Editorial Studies

The following list reflects the 2006/2007 faculty.

Co-Directors

Archie Burnett Professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences. MA, University of Edinburgh (Scotland); DPhil, University of Oxford (England)

Christopher Ricks William M. and Sara B. Warren Professor of the Humanities, College of Arts and Sciences. BLitt, MA, DLitt (Hon.), University of Oxford (England); Hon. Fellow, Balliol College, Hon. Fellow, Worcester College, University of Oxford (England); Hon. Fellow, Christ’s College, University of Cambridge (England)

Assistant Director and Director of Publications

Frances Whistler MA, University of Oxford (England)

Advisory Committee

Clifford Backman Associate Professor of History, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, MA, University of Minnesota; MA, PhD, University of California, Los Angeles

Robert Bone Professor of Law, School of Law. BA, Stanford University; JD, Harvard Law School

Victor Coelho Chairman, Department of Music, College of Arts and Sciences; Professor of Music and Chairman of Musicology, College of Fine Arts. BA, University of California, Berkeley; PhD, University of California, Los Angeles

Juliet Floyd Associate Professor of Philosophy, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Wellesley College; PhD, Harvard University

Wolfgang Haase Professor of Classical Studies, College of Arts and Sciences; Director, Institute for the Classical Tradition; Director, ANRW Research Center. PhD, Eberhard-Karls-Universität Tübingen (Germany)

Susan Jackson Senior Associate Dean, College of Arts and Sciences; Associate Professor of French, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Wellesley College; MA, Middlebury College; PhD, Ohio State University

Robert Levine Professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, City University of New York, City College; MA, Columbia University; PhD, University of California, Berkeley

Sean D. Noel Associate Director, Howard Gotlieb Archival Research Center, Mugar Library. BA, MA, Boston University

Anita Patterson Associate Professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Harvard College; MA, PhD, Harvard University

Michael Prince Assistant Dean, Writing Program; Associate Professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Stanford University; PhD, University of Virginia

Bruce Redford University Professor; Professor of Art History and English, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Brown University; BA, University of Cambridge (England); PhD, Princeton University

Jonathan P. Ribner Associate Professor of Art History, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Middlebury College; MA, PhD, Institute of Fine Arts, New York University

Dana Robert Professor of International Mission, School of Theology. BA, Louisiana State University; PhD, Yale University

James W. Schmidt University Professor; Professor of History and Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, Rutgers University; PhD, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Andrew Stauffer Associate Professor of English, College of Arts and Sciences. BA, MA, University of Pennsylvania; PhD, University of Virginia

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The Graduate Program

The Editorial Institute was formed with the conviction that the textually sound, contextually annotated edition is central to the intellectual life of many disciplines. Its primary aims are the promotion of critical awareness of editorial issues and practices and the provision of training in editorial methods. The Institute offers advanced degrees to students who successfully prepare either editions of important writings, with textual apparatus and annotation, or monographs concerned with editing or textual bibliography. Guidance to students is provided through courses devoted to editorial work. Current technologies for storing, disseminating, or editing information, legal considerations concerning copyright and intellectual property, historical changes in the concept of authorship, the practice of annotation, and recent theorizing about texts all play a substantial role in editing, and the Editorial Institute seeks both to foster and to scrutinize these developments.

Admissions Applicants are required to submit scores of the Graduate Record Examination (General and, where relevant, Advanced), along with three letters of recommendation, at least one of which must be academic, and a thesis or dissertation proposal. Those applicants who do not have English as their first language are required to submit results of the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Admission is not simply a matter of a proposal accepted, but of consultation, suggestion, and concurrence between faculty and student. Applicants are encouraged to contact the Institute for guidance in preparing the thesis or dissertation proposal.

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MA in Editorial Studies

Eight semester courses (32 credits) and a thesis related to editing are required for the degree. Computer literacy is essential. In addition to the five required Editorial Institute courses, students take at least one related course in another department at the University, and at least one directed study, both relevant to the subject of the thesis. The eighth course may be a related course or a directed study. Students are jointly supervised in coursework and the writing of the thesis, ordinarily by a director of the Institute and one or two adjunct professors drawn from, or approved by, the Advisory Committee.

Language Requirement The co-directors of the Editorial Institute will assess each graduate student’s specific language requirement according to the needs of his or her research.

Completion of Degree The MA is ordinarily completed in two semesters.

PhD in Editorial Studies

Although an MA in Editorial Studies is not a prerequisite for the PhD, relevant advanced study is required. The nature of a student’s previous work may exempt him or her from a course or courses in the MA program. Eight semester courses (32 credits) and a dissertation related to editing are required for the degree. Computer literacy is essential.

