Admissions

The program of French and Francophone Studies at MSU is looking forward to reading your application. The submission deadline is December 15th.

Do you want to turn your love for the French language and Francophone cultures into a rewarding career? Are you interested in exploring the diversity of the Frenchspeaking world from a variety of perspectives? Today, an advanced degree in Francophone studies can uniquely prepare you for a career in higher education or the professional world, or give your chosen career a new direction.

Our program welcomes applications from diverse groups of students. Our graduate students have come from France, other parts of Europe, Africa, and the Caribbean, as well as North America, and their unique backgrounds make for a culturally and intellectually vibrant environment. The faculty members of our program bring together a wide range of research interests that include French early modern literature, post-revolutionary literature, narrative theories, Francophone postcolonial studies, gender studies, the study of social movements and cultural history, French linguistics, and pedagogy. Moreover, students can choose between the Interdisciplinary Studies concentration and the Literary and Cultural Studies concentration, depending on their career goals. Lastly, the MSU French program is committed to assuring that all our students succeed by offering supportive, individualized mentoring by our faculty.

Financial Support

Teaching Assistantships (includes a full tuition waiver, stipend, health and dental insurance) in the French Program (MA 2 years, Ph.D. 4 years). For more information visit: https://grad.msu.edu/msu-graduate-school-fellowships
Assistantships for working on Technology projects (1 year) (includes a full tuition waiver, stipend, health and dental insurance)
Teaching Assistantships (includes a full tuition waiver, stipend, health and dental insurance) at the Center of Integrative Studies in the Arts and Humanities http://cisah.msu.edu/ and at the Global Studies in the Arts and Humanities (GSAH) http://globalstudies.msu.edu/
The Dissertation Completion Fellowship offers a 1 semester release from teaching (PhD students).
Generous financial support for presenting at scholarly meetings, submitting book reviews and articles for publication, and in preparing to publish the dissertation.

Working in France

Professional experience as an assistant for the summer Undergraduate program (8 weeks) in Tours, France.
For details on study abroad programs in RCS visit: http://www.rcsdev.marcom.cal.msu.edu/undergraduate/study-abroad/
Teaching Assistant during the academic year for English at the University François Rabelais in Tours, France
- For details, visit http://www.univ-tours.fr/

Professional and Academic Opportunities

Editorial experience with Tropos, the graduate student journal indexed in PMLA that attracts scholarly and creative work from throughout North America.
Graduate Certification in College Foreign Language Teaching for careers in post-secondary education (http://celta.msu.edu/students/graduate-certificate/).
Lectures and professional meetings on departmental, college, and university level.
For further information on our program and the application procedure, please visit our website and contact Valentina Denzel, graduate advisor and Associate Professor of French at vdenzel@msu.edu. Review of applications starts on December 11, 2021 and continues as needed.

Admission Requirements for the M.A. and Ph.D.

In addition to the Graduate School online application that includes, among other documents, a personal and academic statement for domestic and international students, see the following requirements for admission to our programs:

Before you can be officially admitted into the graduate study program at Michigan State University, please make sure that all of the following items are submitted to the Department of Romance and Classical Studies at:

Dept. of Romance and Classical Studies
Attn: Graduate Admissions
619 Red Cedar Rd.
B-331 Wells Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824

When preparing the MSU Graduate Online Application, refer to the following program codes:

MASTER’S PROGRAM – 0913 French
DOCTORAL DEGREE – 0915 French

Master of Arts in French:

Application form
A bachelor’s degree in French from a four-year college, or the equivalent; preparation in French equivalent to or more extensive than that required for the B.A. in French at Michigan State University.
Superior grades in college coursework (at least a grade point average of 3.0 in undergraduate French language and literature courses on the third and fourth-year level).
Letters of recommendation from three professors who are qualified to assess the applicant’s ability to pursue advanced graduate study in French.
Non-native speakers of French are also required to submit a language proficiency evaluation form.
Two writing samples, one in French and another in English. Each writing sample should:
- Focus on a topic related to French and Francophone Studies,
- Show evidence of analysis,
- Contain a full bibliography, including primary and secondary sources, and in addition,
- Acknowledge all contributions by other authors, to avoid plagiarism.
Official transcript(s) of all relevant coursework, including proof that they have received a B.A. or equivalent in French. Request that all colleges or universities attended, or examination boards send original hard copies of all transcripts, diplomas, mark sheets, and certificates in an official, sealed envelope, directly to the Department.
Evidence of English-language proficiency
Candidates for a teaching assistantship whose first language is not English are required to demonstrate competency in English. For information about requirements, see the policy on the Graduate School’s information for international applicants.
Non-native English speakers are also required to pass an oral proficiency exam in English. This is done on campus via a SPEAK Test, which is administered by the English Language Center. For further information visit https://elc.msu.edu/tests/msu-speaking-test/
Personal statement explaining their motivation for enrolling in an MA program in French, their ultimate goals and an academic statement describing the area they intend to focus on (maximum 500 words).

