The Graduate School requires the successful completion of a minimum of 12 graduate-level courses, usually completed in the first 2 years.

• All students must complete RLST 5100, the required departmental seminar. This course may be taken at any time during a student’s time at Yale, but it is highly recommended that students take it in their first year of course work. The purpose of the course is to encourage rigorous conversation about religion and religious studies among students with a diverse set of disciplinary and documentary interests. 
• No more than one course of the required 12 courses may be graded on a SAT/UNSAT basis.
• Many students take more than 12 courses, either because their subfield has additional requirements, or because of their own interests. 
• Students sometimes register for courses that are offered on both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Students should be sure to register for the graduate version of those courses, so that they count toward the graduate coursework requirement. If students have accidentally registered for the undergraduate version, they can submit a Course Schedule Change form; this must be done before the last day of courses in the semester in which the course is being offered, as thereafter such a change cannot be made.
• If a student wishes to take an undergraduate class as a graduate level course, they should please request permission from the instructor and create additional assignments to bring the workload to the level expected of a graduate course (e.g., additional readings, a longer final assignment, etc.). The student should also check with the ADGS or the DGS to confirm. Students then submit a Graduate Credit Request Form, which can be found on the Registrar’s Forms Page.
• If a student would like to change the grade mode for a course (e.g., Audit/Credit), they must use the Course Schedule Change form.
• If, at the end of the term, a student finds that you are unable to fulfill the requirements of a course on time and your instructor has agreed to an extension, the student must submit a formal request for a Temporary Incomplete using the Graduate Credit Request Form (TI Grade), which can be found on the Registrar’s Forms Page. Only one TI in a single term is permitted.
• Course waivers can be obtained for previous graduate-level course work or language study. Such waivers reduce course or language requirements. Students should consult with the ADGS of their subfield as well as the DGS to determine whether it makes sense for them to waive any courses. Students usually submit all the necessary paperwork for a course waiver petition, including an official transcript, at the beginning of the second year, after they have successfully demonstrated their progress in their first year of coursework. Students can obtain a maximum of three course waivers. Please note that waived courses cannot be counted in determining eligibility for awarding an M.A. en route to a Ph.D.; thus, students who use course waivers to complete their 12-course requirement will not be awarded an M.A. but are still eligible for the MPHIL degree. 
• During the two years of coursework, the Yale Graduate School Honors requirement must be met: a grade of Honors in at least one year graduate course or two term graduate courses, earned after matriculation in the Graduate School and during the nine-month academic year.
• Students can read more about course registration on the registration website.

Proficiency in two scholarly languages, variously determined by subfield, must be demonstrated, one before the end of the first year, the other before the beginning of the third year.  Some subfields have additional language requirements.

• Students can fulfill their language requirements through (a) regular language coursework, in which students must earn a grade of A or B in one of Yale’s intermediate language courses; (b) taking and passing a translation exam offered by the relevant department; (c) successfully completing a Yale semester or summer session language for reading course (e.g., FREN 6090 French for Reading); or (d) passing a translation exam set by a faculty member in the department. Equivalent courses at a peer institution will be considered.
  • The French and German Departments offer translation exams at regular intervals and on fixed dates for students who need to fulfill their language requirements. Students should pay attention to notices about upcoming exams and take advantage of these opportunities. 
  • In some fields, faculty members are willing to administer individual translation exams. Students are encouraged to be proactive in setting a date for such exams with the relevant faculty members.
  • The Graduate School administers summer reading courses in French, German, Italian, and Spanish for GSAS doctoral students and funds the tuition for these courses. Courses meet Monday through Friday from 9am – 12pm. There is a strict deadline for applications. 
  • Semester-long reading courses are offered in some languages as well.
• Students with demonstrated native proficiency in a language other than English do not need to take an exam in that language. For example, if a student has either a high school or college diploma or coursework reflecting education in the relevant language, a language exam is unnecessary. 

The department has an academic requirement of three semesters of teaching. Students cannot graduate without completing three semesters (not 3 courses) of teaching at Yale (not somewhere else, and not before matriculation).

