Guidelines

We are delighted that you have decided to enroll in Literary Studies at the University of Zurich. All philologies of the University of Zurich contribute to this program in order to optimize the range of modules offered. Accordingly, you will find that a wide variety of modules is available in this program. The most up-to-date information on available courses can be found here.

The single major study program in “Literary Studies” is the most expansive program in literary studies available in Switzerland and is structured in the following way: students must enroll in a specific number of modules from each of the module groups “Literature and Literary Studies now” and “Literature, Knowledge, Culture” or “Literature, Arts, Media,” and “Final Modules.” These can be supple-mented with modules from the module groups “Further Philological Explorations,” “Language and Media Practice” and “Other Curricular Modules.” This process ensures that you attain basic research-oriented knowledge and expertise in relevant, contemporary research areas, while granting you the freedom to consilidate your knowledge in literatures of a particular language or to focus on multilingual perspectives.

We wish you an inspiring and valuable time at the University of Zurich!

Degree: Master of Arts UZH – 120 ECTS

Part-Time Study: Thestandard curriculumis designed for full-time enrollment. Part-time study is possible but will extend the total duration of the program.

Combination of Major and Minor Subjects: The specialized Master’s program in Literary Studies consists of 120 ECTS credits, corresponding to a full-time course of study.

Language of Instruction: English, German

Institutional Affiliation: The single major study program in Literary Studies is affiliated with the Department of Romance Studies due to the fact that this institute houses multiple languages and that the program “General and Comparative Literature” is also offered here. However, the Literary Studies program is not limited to the field of Romance Studies, even if specialization in this field is possible. In addition, the program has been structured in a way that allows studies to be completed entirely in English (or entirely in German).

Prerequisites: Excellent German or English skills are mandatory. It is also advisable for students to possess good or very good knowledge of the respective other language (English or German) and/or in further languages, depending on individual preference which will be expressed in the range of modules chosen by each student. Knowledge of Latin or Greek is not obligatory, unless you wish to specifically study the literatures in these languages. More information concerning application and admission can be found here.

Board of Trustees: The program is overseen by a board of trustees composed of representatives from various philological departments:

Please note that the following guidelines and the information contained therein are not legally binding. Legally binding documents and other essential information for planning and navigating your studies can be found here (in German):
Rechtsgrundlagen
Dokumente im Master

The most important documents are briefly outlined in the table below.

Distinctive features of the Literary Studies program: The choice of modules in the Literary Studies program is exceptionally large. Therefore, planning your semester will need particularly careful thought. The module groups (the rules of which will be discussed further below) offer a helpful organizational foundation. However, this foundation requires a great deal of responsibility on your part, especially in terms of selecting and then attending these modules, in particular those of the module groups “Literature, Knowledge, Culture,” and “Literature, Arts, Media.” The module “Atelier” at the beginning of your degree and the module “Research Colloquium” at the end were both created specifically for the Mono-Master. All other modules, however, are provided almost entirely by the individual philologies; for the most part, they are not specifically devised for students of the Literary Studies program, though they are accessible to them. This means that the requirements of the individual modules are not adjusted to match your course of study. Instead, you will be treated in the same way as students of the individual philologies.

Module-specific Requirements: As a result, you will be able to choose modules in, for example, Spanish Literature, without having completed a BA degree in Ibero-Romance Literatures and Linguistics. However, in such modules, you will have to meet the same prerequisites and requirements as students who are taking the module as part of their respective field. This particularly pertains to the language requirements of each module. Information regarding the language of instruction can be found in the course catalogue.

Genuine Modules: The aforementioned modules “Atelier” and “Research Colloquium,” as well as the lecture series “Literary Theory,” or “Literature and Knowledge” (the latter with changing title) can be completed in either English or German, whereas some lectures are held in German and some in English. Should you lack the necessary language skills, we recommend acquiring passive (and, if possible, active) knowledge of the respective language, because an expansion of language skills will enrich your engagement with literature, which is ultimately a cross-linguistic phenomenon.

