The Postgraduate Department is an administrative body and the department in charge of teaching and academic research of the graduate programmes, the highest academic level in Sichuan International Studies University. The faculty includes 18 professors, 20 associate professors, 5 lecturers, 2 assistants and international experts employed every year.
There are currently 117 students in the Postgraduate Department, which offers four Master programmes: English Language and Literature, Russian Language and Literature, French Language and Literature, and German Language and Literature. Among them the programme of English Language and Literature, which used to be one of the key subjects in colleges of arts in the Sichuan Province, is now a key subject of ChongqingŁ¬a new municipality under direct control of the central government. Two programmes (English Language and Literature and Russian Language and Literature) were graded A in the 1994 evaluation of Master's Degree centres of south west China, conducted by the Sichuan Office of Academic Degrees with the authorization of the State Education Commission.
The programme of English Language and Literature comprises five concentrated areas of study: British and American Literature, Theory and Practice of TranslationŁ¬Theory and Practice of Linguistics, Theory and Practice of Foreign Language Teaching, Social and Cultural Studies of Major English-speaking Countries. The orientations of the Russian Language and Literature programme contain Studies of Russian Language, Russian Literature, and Theory and Practice of Translation. Those of French Language and Literature are the Study of French-Speaking Countries, and Literary Translation. Those of German Language and Literature include German Language and Literature, Comparative Studies of Chinese and German Cultures, and Translation of Social Science Works. Each specialty offers twenty courses, including master courses, compulsory and optional courses, fundation courses, specialized courses and non-specialized courses.