Italian Department | Barnard College

Undergraduate instruction in Italian has long been fully integrated among the three undergraduate schools of the University—Barnard College, Columbia College, and the School of General Studies. All courses are open to Barnard students, but Barnard students wishing to begin their language study during their first year must take Italian at Barnard. The Advanced Italian course, though part of the requirement for the major in Italian, is open to all qualified students whose main goal is to improve their competence in the language.

Students interested in Italian can take both language courses and elective courses in Italian at Barnard. Students may also wish to consult the course offerings in Italian at Columbia.

A major in Italian offers the advantages of closely supervised work for a small number of students. Through the senior tutorial, students pursue research in a chosen area of Italian culture under the guidance of a specialist.

The courses given in English have no prerequisites and are open to students majoring in other departments who nevertheless wish to study Italian literature and culture.

Graduate courses are open to qualified students with permission of the instructor.

Fall 2026 Information for Current Students

Fall 2026 information for current students, including the block schedule, course listings, and details, has moved to Portal.

Going forward, the Portal will be the primary place for schedule updates and announcements, so we recommend bookmarking it and checking in regularly.

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Major, Minor, Language Requirements

The courses in Italian are designed to develop proficiency in all the language skills and to present the literary and cultural traditions of Italy. The program of study is to be planned as early as possible.

Major Courses

The major requires ten courses, including five core ones: an introductory literature or cultural studies sequence, an advanced language sequence focused on written and oral expression, and a required seminar in Italian literature.

Minor

The minor requires at least five courses at the intermediate literature level or above, with lower-level Italian courses not counting toward it.

Language Requirement

Students will receive points of credit for Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) credit, but these credits will not exempt students from General Education Requirements. Further information may be found on the transfer credits landing page.

The Italian Language Placement Exam is administered by the Columbia Italian Department. Visit the Italian Language Placement and Proficiency website for instructions.

Transfer Credits

Italian Language Placement Exam

The Italian Language Placement Exam is organized by Columbia's Department of Italian. Please see their statement on placement exams below.

"The Italian Placement exam is for determining which level of Italian language class is suitable for a student. Placement exams are offered before and during the registration period. Students who are unavailable during the scheduled times should send an email with their available dates and times and the Department will arrange for an alternative date. The placement test requires no more than two hours to complete. No dictionaries or other materials are permitted at this exam."

*Policy on No Exemption from General Education Requirements through Advanced Placement and/or International Baccalaureate Credits
Students will receive points of credit for Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) credit, but these credits will not exempt students from General Education Requirements.

Our Faculty

Peter Connor

Interim Chair of Italian, Professor of French

Interim Chair

Emilia Gambardella

Term Lecturer in Italian

Jhumpa Lahiri

Millicent C. McIntosh Professor of English; Director, Creative Writing Program; Affiliated Faculty, Department of Comparative Literature and Translation Studies and Program in Italian; Senior Fellow, The Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America, Columbia University

Nelson Moe

Associate Professor of Italian

Professor Emerita of Italian

Maristella Lorch, Ph.D., 1951-1990

Our Resources

Language Lab

Study Aboard

Our students have access to the Language Resource Center at Columbia