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Overview | Honours | Summary of Courses

Offered By:	ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
Academic Contact:	Dr Piera Carroli, BA(Hons), MA Flind, PhD ANU

Italian occupies a special position in Australia in being a language of high culture and also a language spoken by one of the largest ethnic communities in the country. Students who learn Italian will have access to one of the richest European cultural traditions, from the Renaissance to the present day, and to the language of many operas, films and musical scores as well as the language of architecture, fashion and industrial design. Italy is today a very dynamic society, it is one of Australia's largest trading partners and is a member of the G8 (the eight most industrialised countries in the world) and Italian is one of the eleven official languages of the European Union. Learning Italian is, therefore, also advantageous for students interested in international law, trade, commerce, and economics. In addition, because of the large number of Italian speakers in Australia, Italian is relevant to such areas as migrant studies and sociology.

The Italian Studies Program emphasizes fluency as well as accuracy in language. Students learn to speak and understand standard Italian and to read and write accurate and idiomatic Italian. Along with the literature and language interests of the course, attention is given to cultural, social and historical aspects of Italy. Material relating to these aspects, drawn from history texts, newspaper articles, radio, TV recordings and films, is worked into the language teaching program. Language learning is thus integrated with the development of cultural awareness.

In a nutshell, Italian Studies is a rich and diversified area of study allowing you, the learner the opportunity to become “an intercultural traveller, moving between different cultural spaces” and building bridges between cultures.

Prerequisites

No previous knowledge of Italian is required for Introductory Italian ITAL1002. New students who already have some knowledge of the language are required to sit for a Placement test before enrolling, to determine the level at which they should enrol. 

Requirements

The major comprises a minimum of 42 units (normally seven courses). There are several ways of making up a major in Italian, including those based on mid-year entry.

The sequence of courses for the Italian major is dependent on the student's language ability:

1. Major for beginners (introductory):
   Italian Studies - Introductory 1 ITAL1002, Introductory 2 ITAL1003, Continuing 1 ITAL2005, Continuing 2 ITAL2006, Intermediate 1 ITAL2007, Intermediate 2 ITAL2008, Advanced 1 ITAL3015, or a thematic* course.
2. Major for post-beginners (continuing):
   Continuing 1 ITAL2005, Continuing 2 ITAL2006, Intermediate 1 ITAL2007, Intermediate 2 ITAL2008, Advanced 1 ITAL3015, Advanced 2 ITAL3016 plus a thematic* course.
3. Major for students with adequate competence (intermediate):
   Intermediate 1 ITAL2007, Intermediate 2 ITAL2008, Advanced 1 ITAL3015, Advanced 2 ITAL3016 plus three thematic* courses.
4. Major for advanced language competence:
   Advanced 1 ITAL3015, Advanced 2 ITAL3016 plus five thematic* courses.

* There are two kinds of thematic courses: Italian-specific and common (to the Modern European languages); inclusion of the latter in the major requires the permission of the Convener.

For information on Honours in Italian click here.