Linguistics with Italian

Linguistics is the scientific study of language as a human system, examining how languages are structured, how they are acquired and used, how they change over time, and what their diversity reveals about the range of possible human cognitive and social organisation. Combined with Italian, the degree gives you the opportunity to develop genuine linguistic proficiency in a major European language while also developing the analytical tools to understand how language works at a deeper level, connecting specific linguistic phenomena in Italian to broader principles of the discipline.

At York, this three-year programme allows you to study Italian from the beginning, starting with no prior knowledge and building rapidly towards real fluency under the guidance of staff, many of whom are native speakers. Language classes focus on society, politics, and culture, giving your linguistic development meaningful content to engage with. Alongside language study, linguistics modules provide frameworks for phonology, morphology, syntax, semantics, pragmatics, and the social and historical dimensions of language.

The degree includes a sandwich year in industry and work placement opportunities, meaning that you will have the chance to apply your language skills and analytical abilities in professional contexts before completing your final year, gaining experience that is highly attractive to graduate employers.

Graduates of linguistics combined with Italian are well placed for careers in translation, interpreting, language teaching, publishing, the cultural and creative industries, and any internationally facing profession where Italian language skills are an asset. The linguistics component opens additional routes into language technology, speech and language therapy (with further study), lexicography, and computational linguistics. The ability to analyse language precisely and to communicate in more than one language is valued across an unusually wide range of employers, from international business and diplomacy to journalism and the civil service.