FIELD EXAM PROPOSAL GUIDELINES
Students must submit the proposal for their field exam by the fall of the third year of the doctoral program. The proposal should be 10-12 pages in length and include a bibliography of primary works, including both literary works and other materials such as films, critical studies of these works, and theoretical works. The number of items on a bibliography will vary, but a list of 50-75 items is reasonable. The aim of the field is the articulation of a broad framework in terms of theory, methodology, critical background, cultural formation and history that will provide the necessary background for the more focused thesis project. The proposal, then, should have as its core the corpus of texts and animating critical questions that will form the basis of the thesis, and should construct a broader field around that core. After setting out the parameters of this broad field, the proposal should make clear how and why the field is important and relevant to the projected thesis work and should provide a provisional outline of the dissertation project. One possible way of structuring the proposal would be to divide it into the following sections:
- A discussion and justification of the primary works chosen. How and why do the primary works selected lead out into the larger field, and how can knowledge of that field subsequently enable detailed and contextualized analysis of the primary texts?
- A discussion of the theoretical and methodological framework of both the field and the more focused thesis project. This section should outline the reasons underlying the choice of theoretical approaches and should explain why such a theoretical framework will enrich the reading of the primary works.
- An explanation of how the thesis will evolve from the larger field set out above. There should be a clear articulation of the hypothesis of the thesis as well as the objectives and originality of the thesis as a whole. As much detail as possible should be provided about the thesis work, including a provisional outline of the chapters envisioned for the dissertation project.
Bao keeps sample field exam proposals on file that can be viewed upon request. These samples are for reference only and cannot be duplicated without permission.