Of the eight required courses, four are taken in the Institute. Ordinarily, the remaining coursework consists of two directed studies in the Institute, and two related courses in another department at the University, all of which must be relevant to the subject of the dissertation. Students are jointly supervised in coursework and the writing of the dissertation, ordinarily by a director of the Institute and one or two adjunct professors drawn from, or approved by, the Advisory Committee.

Language Requirement The co-directors of the Editorial Institute will assess each graduate student’s specific language requirement according to the needs of his or her research.

Completion of Degree Most dissertations will be completed in three years, with four semesters as the minimum. Where the nature of the dissertation requires more than four semesters to complete the PhD, the student should discuss her/his requirement for a fifth or sixth semester with the Directors. The fact that the PhD can be completed in two years should not be read as pressure to do so. Students should be aware of the financial aspect to their continuing beyond four semesters. Support for tuition and stipend is assured for the first two semesters of the degree, and likely to continue through the third and fourth semester; however, it is unlikely that the Institute can continue to provide a student stipend beyond the fourth semester, although where possible continuing-student status will be funded.

Qualifying Examinations A candidate for the PhD is required to take a two-part qualifying examination, normally upon completion of coursework. One part covers editorial skills and textual scholarship and is administered by the directors of the Institute. The other part tests a student’s knowledge of the crucial contexts related to the text or subject on which he or she is writing a dissertation, and is administered by the directors of the Institute, the relevant members of the Advisory Committee, and, where appropriate, an external examiner.

Dissertation Prospectus Please refer to the General Requirements for the PhD, as found in the Admission; Policies and Procedures section of this site.

Dissertation and Final Oral Exam In addition to the General Requirements for the PhD, as found in the Admission; Policies and Procedures section of this site, please note that an external examiner from another university or comparable institution may be among those examining the dissertation.

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Courses

The following list reflects the courses to be offered during the 2007/2008 academic year, the Institute’s eighth year of instruction to degree candidates. For further information, please visit the Editorial Institute, or contact the administrative assistant at editinst@bu.edu or 617-353-6631.

Courses for the MA

CAS EI 501 The Theory and Practice of Literary Editing

Prereq: junior standing or consent of instructor. An introduction to the theory, practice, and principles of editorial decisions, such as questions of modernization, revision, and annotation. Featuring a dozen visiting speakers and attending to notable editorial achievements. Ricks. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS EI 503 Textual Scholarship

Prereq: junior standing or consent of instructor. Fundamentals of textual scholarship: bibliography, paleography, typography, textual criticism, and annotation. Burnett. 4 cr, 1st sem.

CAS EI 506 Topics in Textual Scholarship and the History of Western Society

Prereq: junior standing or consent of instructor. Topic for 2007/2008: The History of the Book. Burnett. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS EI 507 Editing and Publishing

Prereq: junior standing or consent of instructor. An introduction to editing in a publishing context, looking at author-relations; kinds of books; internal construction; and methods, costs, and impact of the book’s physical realization. Whistler. 4 cr, 2nd sem.

CAS EI 508 Editing Across the Disciplines

Prereq: junior standing or consent of instructor. An introduction to editorial work in several disciplines, with a view to highlighting the practices, problems, and solutions encountered in each, and to identifying common principles where they may be found. Editorial case histories in English literature, the Bible, classical texts, philosophical works, and music will be considered. Burnett and Whistler. 4 cr, 2nd sem

GRS EI 901/902 Directed Study in Editorial Studies

Courses for the PhD

GRS EI 701 The Theory and Practice of Literary Editing

(Please see the description for CAS EI 501, above.) Ricks. 4 cr, 1st sem.

GRS EI 703 Annotation

Prereq: CAS EI 503 or senior standing. Studies in allusions, sources, dating, topical contexts, annotation as a part of the work itself, and marginal glosses, among other topics. TBA. 4 cr

GRS EI 704 Editions

Prereq: CAS EI 503 or senior standing. Seminar on advanced editorial considerations raised by the works of one or more authors. TBA. 4 cr

GRS EI 802 Advanced Topics in Editing: Word and Image

Prereq: junior standing. An historical and critical description of the relation between printed text and forms of illustration in selected works dating from 1500 to the present day. TBA. 4 cr.

GRS EI 901/902 Directed Study in Editorial Studies

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Published by Trustees of Boston University
One Sherborn Street
Boston, MA 02215

31 October 2007
Boston University
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