Mediterranean Studies

Deadline for submitting applications: August 1 - November 30

Who the programme is intended for: The programme is offered to graduates of all Bachelor’s degree programmes.

Subject matter of the entrance examination: The entrance examination is given in both oral and written form. The condition for admission to the studies is the demonstration of knowledge of the selected language at a level that corresponds to the output level of the Bachelor’s programme for Mediterranean Studies, i.e. knowledge of a Romance language (French, Italian, Spanish) at the B1 level, or knowledge of Modern Greek at the A2/B1 level, or Arabic at the A2 level. Furthermore, the applicant must demonstrate their general orientation in the literature, culture, and history of the Mediterranean at the level of the Bachelor’s state examination in Mediterranean Studies. Applicants shall prepare a reading list of Mediterranean literature for the oral interview.

The written part of the exam takes the combined form of a short grammar test and a motivation letter of at least one standard page in the selected Romance language at the B1 level, or Modern Greek at the A2/B1 level, or Arabic at the A2 level. In this letter, the applicant justifies their interest in studying in a follow-up Master’s programme and formulates their idea of the course of studies. They present and justify the selected linguistic and literary profile and preliminarily describe the thematic area of the final thesis. The applicant selects only one language during the admission procedure: Arabic, French, Italian, Modern Greek, or Spanish. The motivation letter and reading list of Mediterranean literature must be uploaded into the e-application (rubric “Documents”) by 15 December. Applicants are required to include their full name and application number on all attached documents. The interview on the mentioned literary works is a part of the oral part of the examination.

The oral part of the examination takes the form of an interview including questions from the literature, history, and culture of the Mediterranean in the range of knowledge set for the Bachelor’s examination in Mediterranean Studies and an interview on the read works from the Mediterranean literatures, the list of which the applicant will upload together with the motivation letter in their e-application (see above).

Waiver of the entrance examination: The entrance examination can be waived for applicants who have passed the Bachelor’s examination in the field/programme Mediterranean Studies at the Faculty of Arts, Masaryk University with an excellent (A) or very good (B) result. Results that are not older than one semester are usually accepted. Applicants can ask for a waiver for the entrance examination via email to prijimaci.rizeni@phil.muni.cz.

Website Department of Classical Studies.

General information on the course of the admission procedure to the follow-up Master’s degree programmes at FA MU can be found here. Documents for the current admission procedure are kept in Materials for Applicants.

Recommended literature (language textbooks):

• BAHBOUH, Charif a Jiří FLEISSIG. Základy moderní spisovné arabštiny. 2. díl. 2. vyd. Praha: Dar ibn Rushd, 2004. 208 s. ISBN 80-86149-39-0.
• CASTRO VIUDEZ, Francisca, Ignacio RODERO a Carmen SARDINERO FRANCO. Nuevo Español en marcha 3: curso de español como lengua extranjera. Primera edición. Alcobendas (Madrid): SGEL, 2014. ISBN 978-84-9778-740-6.
• DIMITRA, Dimitra a Marineta PAPACHEIMONA. Ellinika tora 2+2 : tetradio askiseon. 2i ekdosi. Athina: Nostos, 2005. 82 s. ISBN 9607310149. nebo IRINI PATHIAKI. Ellinika B. 1. vyd. Athina: Patakis, 2011. 390 s.
• MARIN, Telis a Sandro MAGNELLI. Nuovo progetto italiano. 4. ed. Roma: Edilingua, 2009. 198 s. ISBN 9789606632242.
• MÉRIEUX, Régine a Yves LOISEAU. Latitudes 2 : méthode de français A2/B1. Paris: Didier, 2009. 192 s. ISBN 2-278-06250-6.

  Recommended reading (literature, history, culture; overview knowledge):

• ABULAFIA, David. The great sea: a human history of the Mediterranean. New York: Oxford University Press, 2011. 783 s.
• CANFORA, Luciano. Dějiny řecké literatury. Přel. D. Bartoňková a kol. 2., revidované a doplněné vydání. Praha: KLP – Koniasch Latin Press, 2004. 904 s. ISBN 80-86791-10-6.
• CONTE, Gian Biagio. Dějiny římské literatury. 2., revid. a dopl. vydání. Praha: KLP - Koniasch Latin Press, 2008. 800 s. ISBN 978-80-86791-57-9.
• OLIVA, Pavel, BURIAN, Jan. Civilizace starověkého Středomoří. 1. vyd. Praha: Svoboda, 1984. 549 s.
• TESAŘÍKOVÁ, Pavla. Zeměpisný atlas světa. Vizovice: SHOCart, 2010. 304 s.

