The Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese offers a course of studies leading to the M.A. degree in Italian Literature. It is designed as the first stage in the preparation of a doctorate. Students holding the M.A. in Italian from the University of Virginia have a very high probability of acceptance into the best Ph.D. programs anywhere. The Italian program claims specific strengths in textual criticism, Dante studies, the literature of the Renaissance and the Baroque age, 19th century authors, contemporary, modern, and avant-garde poetry and prose. A very distinctive feature of the program is its emphasis on interdisciplinary and cultural studies, including artistic and literary interrelations, historical studies, film and women's studies, and the use of technology in the humanities.

For updates or a complete description of courses offered by the Department please click on the link above and also consult the Course Offering Directory and the Graduate Record.

The Masters Degree in Italian

Description and requirements, Contacts, Application information, Information for International applicants.

Proficiency and Mastery Exams in Italian

Description and requirements, Contacts, Dates Offered.

The length of the translation is approximately one
type-written, single-spaced page.

The Department does not offer classes to prepare for
mastery and proficiency exams, but can help in finding a tutor among our graduate students.

Students are expected to possess an intermediate knowledge of the Italian language, comparable to the completion of the basic language sequence, Italian 101-202.

Texts such as Graziana Lazzarino and Annamaria Moneti Da Capo provide useful surveys of Italian grammar and vocabulary.