Italian and Czech
Italian and Czech with Slovak is a combination that brings together two of Europe's most culturally and linguistically distinct traditions. Italian is the language of one of the world's great artistic and intellectual heritages, spoken by over 60 million people and the gateway to centuries of literature, music, design, and philosophy that have shaped civilisations far beyond Italy's borders. Czech and Slovak are West Slavic languages spoken primarily in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, two countries at the heart of Central Europe with rich literary, musical, and cultural traditions and a fascinating recent history spanning Habsburg rule, communist transformation, and post-1989 democratic renewal.
At the University of Oxford, this four-year, full-time programme provides both rigorous practical training in written and spoken language and an extensive engagement with literature and thought across both linguistic traditions. You will develop the ability to write and speak with fluency and precision in Italian and Czech or Slovak, while also exploring the literatures of both traditions across periods from the medieval to the present day. Oxford's modern languages programme allows considerable flexibility in how you shape your studies, with options to explore linguistics, philology, film, and other subjects alongside your language and literary work.
The year abroad is central to the programme, immersing you in the languages and cultures you are studying.
Graduates of Italian and Czech with Slovak pursue careers in translation and interpretation, diplomacy, international business, journalism, cultural organisations, European institutions, and education. The combination of Italian and Czech or Slovak provides genuine linguistic breadth across both Western and Central European contexts, and the analytical and communicative skills an Oxford modern languages degree develops are valued across a wide range of professions. Many graduates continue to postgraduate study in modern languages, translation, or a related specialism.