Master's Thesis: The Master's thesis will be written in a philology of your choice, with a supervisor (and in the language) of this particular field. Entitled to supervise your thesis are professors and postdoc instructors of all the departments of literature associated with the Literary Studies program. Postdoc instructors are required to ask permission by their superiors and by the Head of the Literary Studies program. Once you have agreed on a topic and working title with your inteded supervisor, you need to register your supervision by filling out the online registration form. Afterwards, the intended instructor will provide you with a short note confirming or refusing the supervision. During the preparation and writing process of the thesis, you will also attend the “Research Colloquium.” Your thesis will be based on an independent research project. When submitting your thesis, a signed Declaration of Authenticity  must be attached. The Board of Trustees recommends option A (AI as an unauthorized aid except for orthographic, grammatical, and stylistic text improvements), but the supervisor is entitled to specify a different practice in writing.

Teaching Diploma:  Provided that the appropriate Bachelor’s degree and matching modules during Master studies have been completed, students who wish to have the option of completing a teaching diploma (Lehrdiplom) should choose for their Master's Thesis a topic and supervisor relevant to the field of the teaching diploma and write their thesis in the corresponding language. All additional information related to individual modules can be found in the respective module descriptions.

Mandatory Modules: Every module relating to the Literary Studies program is allocated to one (and only one) module type. There are only three mandatory modules (Pflichtmodule): at the beginning of your studies, you will attend the original and exclusive mandatory module “Atelier,” which is only open to students of the Literary Studies program (offered every autumn, with a duration of 2 semesters, meaning that the assessment (Leistungsnachweis) is due at the latest on 15 June of the second semester); towards the end of your studies, you will take the genuine and exclusive “Research Colloquium” (offered in spring with a duration of one semester), in which students in the process of writing their Master's thesis present their work. The Master's Thesis itself is the third mandatory module that must be completed.

Core elective modules: Additionally, at least one of the two core elective lecture series offered in the spring semester must be attended: in all years with an even number (2026, 2028, etc.) it is possible to enroll in the lecture series “Literary Theory,” while in uneven years (2025, 2027, etc.) a lecture series called “Literature and Knowledge” with varying titles and content is offered. Each core elective module can only be attempted once, and at least one of them must be attended.

Rules: The rules for the attendance of modules within each module group can be found in the program regulations (Studienordnung). It is important that you complete at least 42 ECTS credits from the module groups “Literature, Arts, Media” and “Literature, Knowledge, Culture” in addition to the mandatory modules and the lecture series module. Furthermore, at least 50% of these modules must be graded, including the Master's thesis which accounts for 30 ECTS credits. 

Choice of Modules: The available range of modules was defined specifically for the module groups of the Literary Studies program. With the exception of some modules offered by the Department of German Studies (in the field “Modern and Contemporary German Literature”, from the study program “German Literature: Theory, Analysis, Mediation,” as well as in Scandinavian Studies), it is possible to freely book most of the modules relating to literary studies offered by UZH, as per the rules of the program regulations (Studienordnung). Modules belonging to the field of literary studies such as those in English Literature, Romance Studies, Slavic Studies or General and Comparative Literature can be booked, although the prerequisites and requirements are defined by the institute that offers the module. An overview of all modules of the program that are offered regularly, as well as information about specific requirements, can be found in the module catalogue (Modulkatalog). However, we recommend paying attention to the course catalogue (Vorlesungsverzeichnis) because the varying content and titles of the numerous elective modules (indicated in square brackets in the module catalogue) can only be identified there.

Standard Curriculum: The standard curriculum (Mustercurriculum) represents an ideal progression of studies (starting in the fall semester) and can be used as a tool for planning. To complete the Literary Studies program, 120 ECTS credits must be earned. This means that the program generally takes four semesters (Regelstudienzeit). It must be noted, however, that the number of ECTS credits, not the number of semesters, defines whether the program has been completed or not. This is particularly relevant for students studying part-time, as they can organize their studies flexibly. Conversely, if students invest a particularly intensive amount of work, it is possible to attain the necessary ECTS credits in a shorter period of time. However, we do not recommend booking more than 30 ECTS credits per semester.

Mobility: Study abroad semesters at other universities are expressly welcome. In consideration of the sample study plan (Mustercurriculum) and the mandatory modules, the ideal moment to undertake a study abroad semester would be in the third semester. If you wish to do a study abroad semester, please get in touch with the Study Advisor.