Pass/fail line of the entrance examination: 70 points (out of 100). A maximum of 40 points can be obtained in the written part and a maximum of 60 points in the oral part.

Mediterranean Studies is a two-year Master's programme which aims to enhance the knowledge of the literary heritage of the Mediterranean space, and thus enable students to capture the roots of European civilization in the Mediterranean. The degree programme observe further destiny and development of the ancient cultural legacy, especially in the European territory of the Roman Empire (and its successors), but they also considerably deal with the Arab influences in the Mediterranean. Thus, the prerequisites are created for understanding the continuity between the Ancient Era, the early Middle Ages, and the further development of the Mediterranean area with forays into modern times.

Students gain a thorough insight into the most important literary theories they will use when interpreting specific literary texts. Within other required and elective courses, the students focus on Modern Greek, Romance (French, Italian, Spanish) or Arabic language and respective literatures. According to the type of study they study either one major language and literature, or one major and one minor language.

Emphasis is on the ability of independent complex analysis of the literary text, on the continuous deepening of the cultural-historical knowledge, which enables the students to find and interpret the broader literary and historical context, and on acquiring advanced language competences in selected Mediterranean language.

The programme is open for graduates of the Bachelor’s degree programme with a focus on philological-literary area studies.

Within the Master’s degree study programmes offered in the Czech Republic, Mediterranean Studies programme is unique in terms of conception and focus.

After successfully completing his/her studies the graduate is able to:

• explain the basis of selected literary theories and apply the discussed methods for interpretive text analysis;
• describe in detail the literary history of the chosen areas (Greek, Romance, Arabic) and demonstrate their mutual connections;
• analyse and evaluate specific literary works in original languages and/or translations;
• characterize in a deeper and broader cultural and historical context the relationship of continuity between ancient and medieval, especially literary culture;
• explain basic religious concepts of Islam, briefly describe the history of Arab countries, and understand the specifics in the value orientation of Arab-speaking cultures;
• understand the main points of complex texts on both concrete and abstract topics in a Romance language or modern Greek (at the B2 level CEFR) or understand short simple texts in the Arabic language (at the A2 level CEFR);
• write a detailed text on a wide range of topics in a Romance language or in modern Greek (at the B2 level CEFR), or write texts on familiar topics in the Arabic language (at the B1 level CEFR);
• communicate fluently in a Romance language or modern Greek on topical issues (B2 level CEFR), or communicate in simple and routine tasks requiring a simple and direct exchange of information on familiar and common facts in the Arabic language;
• to independently process foreign literature, electronic databases and various sources of information;
• create a longer internally structured text on specialized topics and formulate the acquired knowledge in a cultured way.

Graduates from this study programme will be qualified for jobs appropriate to the Master’s degree – in libraries, museums, information and education centres, and cultural foundations; considering practically oriented language skills, they will also be qualified for jobs in cultural or foreign affairs companies and administrative departments, or in media. Thanks to the high level of language skills and good knowledge of cultural characteristics of the region, graduates will also be able to work in the market sector, e.g. in tourism or as a mediator of business contacts with the Mediterranean.

Success on the labour market may vary depending on the language studied within the curriculum and also on the programme type.

Practical training is not an obligatory part of the study plan.

The recommended scope of Master's Thesis is at least 140,000 characters including footnotes, index and foreign language resumé. The list of literature, cover page, and affidavit are not included. The supervisor decides to include (or not) the annexes.

The formal requirements established by the Departement of Classical Studies are available at the institute's website: http://classics.phil.muni.cz/studium/pro-studenty

Other formal requirements established by the Faculty of Arts are available on the university document server: https://is.muni.cz/auth/do/phil/uredni_deska/predpisyFFMU/smernice/

Submission of the Master’s thesis in a due and proper form proves student's orientation in the subject matter of the thesis and the ability of the professional work under the supervision of the thesis supervisor. During the defense of the diploma thesis the level of presentation and the ability to argue in response to the opinions of the supervisor’s and reader’s reports.

The student chooses the topics of thesis related to the Mediterranean space in agreement with the supervisor, or chooses from the Topic list: https://is.muni.cz/go/rozpisyMEDMgr

A graduate of a master's degree programme in Mediterranean Studies can, after fulfilling the conditions of admission, continue in post-doctoral study corresponding to his / her specialization.