Jayne Knight
Job Title
Lecturer in Classics
Employer
University of Tasmania
Overview
Classicists study the languages, literature, material culture, and history of Ancient Greece and Rome. The Department of Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies offers a PhD Classics with the option of three streams: Classics (language-based program), Ancient History, or Classical Archaeology. Classics students develop competence to the highest level in Greek and Latin; Ancient History students master as least one of Greek or Latin and undertake additional coursework outside of the Department to develop marketable expertise in a second field; Classical Archaeology students become experts in archaeological practice and theory. Students in all streams attain advanced reading skills in Latin, Greek, and relevant modern languages.
Students develop range and breadth through coursework and comprehensive examinations in Years 1 and 2 of the program; after that, students will be encouraged and enabled to narrow their focus so that they become world experts in their chosen dissertation topic.
Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies (AMNE) department will be hosting a virtual open house event for students interested in applying to our MA and PhD graduate programs to join our Fall 2026 cohort on Tuesday, November 4, 11:00 am to 2:00 pm PST over Zoom. Faculty members and current graduate students will be present to meet prospective students. Interested students may register on the AMNE Admissions website (https://amne.ubc.ca/amne-virtual-open-house-for-prospective-students/).
If you have any questions about our graduate programs or the application process, please reach out to Sheri, the graduate program advisor, at amne.grad@ubc.ca.
What makes the program unique?
The PhD in Classics is the only program in Canada to offer students the opportunity to expand their perspective beyond Greece and Rome to the broader cultural, material, and religious contexts of interconnected ancient Mediterranean and Near East through multi-disciplinary coursework and research. We have ten full-time faculty specializing in Greek literature and philosophy, Latin literature and translation, Greek and Roman history, Roman law, Greek and Roman theatre, Greek mythology, Bronze Age archaeology, Greek material culture, Roman provincial archaeology. Our other faculty in Ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern Studies are interdisciplinary researchers whose work regularly engages with classical literature, art, and culture.
Quick Facts
Program Components Dissertation
Career Outcomes
9 students graduated between 2005 and 2013. Of these, career information was obtained for 7 alumni (based on research conducted between Feb-May 2016):
RI (Research-Intensive) Faculty: typically tenure-track faculty positions (equivalent of the North American Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor positions) in PhD-granting institutions
TI (Teaching-Intensive) Faculty: typically full-time faculty positions in colleges or in institutions not granting PhDs, and teaching faculty at PhD-granting institutions
Term Faculty: faculty in term appointments (e.g. sessional lecturers, visiting assistant professors, etc.)
Sample Employers in Higher Education
Grant MacEwan University (2)The University of Winnipeg
University of British Columbia
Hobart and William Smith Colleges
Dalhousie University
Sample Employers Outside Higher Education
Wetaskiwin & District Heritage MuseumSample Job Titles Outside Higher Education
Executive Director & Chief CuratorPhD Career Outcome Survey
You may view the full report on career outcomes of UBC PhD graduates on outcomes.grad.ubc.ca.Disclaimer
These data represent historical employment information and do not guarantee future employment prospects for graduates of this program. They are for informational purposes only. Data were collected through either alumni surveys or internet research.Career Options
Alumni on Success
Research Supervisors
Supervision
Students in research-based programs usually require a faculty member to function as their thesis supervisor. Please follow the instructions provided by each program whether applicants should contact faculty members.
Instructions regarding thesis supervisor contact for this program
Applicants should browse faculty profiles and indicate in their application who they are interested in working with. No commitment from a supervisor prior to applying is necessary, but contacting faculty members is encouraged.
Advice and insights from UBC Faculty on reaching out to supervisors
These videos contain some general advice from faculty across UBC on finding and reaching out to a supervisor. They are not program specific.
This list shows faculty members with full supervisory privileges who are affiliated with this program. It is not a comprehensive list of all potential supervisors as faculty from other programs or faculty members without full supervisory privileges can request approvals to supervise graduate students in this program.