Career Prospects: This well-founded education in literary studies enables graduates to conduct research independently or in groups (academic collaboration, PhD). The program also prepares students for later employment in a range of areas, particularly in media (research, journalism); translation; administration (project management, knowledge management); the cultural sector; education (Lehrdiplom/Teaching Diploma, provided the relevant Bachelor’s degree has been attained and the minimum requirements met).

Teaching Diploma: Students who have completed the Literary Studies program can be admitted to acquire a Lehrdiplom (Teaching Diploma) for one teaching subject if the prerequisites of the subject have been met during Bachelor studies. In general, students have to acquire 60 ECTS credits during their Bachelor studies and 45 ECTS credits during their Master studies in the chosen teaching subject. In addition, the Master's thesis must be written in the teaching subject. Depending on the subject, these ECTS credits must be earned in modules from specific subject areas. The study program coordinators for the individual subjects decide on admission to the Lehrdiplom and possible additional requirements.

Creditable Modules: In addition to the in-house modules offered by the individual teaching subjects, the following modules of the Literary Studies program can be credited to the respective subject if they are completed in the respective language or with regard to a corresponding Master's thesis in the area of the intended teaching subject:

• “Research Colloquium” (6 ECTS credits, with a corresponding Master Thesis in the respective subject)
• “Reflections on Inter-Cultural Experience: Stay Abroad” (3 ECTS credits)
• “Reflections on Current Research: Event Report” (3 ECTS credits)

Since accreditation can only be granted for individual subjects, we ask you to contact the Study Advisor of the respective subject in advance. It is your own responsibility to fulfill the academic requirements for ‘your’ subject.

Further information can be found in the following study regulations (in German): 

Studienordnung Zulassung zum Studiengang Lehrdiplom für Maturitätsschulen (PDF, 1 MB) (Informationen zu den fachwissenschaftlichen Voraussetzungen)

Studienordnung über das «Lehrdiplom für Maturitätsschulen» an der Philosophischen Fakultät der Universität Zürich (vom 08. Juni 2021) (PDF, 1 MB) Siehe z.B. S. 34:

2.2 Unterrichtsfächer, deren fachwissenschaftliche Ausbildung der Philosophischen Fakultät obliegt 
2.2.0 Zulassung ohne zusätzlich zu erbringende Studienleistungen bei spezialisierten Masterstudien- und Monomasterprogrammen

¹Studierende, die in einem spezialisierten Masterstudienprogramm, dem Monomasterstudienprogramm Linguistics oder dem Monomasterstudienprogramm Literaturwissenschaften immatrikuliert sind und vor dessen Abschluss zum entsprechenden ersten bzw. einzigen Unterrichtsfach des LfM zugelassen werden, müssen für das betreffende Unterrichtsfach keine zusätzlichen Studienleistungen erbringen, sofern 
a.  die fachwissenschaftlichen Kompetenzen des Bachelor-Majorstudienprogramms, das dem Unterrichtsfach entspricht, vorliegen, 
b.  die Module aus dem jeweiligen Masterstudienprogramm so gewählt werden, dass auf Masterstufe mindestens 45 ECTS Credits im entsprechenden Unterrichtsfach erworben werden, 
c.  die im vorliegenden Anhang 2 erwähnten Voraussetzungen der Masterarbeit gemäss dem entsprechenden Fach erfüllt sind, 
d.  die im vorliegenden Anhang 2 erwähnten Teilbereiche (Bachelor- & Masterstudienprogramme gesamthaft) abgedeckt sind und 
e.  die im vorliegenden Anhang 2 erwähnten «Weiteren Leistungen gemäss § 8 RVO LfM» nachgewiesen sind.

² Um die vorgenannten Anforderungen curricular und verbindlich festzuhalten (RVO § 51 Diplomprüfung), werden Auflagen verfügt. Diese Auflagen beinhalten nicht zwingend zusätzlich zu erbringende Studienleistungen, sondern stellen die korrekte Zusammensetzung der Module für den Erwerb der fachwissenschaftlichen Kompetenzen für das entsprechende Unterrichtsfach sicher.