Italian and Persian

Italian and Persian is an uncommon but intellectually rich combination that connects two of the world's great literary and cultural traditions. At the University of St Andrews, this MA degree runs over four years of full-time study and includes a year abroad, giving you immersive time in both linguistic and cultural environments. Italian brings you into contact with one of the most influential literary, artistic, and political traditions in Europe, from Dante and Machiavelli through to the twentieth-century novel and contemporary film.

Persian opens a different and equally rich tradition spanning classical poetry, philosophy, history, and the cultures of Iran and the wider Persian-speaking world.

As the current programme description indicates, you will develop language and communication skills in Italian to a high level of proficiency, with opportunities to engage with specialist topics in Italian literature, culture, history, politics, and film. The Persian strand complements this with its own deep literary and cultural heritage, introducing you to classical texts alongside modern forms of the language. Studying two such different languages simultaneously sharpens your understanding of how language shapes thought and culture.

You will develop skills in close reading, translation, and cultural analysis, as well as the linguistic flexibility that comes from working across very different grammatical systems. The year abroad gives you extended exposure to one or more of the relevant language communities.

Graduates of programmes combining European and Middle Eastern languages are well placed for careers requiring genuine cultural and linguistic versatility. Roles in diplomacy, the foreign office, international organisations, journalism, translation and interpreting, academia, and the arts all value this kind of depth. Persian in particular opens connections to careers in international relations, security analysis, and humanitarian work in the Middle East and Central Asia.

Many graduates go on to postgraduate study in area studies, linguistics, comparative literature, or translation. The analytical skills in reading and cultural interpretation that this combination develops also translate well into careers in law, publishing, and the broader cultural sector.