- Bablitz, Leanne (Roman history, Roman law, Roman courtrooms, , Roman social history and law, Roman topography, Roman legal procedure)
- Cooper, Elisabeth (Archaeology of greater Mesopotamia)
- Daniels, Megan (Archaeology of Greece and the broader eastern Mediterranean; Late Bronze Age to Hellenistic Period; Ancient religion, sanctuaries, votive objects; Cross-cultural interaction; Ancient economies and trade; Divine kingship; Digital/data science approaches to the ancient world, particularly ancient religion; Migration and mobility across Eurasia; Phoenician culture; Ceramic analysis; Archaeology of Greece and the broader eastern Mediterranean, Late Bronze Age to Hellenistic Period, Ancient religion, sanctuaries, votive objects, Cross-cultural interaction, Ancient economies and trade, Divine kingship, Digital/data science approaches to the ancient world, particularly ancient religion, Migration and mobility across Eurasia, Phoenician culture, Ceramic analysis)
- De Angelis, Franco (Ancient Greek world history, environment, urbanism, developmnet of societies, colonization, economics, ancient literature)
- Fisher, Kevin (Archeological Data Analysis; Archeological Excavation Methods and Techniques; architecture; built environments; digital archaeology; Dynamics of Social Transformations; Mediterranean archaeology; Near Eastern archaeology; power; Social Life / Societal Life; social interaction; Urban Spaces and Urbanity; urbanism; Archeological Data Analysis, Archeological Excavation Methods and Techniques, Architecture, Built environments, Digital archaeology, Dynamics of Social Transformations, Mediterranean archaeology, Near Eastern archaeology, Power, Social Life / Societal Life, Social interaction, Urban Spaces and Urbanity, Urbanism)
- Gardner, Gregg (Judaism, Rabbinic Literature, Rabbinic Judaism, Mishnah, Talmud, Jewish Studies, Jewish Law, Jewish Ethics, Charity, Jewish Ethics, Archaeology of Israel, Archaeology and Hebrew Bible, Archaeology of Jerusalemn)
- Griffin, Michael (Greek philosophy, Ancient philosophy, Plato, Aristotle, Plotinus, Proclus, Neoplatonism, Ancient logic)
- Huemoeller, Katharine (Ancient law (in theory and in practice); Documentary texts; gender and sexuality; Non-urban life in antiquity; Roman social history; Slavery (ancient and comparative); Ancient law (in theory and in practice), Documentary texts, Gender and sexuality, Non-urban life in antiquity, Roman social history, Slavery (ancient and comparative))
- Marshall, Toph (Literary or Artistic Works Analysis; Performance and Theatrical Productions; Literary or Artistic Works Analysis, Performance and Theatrical Productions)
- McCarty, Matthew (Roman archaeology; Roman history; Africa; Europe; postcolonialism; Marginalized peoples; Religion; Roman archaeology, Roman history, Africa, Europe, Postcolonialism , Marginalized peoples, Religion)
- McElduff, Siobhan (Ancient and modern translation, history of the book)
- Milstein, Sara (biblical and cuneiform law; Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern Studies; History of Major Eras, Great Civilisations or Geographical Corpuses; literary history of the Bible; Literary or Artistic Works Analysis; Mesopotamian literature; Near Eastern scribal culture; Religious Contexts; Biblical and cuneiform law, Hebrew Bible and Near Eastern Studies, History of Major Eras, Great Civilisations or Geographical Corpuses, Literary history of the Bible, Literary or Artistic Works Analysis, Mesopotamian literature, Near Eastern scribal culture, Religious Contexts)
- Philbrick, Rachel (Latin poetry; Greek poetry; genre; Textual authority and credibility; Intertextuality; Latin poetry, Greek poetry, Genre, Textual authority and credibility, Intertextuality)
- Schneider, Thomas (Egyptian history and phonoly)
- Soon, Isaac (Early Christianity and New Testament; Early Christianity and New Testament)
- Yoo, Philip (Religion and religious studies; Hebrew Bible; Second Temple Judaism; Religion and religious studies, Hebrew Bible, Second Temple Judaism)
- Yoon, Florence (heralds and the representation of the absent; anonymity and naming, particularly in Greek Tragedy; props and silent characters in Greek drama)
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