Master of Arts in Comparative Literary Studies
Utrecht University
Key Information
Campus location
Utrecht, Netherlands
Languages
English
Study format
On-Campus
Duration
2 years
Pace
Full time
Tuition fees
EUR 2,209 / per year
Application deadline
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Introduction
Literature in a Globalised World
In this program, we approach literature as a cultural medium from a comparative, theoretical perspective. How do different cultures and societies think about the present, remember the past, and imagine the future in and through literature? And how has literature itself been understood and theorized across historical periods and geographical boundaries? In this program, you will have the opportunity to explore these and related questions. At Utrecht, we focus on modern and contemporary literature from different language areas. What sets the Utrecht program apart is a strong focus on literary and cultural history and memory, literary theory and criticism, and world literature.
As a student in this program, you will learn to analyze the ways in which literature interacts with (and reflects on) its cultural and social environment against the background of globalization and new media technologies.
A Comparative Approach
The ‘comparative’ approach characteristic for Utrecht is understood to involve a comparison between literary phenomena along three principal axes:
- Transculturality (how does literature reflect and negotiate cultural differences and operate across national borders?)
- Mediality (how does literature work as a medium and relate to other forms of cultural and knowledge production? how are literary phenomena adapted to other media? )
- Memory (how do stories and cultural forms survive across generations and how are they transformed across time?)
- Discursivity (how does literature function as a mode of knowledge production and how does it relate to other forms of knowledge, both scientific and creative?)
Program Outcome
Comparative Literary Studies prepares you for a range of different careers, both academic and non-academic, that require advanced research skills along with expertise in the fields of literary and cultural analysis. The program features a strong research ethics and methods component. Students are trained to design and carry out their own original research projects, gather and evaluate sources, and communicate their ideas and findings in a professional manner and a variety of formats. Students also receive training in academic writing, editing, presenting, and discussion leading, as well as digital methods. Read more about career development and possible career prospects.
Career Opportunities
Graduates of the program are fully equipped to pursue a Ph.D. in the international field of literary studies. Your training also makes you equipped to pursue alternative career paths requiring advanced skills in analyzing and managing textual information or specific knowledge of literature in an international context (publishing, cultural and educational policy, heritage institutions). Graduates who have specialized in one language area may also find employment in international organizations.
Academic Careers
After successfully completing the research Master’s program in Comparative Literary Studies, you will be able to formulate a research proposal for a Ph.D. project in your specialism within the field of literary studies. Furthermore, you will have an overview of the place that your own research plan occupies in the context of international research in literary studies.
In the past, around 40% of the program’s graduates were awarded fully-funded Ph.D. positions at the following universities (amongst others):
- Utrecht University (The Netherlands)
- Max Planck Institute Berlin (Germany)
- Ghent University (Belgium)
- Queen’s University Belfast (Ireland)
- Norwich University (United Kingdom)
- University of Sao Paulo (Brazil)
- University of Boğaziçi (Turkey)
- City University of New York (United States)
- University of Stockholm (Sweden)
- University of St Andrews (Scotland)
- University of Antwerp (Belgium)
- University of Birkbeck (United Kingdom)
The high rate of acceptance into Ph.D. programs at reputable universities abroad shows that graduates of the Utrecht program are competitive in the extremely selective granting of Ph.D. positions.
Careers outside Academia
Graduates of Comparative Literary Studies have gone on to senior-level careers in publishing (Elsevier, Oxford University Press), text editing, higher and middle education, governmental consultancy, and management. Students who do not go abroad in their second year may opt to do an internship.
Other graduates found jobs as:
- Policy Advisor at Higher Education and Languages, NRTO
- Editorial assistant at Oxford University Press
- Policy Advisor at the Ministry of Defense
- Editor at Elsevier
- French teacher at HVC