In Yale College, the senior requirement measures whether a student can demonstrate some form of mastery or substantial competence in some significant aspect of the subject of the major. Most senior requirements take the form of a written or oral examination or a senior project or senior essay. For Comparative Literature, the requirement is the Senior Essay.
Fall 2025
To write a successful fall-semester senior essay, it is essential to start planning the essay during the semester preceding senior year and to begin some of the pertinent reading for the project during the summer. All students considering writing a fall-semester senior essay should meet with the senior essay coordinator in the spring of junior year, to discuss potential topics and advisors and to become familiar with the schedule, writing process, and typical scope of the project.
All senior essays in the Literature major are written in English, with citations in the original language; translations may be provided in the endnotes.
One-paragraph description of proposed essay topic, with advisor’s name and signature. Students should email a PDF copy of this to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and Senior Essay Coordinator, Neta Kleine, neta.kleine@yale.edu. This description should identify the subject of the essay as well as its major text(s). The topic should represent substantially new work; essays that repeat papers submitted for other coursework will not be acceptable.
A developed version of the initial proposal, three pages in length, containing (1) a statement of the major thesis or hypothesis; (2) a brief description of the approach and organization of the subject, minimum 250 words; (3) a week-by-week schedule of readings, research to accomplish, writing assignments, and regularly-scheduled meetings with the advisor; (4) a selected bibliography, to include books to-be-read as well as books already read. For each source listed, a one-sentence description should explain its relevance and/or importance to the project. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Rough draft due, 25 pages minimum; Notes or a draft that only represents part of the essay will not be acceptable. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Complete essay due; student should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and Senior Essay Coordinator. A second reader will be selected. Essays should be 25-35 pages long and should follow the formal conventions set out in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.
Spring 2026
To write a successful spring-semester senior essay, it is essential to start planning the essay in the early part of the fall semester of senior year, to find an advisor, and to complete some of the pertinent reading during the fall semester. All students who would like to consider writing a spring semester senior essay should meet with the senior essay coordinator in the early fall of senior year, to discuss potential topics and advisors and to become familiar with the schedule, writing process, and typical scope of the project. All senior essays in the Literature major are written in English, with citations in the original language; translations may be provided in the endnotes.
One-paragraph description of proposed essay topic, with advisor’s name and signature. Students should email a PDF copy of this to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator. This description should identify the subject of the essay as well as its major text(s). The topic should represent substantially new work; essays that repeat papers submitted for other coursework will not be acceptable.
A developed version of the initial proposal, three pages in length, containing (1) a statement of the major thesis or hypothesis; (2) a brief description of the approach and organization of the subject, minimum 250 words; (3) a week-by-week schedule of readings, research to accomplish, writing assignments, and regularly-scheduled meetings with the advisor; (4) a selected bibliography, to include books to-be-read as well as books already read. For each source listed, a one-sentence description should explain its relevance and/or importance to the project. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Rough draft due, 25 pages minimum; Notes or a draft that only represents part of the essay will not be acceptable. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Complete essay due; Student should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and Senior Essay Coordinator. A second reader will be selected. Essays should be 25-35 pages long and should follow the formal conventions set out in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.
2025–2026 Full Year
Students wishing to write a full-year senior essay must petition before the end of the spring term preceding their senior year. The due date for petitions for the Class of 2026 is Friday, April 14, 2025, by 5 p.m. Students should email DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and Senior Essay Coordinator Neta Kleine, neta.kleine@yale.edu. Interested students must meet individually with the senior essay coordinator before April in the spring semester, to talk about ideas for topics and advisors, and to learn about the requirements and the typical scope of the year-long project. This meeting will help the student to judge his or her own interest in the project, to understand the amount of research necessary to do before the senior year, and to learn how to write the most effective petition for the project. All senior essays in the Literature major are written in English, with citations in the original language; translations may be provided in the endnotes.
One-page petition (250 words), consisting of a written description of the project, the primary texts, its possible scope, a summary of any research done to date on the topic, and faculty members with whom the student has discussed the project. (The petition is essentially a short version of the three-page prospectus for the full-year essay that is due in early September.) After the petition is delivered by email in PDF format to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and Senior Essay Coordinator Neta Kleine, neta.kleine@yale.edu. The senior essay coordinator will notify the student of the faculty’s approval or lack thereof of the petition, on time, upon its submission.
A developed version of the initial proposal, three pages in length, containing (1) a statement of the major thesis or hypothesis; (2) a brief description of the approach and organization of the subject, minimum 250 words; (3) a week-by-week schedule of readings, research to accomplish, writing assignments, and regularly-scheduled meetings with the advisor; (4) a selected bibliography, to include books to-be-read as well as books already read. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
A selected annotated bibliography, organized in three categories: (1) primary text(s), work(s), or film(s); (2) secondary texts already read; (3) and secondary texts to read. For each source listed, a one-sentence description should explain its relevance and/or importance to the project. This document should also contain a prose description of research conducted to date, and an outline, in point form, of the planned essay. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Full rough draft due, minimum 40 pages. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.
Complete essay due. Students should email a PDF copy to DUS Sam Hodgkin, samuel.hodgkin@yale.edu, their advisor, and the Senior Essay Coordinator.