PhD Comparative Literature at University of California, Irvine

Programme overview

Two features give Comparative Literature at UC Irvine its distinctive character. First, the department is committed to a conception of transnational comparatism in which the Euro-American zone is not accorded any privileged position while literatures and cultures of the Americas, Asia, Africa, and Latin America - the literatures of the colonized more generally - are accorded their rightful place. Second, the department trains its students in a range of theoretical perspectives that have been transforming scholarship over the past few decades.

Faculty: School of Humanities | Study mode: full-time | Location: Irvine, CA, United States

Career pathways

The doctoral program in Comparative Literature prepares the student for a professional career in the research and teaching of comparative literary and cultural studies.

Official programme page

Application information

Entry requirements

Applicants must hold a B.A. or equivalent degree and should normally have majored in Comparative Literature or another major involving cultural study. Majors in other disciplines (e.g., philosophy or history) will be considered seriously, provided that a sufficient background in literary and cultural studies and in at least one foreign language is demonstrated.

Domestic applicants: USD 13,722 a year (2026-27). Graduate tuition (resident rate) from the standard Graduate/Credential Student Fees schedule for state-supported graduate degree programmes; the page does not list programmes by name, so this is the standard graduate band. Tuition line only; excludes Stud Source

Graduate applications are submitted online through the UCI graduate application portal; the non-refundable application fee is $135 for U.S. citizens and lawful U.S. permanent residents and $155 for all other applicants. Deadlines are set by each programme. GRE is required by some programmes only; TOEFL or IELTS English proficiency is required of graduate applicants unless waived.

Apply through the official page: https://grad.uci.edu/admissions/

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