transcript.

Students whose remaining coursework requirement is 30 or more credits will be permitted seven years from matriculation to complete the doctoral degree and to graduate. Those with fewer than 30 credits remaining after the granting of advanced standing will be permitted five years from matriculation to complete the doctoral degree and to graduate.

 

1.4. Turn-around time

 

For long pieces of writing, including examinations, students must expect to give faculty members adequate time to evaluate the work. Students should allow a minimum of three weeks turn-around time for anything longer than 10 to 15 pages. Please keep this in mind as you plan submissions. Note that faculty members are not obligated to read student work during the summer months, although some may choose to do so.

 

1.5. Deadlines

 

The Department publishes ‘Important Dates for Students’, which lists important deadlines for Master’s Papers/Teaching Portfolios, Qualifying Papers, examinations, and so on. Students who are away from the University can view the calendar on the department’s homepage at (URL T.B.A.). The Graduate School awards degrees each month, with the exception of June. Application deadlines and deadlines for completing degree requirements are given in the Graduate School Catalogue. Special deadlines apply for those who intend to participate in the May commencement ceremonies.

 

1.6. Incompletes

 

The Department of Spanish and Portuguese will adhere to the following Graduate School regulations regarding “Incomplete” grades:

It is expected that students will complete all coursework by the end of the semester in which that coursework is taken. In special circumstances, an instructor may grant a student permission to delay submission of work up to one semester after the course ends. Instructors are not bound to grant such requests, nor are they bound to grant an entire semester to complete such work. When an instructor has granted such permission, he or she will assign the student a grade of “Incomplete” (“I”) for the course; this grade will appear on the student’s official transcript until a final grade is reported.
The student must submit the completed work to the instructor in a timely manner, sufficient to enable the instructor to review the work and to send a final grade (recorded on a grade change authorization form) to the Graduate School before the end of classes in the semester following the semester in which the “Incomplete” grade was given.

Students requesting additional time beyond one semester must submit an application for extension of time to complete coursework to the Graduate School. Such requests will be considered only if received before the end of the semester following the one in which the course was given. It is expected that the number of such requests will be minimal, and approval for such requests will not be given routinely. Responsibility for requesting such an extension rests with the student.

If an “I” is assigned by the instructor and not changed to a grade by the instructor, it will remain permanently on the student’s transcript.

 

1.7. Academic Integrity

 

Violations of academic integrity include, but are not limited to, obtaining or giving unauthorized assistance on a paper or exam (cheating) and using a written, spoken or electronic source without proper citation (plagiarism). Students who have any doubt as to what constitutes proper citation or as to whether any specific situation might constitute a violation of academic integrity are strongly urged to consult their instructor or advisor. Please refer to the Graduate School Bulletin for further guidelines concerning Academic Integrity. All incoming students are required to log on to Student Access+ to complete the tutorial on academic integrity by the end of the second week of classes. It is extremely rare but certainly possible for a student to be expelled from the Graduate School after s/he has been found guilty of violating the Honor Code. Ignorance of the Honor Code is not a valid excuse.

The following procedures will be followed in the case of an alleged violation of academic integrity:

Initial Procedures. In the event that a faculty member discovers a potential violation of academic integrity in the work of a graduate student, he or she should first discuss the matter with the student. If the explanation is deemed satisfactory, no further action should be taken. If it is not, the faculty member shall document the suspected violation and inform the student of what action is to be taken. If the action involves the lowering of a grade, the student shall be informed of the right to appeal the grade. The evidence and a record of what occurred shall be placed in the student’s departmental file. If this is a first offense, the faculty member may elect to take no further action. If this is a second offense, the faculty member shall present charges and evidence of academic dishonesty in writing to the Director of Graduate Studies. The Director will convene a meeting of the Department Standards Committee.

Referral to the Standards Committee. If 1) this is not the student’s first offense or 2) the faculty member proposes an action more severe than the lowering of a course grade, the faculty member shall make a written request to the Director of Graduate Studies to convene a meeting of the Department Standards Committee; this request shall also propose a specific penalty to be imposed if the charges are upheld. The Committee will examine the evidence and determine whether a violation has occurred and what action should be taken. Actions may involve dismissal of charges, a grade change, other department-level academic penalty, or the presentation of charges to the Graduate School . The Committee shall be chaired by the Director of Graduate Studies, and shall include three faculty members and a student representative. The faculty member bringing the charges shall not be a member of the Committee.

 

1.8. Grievance Procedures

 

The policy for grievance procedures in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese follows that established for the University as a whole. If a student believes that there has been unfair treatment in some academic matter such as coursework, grading, or other evaluations, the student has the right to institute a formal complaint, and should consult the Graduate School Catalogue for information on how to do so. Students are encouraged to try to resolve complaints through discussion with the parties involved before beginning more formal grievance procedures. A student’s advisor, GLSA representative, the Director of Graduate Studies, or the Department Chair may be called on for help and advice.

 

1.9. Institutional Review Board

 

All research conducted by faculty and students of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Georgetown University which elicits data from human subjects must be approved by the University's Institutional Review Board, to be in compliance with Title 45 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 46: Protection of Human Subjects.

Department faculty and students should not collect any data from subjects until they apply for and receive IRB approval of their study and of the specific elicitation devices they propose to use. Faculty or students who collect data in unapproved studies or via unapproved elicitation devices may be required to destroy that data; they may even face legal action. Lack of compliance with these requirements may constitute a violation of federal law and could place the University in jeopardy of federal sanctions. IRB submission forms can be downloaded here.

Most Anthropology and Linguistics research is eligible for 'Expedited Review,' for research procedures involving no more than 'minimal risk,' falling in Research Categories 6 and 7:

Questions should be directed to Kevin Wildes, S.J. (687-7509), Chair of the Institutional Review Board.

 

 

All graduate students must pass an oral proficiency exam in a language other than English or Spanish administered by a regular faculty member in one of the language departments. The language requirement must be satisfied by the end of the fourth semester, but students should plan ahead and contact language departments early in the semester. Since oral proficiency in a foreign language requires considerable practice, students are advised to start preparing for this requirement from their first semester.

 

 

The Consortium of Universities of the Washington Metropolitan Area was created more than 25 years ago to encourage cooperation and coordination among the following institutions:

          American University
          The Catholic University of America
          Gallaudet University
          George Mason University
          The George Washington University
          Georgetown University
          Howard University
          Marymount University
          Mount Vernon College
          Trinity College
          University of the District of Columbia
          University of Maryland at College Park

 

As part of that effort, the Consortium has established cooperative grants which fund projects involving faculty from two or more member institutions. Moreover, it has made it possible for students attending any one of these institutions to take classes at another Consortium university through registration at their home university. For example, with faculty advisor approval, Georgetown students interested in American Sign Language may take courses at Gallaudet University and get credit at Georgetown; students interested in theoretical linguistics can augment the selection of advanced courses at Georgetown with those offered at the University of Maryland at College Park.

Catalogues of classes from Consortium institutions can be found at the Registrar’s office or online. This office also has the special cards needed to register for a Consortium class. The card will need to be signed by the student, the student’s advisor, the Dean and the Registrar’s Office. For complete instructions, go to the Georgetown Consortium Notes.