Coterminal Masters
Stanford students in any undergraduate major interested in postgraduate work in Classics may apply for the department's co-terminal masters program.
Requirements
The co-terminal masters program requires application and admission during a Stanford student's senior year. Relevant coursework taken during or after the first quarter of the sophomore year are eligible for consideration for transfer to the graduate career, but only if the courses are not already being used to satisfy undergraduate requirements. Transfer of courses requires review and approval of both the undergraduate and graduate programs on a case by case basis. Once admitted, co-term students must complete the requirements of one of our four masters tracks within one year, effectively adding a fifth year to their Stanford career.
The masters tracks include: Language and Literature, Ancient History, Classical Archaeology, and the joint program in Ancient Philosophy. All tracks require completing 45 units of coursework in addition to passing an ancient language examination (Ancient Greek or Latin), a modern language examination, and submission of either a final thesis paper or a set of seminar papers. For this reason, undergraduate course work in Greek, Latin and at least one modern language is normally a prerequisite to a successful co-term application.
How to Apply
The Classics Department accepts applications once per year. For entry to the co-terminal masters program in Spring 2022-23, applications are due no later than 11:59pm on Tuesday, January 17, 2023. Late applications will not be accepted. The application deadline for all previous quarters has now passed.
Application Requirements
- Completed Coterminal Online Application
- Statement of Purpose (1-3 pages) explaining why you wish to enter the program and what you plan to accomplish while in the program
- Two letters of recommendation from Classics faculty
- Students who are interested in applying for the department's co-terminal masters program must first contact a prospective advisor within the Classics department. This faculty member needs to agree to be the advisor and provide a recommendation letter for the student.
- Two letters of recommendation from Classics faculty are required, and one of these letters should from your identified potential coterm advisor. You may optionally register a third recommender to serve as a backup in case one of your first two recommenders is unable to submit by the deadline.
- Writing sample of 10-15 pages
- Unofficial Stanford transcript
- Preliminary Program Proposal
GRE scores are not required.
Decisions are typically announced in early February. If a student is offered admission into the co-terminal program, the student must respond to the department by early March.
Have questions along the way?
Contact a Peer Mentor, the Student Services Manager, or the Director of Undergraduate Studies!