Prior to admission to doctoral candidacy (i.e., before defending the dissertation prospectus), all PhD students in Archaeology must meet the program requirement of demonstrating proficiency in one relevant modern field or scholarly language other than English that is approved by the student's prospectus committee. This requirement can be met by taking a university administered placement exam (placing into the third year or above), by completing with a grade of B+ or better the fourth semester of a language sequence at Harvard, or by ad hoc arrangement in consultation with the student's primary advisor(s) and the Director of Graduate Studies.There is no exemptions to or substituions (e.g. a programming language or other specialized skill) for this general requirement.
In addition, the candidate must attain proficiency in a second scholarly language or in a field language, or in a laboratory/technical skill (e.g., GIS analysis, GPR, ZooMS, stable isotope analysis, R statistical language, etc.). The election of one among these options shall be made following consultation by the student with their advisor(s).
Ordinarily, technical skill proficiency in a laboratory skill can be demonstrated through completion of Anthro 2061, or an intensive method-focused course, or successful completion of a directed reading/practical course on the topic with a qualified Harvard faculty member. Completion of undergraduate-level or introductory coursework or workshops do not fulfill this requirement; acculmulated informal or unsupervised work cannot be used to fulfil this requirement. Formal evaluation on laboratory skills may be required.
Proficiency in language(s) and/or a laboratory/technical skill must be demonstrated before the dissertation prospectus examination is taken.