Our Department

Our students are guided through this journey by a dynamic and dedicated faculty, whose expertise covers all of the major areas of Italian culture, from language acquisition to literary studies from the Middle Ages to contemporary times, to film and cultural studies. Our courses introduce students to topics that are engaging and intellectually stimulating, that broaden their cultural perspectives and sharpen their thinking skills, preparing them for the challenges they will face ahead as citizens of the world.

Our students are strongly encouraged to take full advantage of the study abroad opportunities that UMass has to offer, in particular the Bologna-Forlì Exchange Program, CIS Abroad on the Italian Coast (Sorrento) and USAC in Viterbo. These programs perfectly integrate with our on-campus curriculum. Each program offers a different set of learning experiences, for students of all academic backgrounds and at any stage of their degree.

As part of the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, our students are part of a remarkably diverse international community. We are part of the Five College Consortium, and in the spirit of broadening the range of our students’ opportunities to grow and explore, we collaborate closely with departments of Italian at Mt. Holyoke and Smith Colleges, as well as with colleagues in various other departments at UMass Amherst.

Those who want to continue to work and learn in Italy after UMass can take advantage of the Lombardia Internship program and spend up to eight months in the northern region surrounding Milan as paid English teaching assistants in local high schools.