MA program

The Department of French at Dalhousie University invites applications for admission to the thesis degree of MA in French.

Research areas

The Department's research interests involve not only individual areas of study, but they also reflect a modern emphasis on a harmonious complementarity and often interchange between French and Francophone literature and linguistics, as well as semiotics, cultural studies and the study of French as a second language.

In the broad field of French Literature, the study of Contemporary and Twentieth Century writing has an important role, and includes the study of modern and contemporary Quebec and Francophone literature. The literatures of the middle ages, 16th, 17th and 18th centuries are well represented.

In the field of French language and linguistics, major areas of concentration include theoretical and applied linguistics through the following fields in particular: contrastive studies, sociolinguistics; lexicology; terminology, translation; semantics; pragmatics, text linguistics; computer assisted language learning and second language acquisition.

Research in culture and civilization has an important place and is often linked to literary, linguistic, pedagogical or semiotic explorations.

Faculty members

D. Aïssaoui, Licence (Maroc), DEA (Metz), PhD (Ottawa).
Seventeenth and eighteenth-century literature, autobiography  [Teaching]

C. Elson, BA (Vind), MA (Dal), Dr. de 3e cycle (Sorbonne).
Modern and contemporary literature and culture, theory, art, music, cinema

V. Masse, BA, MA (Montréal), PhD (Toronto).
Medieval literature, early modern literature, contact literature, apocalyptic literature, ephemeral literature, Quebec literature and culture

J. Milicevic, BA, (Belgrade), MA, PhD (Montréal).
General Linguistics (semantics & lexicology, dependancy syntax, morphology), Pedagogical Lexicography

R. Mopoho, BA (Yaounde, Cameroon), MA, PhD (Montréal).
Linguistics, lexicology, terminology, translation studies, sociolinguistics

I. Oore, BA (Tel-Aviv), MA (Waterloo), PhD (Western).
Quebec literature and culture

V. Simedoh, BA, MA (Fribourg), PhD (Queen's).
Francophone literature, translation, literature and culture of Francophone minorities outside of Quebec.

In addition to the above list, several retired and on-leave colleagues maintain an active presence in the Department: V. Frigerio, M. Bishop, W. T. Gordon, B. Bednarski, etc.

Program requirements

For general admission rules, see the Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations.

The admission requirements are as follows:

Courses leading to the MA degree in French are offered in the areas of French and francophone literatures and cultures, French and general linguistics, and second language studies. Candidates must satisfy the general requirements for admission to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and must show evidence of proficiency in spoken and written French. A minimum B+ average (3.30) from a university of recognized standing is required.

Students may be accepted on a full-time or a part-time basis. A full-time student must spend a minimum of one year in full-time graduate study. Part-time students may carry a maximum of 15 credit hours (corresponding to 5 one-term courses) during one year.

The requirements after admission are the following:

The equivalent of at least 27 credit hours is required. This will consist of a thesis (usually equivalent to 12 credit hours) plus 15 credit hours at the 5000-level, including three credit hours in Research Methods.

When necessary in order to improve the student's proficiency in French, up to 6 credit hours, undergraduate or graduate, may be required.

The thesis, written in French, is to be submitted and approved within the time limits set out in the Faculty of Graduate Studies regulations of this calendar.

How to apply

December 15 is the deadline for submission of complete applications for applicants who wish to be considered for scholarships.

Otherwise, the application deadlines are:

for Canadian applicants: June 1st

for non-Canadian applicants: April 1st

Graduate application forms are available on the Faculty of Graduate Studies' website and include:

  • Application for Admission-Guidelines
  • Graduate Studies Application
  • Confidential Reference Letter (two are required)

You must assemble all relevant documentation and forward as instructed in the Guidelines (see Application for Admission: please read it carefully).

Send the following to:

Department of French
Dalhousie University
Marion McCain Arts and Social Sciences Building

PO Box 15000

Halifax, NS B3H 4R2

  • a copy of the application form
  • two letters of reference in sealed/endorsed envelopes. 

plus:

  • your resume;
  • information on studies abroad and any French classes not counted for the degree;
  • a sample of recent work;
  • a brief statement of intent in French about goals in graduate studies, and the broad area of specialization preferred.

I.  Ask all your home institutions to send two official transcripts directly to the Department of French, c/o The Graduate Secretary.

II. Send an envelope addressed to the Registrar, enclosing the application form and the $115.00 application fee, Canadian funds.

Scholarships

  • Only full-time students are eligible for the Dalhousie Graduate Fellowship.
  • Exceptionally strong candidates for the one-year program may be eligible for the prestigious Killam Scholarship. Application for the award is not made directly by the student; individuals are nominated by departments. Those seeking selection as Killam scholars should submit their applications for admission by the December 15th deadline.
  • SSHRC (Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada): if you are a citizen or permanent resident of Canada, have completed or are about to complete a bachelor's degree, or are already pursuing a master's degree in the humanities or social sciences, you may be eligible to apply for a master's scholarship. Details are available at www.sshrc.ca.

Information on Halifax, Dalhousie, and the Department

Halifax
Capital of the Province of Nova Scotia, Canada's chief Atlantic coast port. Cultural and commercial centre of the Maritime Provinces. Population of the Halifax-Dartmouth-Bedford area: over 500,000. Temperate climate, picturesque location and surroundings.

Dalhousie University 
Founded in 1818. Student population over 15,000, graduate enrolment over 3,000. The campus is located in a residential area, not far from downtown Halifax

Department of French
Located close to the Killam Memorial Library (1,500,000 items: efficient interlibrary loan service), the Dalhousie Arts Centre, the Student Union Building, and the Dalplex facility for sports and recreation. Full-time faculty of ten. Three graduate programs offered: Master of Arts (thesis program), Master of Arts (without thesis program) and the PhD program. The Department publishes two international scholarly journals: Dalhousie French Studies (French and Francophone Literature and Culture), the electronic journal Belphégor (popular literature and media culture) and an annual collection of graduate students' scholarly writings Initiales/Initials.  The services of a French assistant/e is available to undergraduate students. Activities include lectures, talks, international conferences on French and Francophone literary, cultural and linguistic subjects.