Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures

Information and Departmental Plan of Study

Advanced Placement

The department gives its own placement test to all incoming students who have studied Russian. On the basis of this test, students are placed in an appropriate course. Successful completion of RUS 107, RUS 108 (Russian for Heritage Speakers), or immediate assignment to a higher course satisfies the A.B. language requirement. If students have experience speaking Russian at home, but lack formal schooling in the language, they should contact Svetlana Korshunova (sk22@princeton.edu) to discuss placement in Russian for Speakers.

Program of Study

A minimum of eight departmental courses is required, in addition to a required Junior Methods Seminar. Four upper-level courses must be within the department, two of which must be from the core survey courses (SLA 219, 220, 221); the other four courses may be from cognate areas depending on the student's particular interests. For example, if the major field of concentration is 19th-century prose, the program might include courses from French or German literature. Students with a strong interest in Russian and Soviet studies might take area courses in the Program in Russian and Eurasian Studies such as Russian history, politics, anthropology, or sociology. These are only sample suggestions. The program is flexible and strives to satisfy as wide a range of interests as possible.

Concentrators are required to complete RUS 207 and one or more advanced language courses (RUS 208, 405, 406, 407, or 408); or one of the upper-level literature courses taught in Russian (SLA 308, 312, 350, 413). Students who place beyond RUS 207, or who complete the Russian Heritage Speakers courses (RUS 103-108), will work with the director of undergraduate studies to design an appropriate course of study.

Independent Work

Junior Independent Work. Slavic majors are required to take a credit-bearing methods seminar in the fall of their junior year. This seminar will be devoted to various approaches to the field in Russian (or other Slavic languages), including one seminar session on research methods with Dr. Thomas Keenan (tkeenan@princeton.edu), the Firestone Library Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies librarian; and including, but not limited to, examples of scholarship written by Slavic department faculty.  Separate from the grade for the seminar, juniors will receive one JP grade for their year-long independent work, which will be recorded on the spring transcript. The English-language paper (20–25 pages), which will incorporate Russian (or other Slavic language) resources to a significant degree, will comprise one-half of the year-long junior independent work grade. Please refer to the Slavic Department Guide to Independent Work for the most up-to-date guidelines for each assignment.

Senior Independent Work. In the senior year, the student's independent work, written under departmental supervision, consists of a thesis of about 20,000 words to be submitted two weeks before the first day of the spring term reading period. After the thesis is submitted, students do a brief (5-minute) presentation in Russian (or relevant Slavic language), and following after each presentation, there is a question and answer period in English, for the Slavic Department faculty and fellow students. Total presentation time will run roughly 15 minutes per student. This presentation does not receive a grade.

Senior Departmental Examination

Graduating seniors are required to take a comprehension examination on Russian literature. Together with the thesis and departmental grades, this examination is one of three components that determine departmental honors. The take-home exam is based on a core list of works taught in the three survey courses offered by the department. Students may substitute a limited number of works based on their individual interests for the comprehensive exam. The finalized list must be submitted to the director of undergraduate studies one month before the exam.

Study Abroad

For students who begin Russian at Princeton, the department has organized a second-year course (RUS 105R-107R) for credit in St. Petersburg that may be taken the summer immediately following the completion of RUS 102. This course is taught by Princeton faculty as well as the instructors of the Derzhavin Institute. The dean of the college office is generally able to provide financial assistance to students enrolling in the summer course. More advanced students are urged to spend either a summer or semester in Russia. The St. Petersburg program is temporarily on hold. 

Certificate in Language and Culture

The Slavic department also offers a certificate in Russian Language and Culture.

Course Work. Students must complete RUS 207 in addition to three upper-level language or literature courses conducted in Russian. While course offerings might change from year to year, a selection of courses that satisfy the requirements of the certificate are as follows:

Language courses: RUS 208, RUS 405, RUS 406, RUS 407, RUS 408

Literature courses: SLA 308 (Short Story), SLA 312 (Russian Drama), SLA 350 (Russian Fairy Tale), SLA 413 (Pushkin and His Time), most topics courses (e.g., Lermontov, Russian poetry), most graduate literature courses. Should the student take a course on Russian literature that offers a Russian precept, that course may also count toward the certificate if additional work is completed for the course in Russian. This work must be approved by the director of undergraduate studies in consultation with the course instructor at the start of the term. Credit will not be granted retroactively. Students who place beyond RUS 207/208 must consult with the director of undergraduate studies to design an alternative course of study for the certificate no later than the end of fall semester, junior year. Students placing beyond 207/208 are still required to take four courses in the department to satisfy the certificate requirement.

Independent Work. Students must complete a paper in Russian of approximately 1,000 words. The paper ordinarily will be devoted to a close analysis of a literary text of about 10–20 pages. However, a student with strong related interests could write on questions of linguistics or a topic of broader cultural significance (e.g., Russian art, Russian film, politics). In any case, readings in Russian will be a mandatory component of the paper.  This paper may be an expanded and significantly revised version of a paper written for one of the courses taken to fulfill the certificate, but should be done in consultation with the instructor for whom the paper was written. In this case, at least one-third of the content (by word count) should be new material. Alternatively, a student may write a summary of their thesis (1,000 words) in Russian. All topics must be cleared in advance with the director of undergraduate studies, who will decide on their appropriateness in consultation with other department members and who will assist in assigning an adviser for the certificate paper as needed. An adviser should be chosen no later than the start of a student's senior spring semester.

Note: Students may obtain the certificate in Russian language and culture in addition to the certificate in Russian and Eurasian studies. However, they may not apply the same courses toward both certificates (with the necessary exception of RUS 207).

Preparation for Graduate Study

Departmental concentrators who are considering pursuing graduate studies in Slavic are reminded that most graduate schools require a reading knowledge of a second modern language. French and German are important for Russian literature. Graduate programs in Russian literature often require another Slavic language. Students should think about preparing themselves while still undergraduates to meet these requirements.