Doctor of Philosophy:

(For candidates who have not earned the M.A. in French at Michigan State University)

Application Form
A Master’s degree in French or its equivalent. Candidates without a Master’s degree in French or its equivalent must pass the M.A./Ph.D. Qualifying Examination in French in their second semester of residency.
A grade point average of at least 3.0 in their undergraduate language and literature courses in French.
Official transcripts of M.A. in French and/or transcripts of all relevant coursework. Request that all colleges or universities attended, or examination boards send original, hard copies of all transcripts, diplomas, mark sheets, and certificates in an official, sealed envelope, directly to the Department.
Personal statement explaining their motivation for enrolling in a doctoral program in French and their ultimate goals, and academic statement describing the area they intend to focus on (maximum 500 words).
Two academic writing samples, one in French and another in English. Each writing sample should:
- Focus on a topic related to French and Francophone Studies,
- Show evidence of analysis,
- Contain a full bibliography, including primary and secondary sources, and in addition,
- Acknowledge all contributions by other authors, to avoid plagiarism.
Letters of recommendation from three professors who are qualified to assess the applicant’s ability to pursue advanced graduate study in French.
Non-native speakers of French are also required to submit a language proficiency evaluation form.
Evidence of English-language proficiency
Candidates for a teaching assistantship whose first language is not English are required to demonstrate competency in English. For information about requirements, see the policy on the Graduate School’s information for international applicants.
Non-native English speakers are also required to pass an oral proficiency exam in English. This is done on campus via a SPEAK Test, which is administered by the English Language Center. For further information visit https://elc.msu.edu/tests/msu-speaking-test/
At his or her discretion, or upon the recommendation of the faculty, the director of language instruction or a designated replacement will call all candidates for a teaching assistantship to verify their knowledge of spoken French and the clarity of their pronunciation, before a teaching assistantship can be firmly awarded.

In addition to the online application form, make sure that all materials reach us at:

Dept. of Romance and Classical Studies
Attn: Graduate Admissions
619 Red Cedar Rd.
B-331 Wells Hall
East Lansing, MI 48824

Academic milestones

Hannah Olsen: Olsen is a doctoral student in French and Francophone Studies at Michigan State University and a Teaching Assistant in MSU’s Department of Romance and Classical Studies. With the support of the Jeanne Marandon Fellowship, she will travel to France to research how the legalization of contraception and abortion in that country has impacted the lives of women. She was awarded $25,000 to support her research by the Jeanne Marandon Fellowship which is offered by the Société des Professeurs Français et Francophones d’Amérique (Professional Association of French Professors in the U.S.). Her research also is supported by a grant she received from the Center for Gender in Global Context at Michigan State University.

“I’m incredibly thrilled and feel very lucky and privileged to get these grants,” Olsen said. “This means I can spend the entire 2023-2024 academic year to really focus on my research for my dissertation and that opportunity is not often afforded.”

Olsen will travel to France this year to review several documents that can be found in the archives of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, or the National Library of France, in Paris. Besides women’s magazines and self-published publications, some of the documents she will look at are medical studies and interviews doctors conducted in family planning centers with their patients. She also wants to visit some family planning centers and see if they have more interviews with patients that they would be willing to share.

Sam Fegan: My MA Project uses data-driven instruction to examine why learners experience speaking anxiety in the language classroom, and what language educators can do to make speaking in the target language less anxiety-inducing. The project blends both theory and practice, as the data gleaned from my research allowed me to design a professional development workshop that provides language educators with new knowledge and activities that they can incorporate into their own classrooms as a resource for increasing learners’ comfort and confidence with speaking in the target language.
The MA in French & Francophone Studies Program at MSU allowed me to tailor my learning to my professional goals in a way that best reflected my future aspirations. As a future high school French teacher, I was able to pursue electives pertaining to educational psychology and cultural competence, while also expanding my knowledge of the Francophone world. The expertise and prowess of the French faculty is impressive, and their support and encouragement are why I’m confident that I have the skills necessary to be successful in my future teaching endeavors.

Sam Fegan during the defense of her MA thesis

Some professional activities from current graduate students in French and Francophone Studies

The French and Francophone Studies MA students Viviane Ribes and Grace Scheerhorn were at the University of Kentucky in Lexington for the 75^th annual Kentucky Foreign Language Conference, 2022. They presented respectively cutting-edge research on the use of racist terms in French pastries and on the difficult task of translating insults and racist and sexist terminologies.