• The university funding package provides four semesters of Teaching Fellowships, plus an additional two semesters (through the 6^th year Teaching Fellowship) if a student has not graduated after 5 years. 
• Some students secure outside funding, which enables them to forego a semester or more of Teaching Fellowship. Still, all students must teach for a minimum of three semesters to fulfill the department’s academic requirement. 

The Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning offers a mandatory teaching orientation for first-time Teaching Fellows as well as workshops and resources related to the fundamentals of teaching, innovative pedagogical methods, tutoring, writing, classroom management, and more. Students are encouraged to take advantage of these opportunities.

In place of serving as a Teaching Fellow, students can seek GSAS approval to pursue a Professional Development Opportunitie, at the Beinecke, Yale Center for British Art, the Yale University Art Gallery, and other institutions on campus.

The department’s advising model encourages students to take classes and comprehensive examinations with multiple faculty members and facilitates a team advising approach.

• Students are not assigned a dissertation adviser upon admission and are expected to take courses with various faculty members. 
• Prior to advancing to candidacy (years 1-3), the ADGS of the student’s subfield serves as the student’s adviser and approves the student’s course schedule. The ADGS is listed as the primary advisor for administrative purposes. The ADGS meets with the student and relevant faculty members at the beginning and end of each academic year to discuss course selection, exams, and plans for the dissertation prospectus. 
• The dissertation adviser is finalized by the student at the time of the dissertation prospectus colloquium. After the student advances to candidacy, the dissertation adviser is listed as the primary advisor for administrative purposes. 
• No faculty member can insist that a student must work with them or that a student may not work with someone else.
• Should problems arise between a student and the ADGS or the dissertation advisor at any stage in the doctoral program, that student is encouraged to reach out to the DGS (or, as needed, the Department Chair or GSAS Dean) right away.
• Students may read more about advising in this GSAS Advising Booklet and on the GSAS Advising Site.

The form and timing of qualifying and/or qualifying exams vary considerably from field to field. Students are encouraged to consult the subfield specific guidelines and their ADGS for details. 

After students finish their exams, they typically prepare a dissertation proposal. Approximately 15-20 double-spaced pages, the proposal outlines the dissertation topic, research plan, literature review, and tentative chapter outline. This document serves as the basis for the dissertation prospectus colloquium, which is attended by the student and 3-5 relevant faculty members who discuss the dissertation plan together. After passing the prospectus colloquium, the student prepares a 2-page double-spaced precis (~500-700 words, no footnotes) that is circulated in the department for final approval. This document should contain the name of the dissertation project and the name of the adviser.  Barring unforeseen difficulties, a student will be ABD two weeks thereafter. Student should consult their AGDS and dissertation advisors for subfield-specific guidelines and expectations.

In most subfields, students are expected to advance to candidacy (that is, complete the dissertation prospectus, colloquium, and precis) by the end of year 3 (i.e., after six semesters, officially before the end of registration in the 7^th semester). Students in language-intensive fields (Hebrew Bible, Early Mediterranean and West Asian Religions, Islamic Studies, and Asian Religions) are given an extra semester to advance to candidacy; they thus advance to candidacy at the end of 3.5 years (i.e., after seven semesters, officially before the end of registration in the 8^th semester).

• Advancing to candidacy means completing FOUR things:
  • all course requirements, 
  • all language requirements, 
  • all qualifying and/or comprehensive exams,
  • dissertation prospectus colloquium.

A student and their advisor(s) determine together when a dissertation is ready for submission.

