Texas Language Center | College of Liberal Arts
skip to content The University of Texas at Austin

Classics

Overview

The Department of Classics is an international center for the study of classical antiquity that offers rich undergraduate and graduate programs in the languages and cultures of ancient Greece and Rome. The department's diverse and dynamic faculty includes specialists in ancient architecture, colonization, drama, epigraphy, history, landscape, law, medicine, music, oratory, philosophy, poetry, religion, science, and technology from the prehistoric Aegean to late antiquity.

Courses in Greek (GK) and Latin (LAT) provide rigorous instruction in the languages from beginning to advanced levels. In addition to courses that fulfill world language requirements, students interested in majoring in classical studies may choose from five distinct majors: Classics, Ancient History and Classical Civilization, Classical Archaeology, Greek, and Latin. The program also offers three minors in Classical Studies, Greek, and Latin. 

On this page:
Classical Languages
Greek (Major Courses and Minor Courses)
Latin (Major Courses and Minor Courses)
Classics Track (Major Courses and Minor Courses)
Online Courses
Department Scholarships
Education Abroad

Classical Languages

Classical Language majors are an excellent fit for students most interested in the literature and linguistics of Latin and/or Greek. With all Classical Language tracks, the majority of upper-division hours for the major will be Latin and/or Greek courses. All Classical Languages tracks require a minor in a field other than Greek, Latin, or Classical Civilization.

Greek

Major Courses:

  • GK 365 Seminar in Greek
  • 9 additional hours of upper-division Greek
  • 12 hours of Latin (LAT), Classical Civilization (C C), AHC 325, or AHC 378, including at least 9 hours upper-division

Minor Courses:

  • GK 506
  • GK 507
  • GK 311
  • GK 312K
  • GK 324
  • Coursework applied toward the minor must include at least 10 hours in residence.

Latin

Major Courses:

  • LAT 324 Advanced Grammar and Composition
  • LAT 365 Seminar in Latin
  • 9 additional hours of upper-division Latin
  • 9 hours of Greek (GK), Classical Civilization (C C), AHC 325, or AHC 378, including at least 6 hours upper-division.

Minor Courses:

  • LAT 506
  • LAT 507
  • LAT 511K
  • LAT 322
  • Coursework applied toward the minor must include at least 9 hours in residence.

Classics Track (Greek and Latin Combined)

Major Courses:

  • 6 hours of upper-division Greek
  • 6 hours of upper-division Latin
  • One capstone course chosen from C C 375, GK 365, or LAT 365
  • 9 additional hours of Classical Civilization (C C), Greek (GK), Latin (LAT), AHC 325, or AHC 378, including at least 3 hours upper-division

Minor Courses:

  • GK 506 or LAT 506
  • 12 hours of Classical Civilization (C C), AHC 319, AHC 325, or AHC 378, including at least six hours upper-division
  • Coursework applied toward the minor must include at least nine hours in residence.

For more information about majors and minors in Classical Languages and Classical Studies, see the degree listings on the Department of Classics page.

Online Courses

In addition to face-to-face language classes, the Department of Classics offers online sections of both first-year Latin courses, LAT 506 and LAT 507.

Department Scholarships

The Department of Classics is honored to have a wealth of scholarship money to award each year. Scholarships are restricted to declared undergraduate majors. Scholarship applications occur annually midway through the spring semester. Any scholarship listed may sometimes be awarded to more than one student depending on the pool of applicants. All scholarships can be applied to either the long session or to summer study, depending on the student's needs. For a full list of scholarships, see the scholarship page on the department website.

Education Abroad

Classics majors must be careful in choosing the best study abroad program to fit their needs. Given our majors’ extensive requirements for Greek and Latin, most Classics students looking to study abroad for a long semester need to choose a program where they can take Greek and Latin courses at an appropriate level. For this reason, there are a few common education abroad programs that are particularly suitable for Classics majors. Summer or Maymester programs can also be a good option for students who cannot fall behind on the required foreign language sequence.

The three major categories of education abroad programs are faculty-led, exchange programs, and affiliated programs. In general, you can explore all program options through the Education Abroad program database.

More information about Study Abroad opportunities for Classics students can be found at this link.

Course Offerings for Summer 2023 

Greek

GK w804 INTENSIVE BEGINNING GREEK (Whole session)
For over thirty years, Intensive Summer Greek at UT Austin has been giving students of diverse backgrounds and interests a rapid and deep understanding of the structure of the Greek language and a love of Greek prose and poetry.  You need have no previous knowledge of Greek. If you have had a semester or two or more, the special approach in this  course will strengthen your grasp of how Greek works and why it is so subtle a vehicle for conveying ideas.

You will use *Lexis*, a unique textbook and reader designed by the late Gareth Morgan.  All of its exercises are based on full passages of real, unaltered and unabbreviated Classical Greek.  First readings of Ionic Greek will make you aware of word formation, and that knowledge will enable you to acquire vocabulary quickly.  Ionic Greek also is a main component of the Homeric dialect.  Once you learn it, you can move easily forward to standard Attic authors and Biblical Greek and backward to Greek epic verse.

You will not read one dreary practice sentence made up in clever desperation or desperate ingenuity.  By the sixth day, you will be reading continuous pure Herodotus.  All students who successfully complete the course will be well prepared for sophomore level classes and dedicated students from past intensive courses have been able to go into classes at higher levels.  Students of other subjects have used Greek right away to enrich and inform their studies.

Students must register for both GK W804 and W412.  The course runs through both summer sessions.  It meets for five hours each day for about fifty class days, and, if satisfactorily completed, counts for 12 semester hours. Classes working under these language-saturation conditions have achieved an enthusiasm and spirit conducive to an unusually rich learning experience.   Usually, in the second half, besides ample grammar review, we read Homer's Odyssey IX, Euripides' Medea, Plato's Apology, and some supplementary readings handed out in class.

GK w412 INTENSIVE GREEK (Whole session)
Must be taken with GK w804 (see note above)

Latin

LAT f506 FIRST-YEAR LATIN I-WB (First session)
This course is an introduction to Latin, the language of ancient Rome and famous writers like Caesar, Cicero, Vergil, and St. Augustine. Latin is also an excellent way to improve your command of other languages: Latin is the source of over 60% of English vocabulary, and also the ancestor of all the “Romance” languages of Europe, including French, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Latin 506 introduces basic grammar and vocabulary in an interesting and challenging format, through reading selections from a wide range of Roman authors and exploring aspects of Roman life and culture.  By the end of the semester, students are reading excerpts from famous works and ready to continue into Latin 507.

The course can be completed entirely online, though students must attend three exams either on campus or at an approved testing facility.

LAT s507 FIRST-YEAR LATIN II-WB (Second session)

This course is a continuation of Latin 506.  It has two main aims:  to increase the student's fluency in Latin through reading and close examination of grammar and syntax, and to introduce students to Roman life and culture.

There will be daily assignments from Wheelock’s Latin, including review of Chapters 1-27 and a careful study of Chapters 27-40.  This will be supplemented by further connected readings from Caesar’s Gallic Wars.

Prerequisites:  Completion of Latin 506 or the equivalent with a grade of C or higher.

The course can be completed entirely online, though students must attend three exams either on campus or at an approved testing facility.

Menu