French and Italian

French and Italian at the University of Oxford combines two of Europe's great Romance languages, each the gateway to centuries of literature, philosophy, art, and thought that have shaped Western culture in ways that are still being felt. French carries you into the tradition that produced Montaigne, Racine, Proust, and Camus, the intellectual worlds of Enlightenment and existentialism, and the contemporary cultures of France and the wider Francophone world. Italian takes you to Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio, and the Renaissance, to the operatic tradition, to neorealism in cinema, and to one of Europe's richest contemporary literary cultures.

Studying both together over four years at Oxford, where the tutorial system demands sustained independent intellectual engagement, produces graduates of exceptional breadth and analytical power.

You will develop practical proficiency in both languages alongside deep engagement with literary and cultural texts across a wide range of periods, from the medieval to the contemporary. The programme allows you to focus your studies on the periods and authors that interest you most, or to explore options in linguistics, philology, film, gender studies, or advanced translation. Oxford's tutorial system places high demands on you, requiring regular extended written argument and close engagement with tutors who are leading researchers in their fields.

A typical entry tariff of 184 points reflects the high competitive standards of Oxford modern languages. Graduates pursue careers in academia, publishing, translation and interpreting, journalism, diplomacy, international law, international business with a European focus, cultural institutions, and education. Many continue to doctoral research in French, Italian, comparative literature, or related fields, using the exceptional intellectual formation the degree provides as a foundation for advanced scholarly work.