• Exact submission dates for each academic semester can be found here.
• One month before submitting the dissertation, students must notify the Registrar and the DGS of their intention to submit the dissertation and provide the names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers of the dissertation readers. The standard number of readers is three, of which two must be ladder or ladder-track Yale faculty. The department will provide readers with access to the dissertation and the dissertation report.
• The Dissertation Submission Checklist contains an outline of the steps involved in submitting a dissertation and lists the forms students need to submit at the time of Dissertation Submission, including the Dissertation Submission and Degree Petition Form. 
• There is no oral examination or defense at the completion of the dissertation. Instead, formal written reviews are authored by readers. The reader reports are read by the department faculty, filed with the Graduate School, and shared with the student. No one else has access to these reports. The purpose of the report is (1) to indicate whether or not the dissertation meets the requirements for the Ph.D, and (2) to provide helpful feedback for the future revision of the dissertation for publication. Reports will likely contain critique and suggestions for revision to ensure that the next incarnation of the dissertation serves the additional purpose of helping a student in the continuation of their academic career. Students should not be surprised when the dissertation is not ranked excellent in all rubrics by all readers; this is typical.
• Filing a dissertation completes a student’s requirements for the Ph.D. and terminates their student status even if they have remaining semesters of funding and even if the degree will not be officially awarded until the next semester. If a student files their dissertation anytime in the fall semester – whether before or after the fall filing deadline – their student status, and therefore their stipend and their Yale Health Plan coverage, will end at the close of the fall semester. (In other words, if a student files their dissertation in December, their student status ends at the close of the fall semester, even though the degree is not officially awarded until the next degree granting opportunity in May.) If a student wishes to remain on the Yale Health Plan through the spring of their final year, they must wait to file their dissertation until after the close of registration in the spring semester (near the end of January). Students are encouraged to consult with the DGS and Department Registrar about the timing of dissertation submission.

• Extended Registration: The University provides a package of funding for 5-6 years. It is hoped that students will complete the Ph.D. in 5 years, but a 6^th year of Teaching Fellowship support is guaranteed for students who have not completed the dissertation and are making good progress. Students who do not complete the dissertation within the allotted 6 years, may apply for an exceptional 7^th (and even 8^th) year of extended registration if the DGS confirms that they are on track to complete the dissertation in the extended period. Students in extended registration will receive health care and library access but have exhausted their funding and do not receive a university stipend. Students in Extended Registration will need to identify some other means of support. On occasion, teaching may be available but students on extended registration are not guaranteed a teaching slot. Moreover, students in their teaching years are prioritized for TF positions. No more than 4 semesters of Extended Registration is allowed. To apply for 7^th year Extended Registration use this form. To apply for 8^th year Extended Registration use this form.

Dissertation Completion Status: This status is intended for students who are completing dissertations under the supervision of a member of the Graduate School faculty but who are not full-time students because they are employed more than 10 hours a week. Because students on DCS are not full-time, they receive no university funding or health care. They do have library access. A student may request DCS for up to four semesters, but they may not be reinstated as a full-time student. Students in DCS are required to pay an annual fee, to cover library use and other university resources. To apply for Dissertation Completion Status, use this form. 

Students are encouraged to communicate their intention to take a leave with the DGS in a timely fashion so that proper arrangements can be made, and so that students understand what is required of them to return to full-time student status. For more information, see the GSAS Programs and Policies. It is also helpful for students to share their plans in advance for the purpose of finding replacement Teaching Fellows, in cases when the student had planned on serving as a Teaching Fellow.

• It is not unusual for students to take parental or medical leave (including for mental health), and the schedule of requirements and deadlines is adjusted accordingly (the “clock stops” while a student is on leave). 
• Students can also decide to take a leave of absence because they are not making sufficient progress towards their dissertation (the “clock stops” while a student is on such a leave as well). 
• If a student is not on leave, they remain registered, even if they waive their stipend for any reason, and will thus be required to show steady progress towards their degree and meet the program’s benchmarks.

Students who are ABD and wish to pursue dissertation research out of the area may register in absentia, receive their UF and health coverage, and work on their dissertation. Generally, students who are not ABD cannot receive Yale funding if they register in absentia. Some pre-ABD students take non-cumulative registration in order to study a language abroad, but such study is typically funded by an external fellowship. Students are encouraged to check with the DGS to make sure they understand the rules surrounding registration in absentia.