The doctoral program in Ancient Heritage of the Universities of Venice, Udine and Trieste, is one of the largest of its kind in Italy.

It offers this year (start: September/October 2024; application deadline: May 23rd, 2024) 11 fully funded PhD positions:

– 10 are aimed at candidates with proposals falling into one or more of our three main areas of research – broadly speaking: Greek and Latin philology, literature and linguistics, papyrology, palaeography etc. // ancient history of the Mediterranean, including Greece, Rome and the Ancient Near East, as well as epigraphy, history of religions, numismatics etc. // pre- and proto-historic, Near Eastern, Greek, Roman, Italic, and Medieval archaeology;

– 1 belongs to the ERC project “Communication in Ancient Anatolia” run by Annick Payne (Univ. of Venice), and concerns the topic “Acculturation Processes” (knowledge of ancient Eastern languages and/or Greek and Latin is here required).

Prospective candidates must have obtained their first degree no more than 10 years before applying.

The admission procedure is two-step:

– first, a written exam to be taken in person in Venice on June 10th, 2024 (translation from Greek or Latin for those applying for the philology curriculum; an essay on a given historical or archaeological topic for those applying for the respective areas, or for the ERC position);

– candidates with a score of at least 24/35 in the written test will then be admitted to an oral interview (to be held, either in person or via Zoom, on June 17-19, 2024) focusing on their research proposal and previous experience.

Both the written and the oral exams may be taken in English. The PhD program, however, is run and taught in Italian; proficiency in English is required at B2 level, and knowledge of one further European language is mandatory.

PhD students will have plenty of time to study; their mobility during their doctoral training is strongly encouraged (and supported); they will take part in the “doctoral weeks” organised every year by each of the three universities, as well as in a number of other activities.

All the details can be found at the following links (see esp. p. 34 of the call):

Italian:   https://www.unive.it/web/it/259/

English:   https://www.unive.it/web/en/2161/

For any further doubts that may arise you can write (administrative issues) to the office in charge of the admission procedure: [email protected]

or (scientific issues) to the Coordinatore of the doctoral program:  [email protected]