Our graduate program is one of the nation's premier destinations for comparative literary studies, providing a dynamic space for interdisciplinary research that spans diverse literatures and cultures from transnational and cross-cultural perspectives.
Faculty and graduate students develop and rethink historical and theoretical frameworks, opening fresh insights into social and cultural forms and relations.
Comparative Literature equips students with tools to engage, analyze, and interpret texts across disciplinary and national boundaries, preparing them to write, edit, and translate in diverse contexts. Our graduates explore a range of literary traditions, historical periods, genres, and cultural contexts, from Latin American concrete poetry and race theory discourses to Yiddish experimental fiction. Students receive rigorous training across areas such as Classics, East Asian Literature, French, German, Italian, Hebrew Studies, Critical Theory, Renaissance Studies, Film and Media, Performance Studies, and Postcolonial Theory, guided by our internationally recognized faculty.
Graduate students pursue in-depth research in literary and cultural studies, participate in collaborative projects, and engage with contemporary political, aesthetic, and social issues. Many students present and publish their scholarly work in prestigious venues, and some produce translations, literary works, or theater. All students benefit from close mentorship with leading scholars in small seminars and participate in campus Designated Emphasis programs, including Critical Theory, New Media Studies, and Gender and Women’s Studies. Comparative Literature students form a vibrant, integrated community with access to the resources of the entire Berkeley campus, and our program’s strong interdisciplinary focus includes required seminars in other departments. With one of the top placement records nationally and internationally, our graduates have gone on to become prominent scholars in Comparative and national literature departments worldwide.
Graduate Students often decide to join a Designated Emphasis program as well. Here are links to the programs that our students have joined in the past.
Handbook and Field Guide for Graduate Students
Download the graduate student handbook for comparative literature here.
