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Graduate Studies in Italian

Department of Romance Languages and Literatures,
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Goals

The University of North Carolina's graduate programs in Italian aspires to train young professionals who can effect the transmission of skills and the advancement of knowledge in the field. The Italian faculty seeks to inculcate respect and appreciation for the significant cultural and literary achievements of Italians. The degree programs provide both flexibility and thorough coverage of the subject matter, while a comprehensive teacher-training program provides the skills necessary to impart to others the knowledge gained in study and research.


Programs

The M.A. in Italian consists of ten courses. It is designed to give an overview of Italian literature and culture, and to prepare students to enter one of three Ph. D. programs:

  • The Program in Romance Languages and Literatures;
  • The Program in Philology;
  • The Program in Italian Language and Literature.

Students may elect to undertake a minor or supporting program either within or outside the Department, choosing either another Romance language and literature or such complementary disciplines as Classics, History, Music, Art History, Film Studies, etc.


Fellowships and Teaching Assistantships

Financial support is available from the following sources:

  • Departmental Endowments;
  • University Fellowships; and 
  • Romance Languages Teaching Assistantships.

In addition, graduate students may apply to Departmental endowment funds and to the Italian Studies Fund for research and travel support. All applicants are automatically considered for University and Departmental fellowships. Students also have the opportunity to serve as director-in-residence of our study-abroad program, which is currently in Florence.


Departmental Lecture Series

The Department sponsors numerous lectures open to the general public. Some of the recent visiting lecturers sponsored by the Italian section include Salvatore Camporeale, Fredric Jameson, René Girard, Albert Mancini, Luigi Monga, Franco Fido, and Romano Luperini. Each Spring the Department and the Graduate Students Romance Association sponsor the Carolina Conference on Romance Literatures.


Library and Research Facilities

The library system of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is composed of eighteen libraries containing more than 4 million books, 3 million microforms, 11 million manuscripts, 2 million documents, and 240,000 maps. It subscribes to 39,000 serials annually. The Walter Royal Davis Graduate Library is the University's central library. It holds a wide collection of Italian books, particularly rich in the Renaissance and modern periods. Students also benefit from the borrowing arrangements with nearby Duke University.


Publications

The Department of Romance Languages and Literatures sponsors three scholarly periodicals (Annali d'Italianistica, Hispanófila, and Romance Notes), and two monograph series (The University of North Carolina Studies in Romance Languages and Literatures and, exclusively for Italian studies, Studi e testi).


Graduate Faculty

Dino S. Cervigni
Antonio Illiano
Ennio I. Rao

Graduate students who choose a minor or supporting program outside the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures may pursue interdisciplinary Italian studies through several departments and with such scholars as, for instance:

For further details post each department.