Resources at UT

Library Facilities

The Library systems of UT (Austin) rank among the nine largest academic libraries in the U.S., with holdings of some 6 million volumes. Chief among our libraries are the Perry-Castaneda Library with over a million and a half volumes, and the Humanities Research Center housing extensive and unique collections of manuscripts, rare books, and literary iconography including the Carlton Lake Collections of nineteenth- and twentieth-century French manuscripts and documents. These libraries are complemented by various branch libraries and important special collections, notably the Asian Collection, the Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection and the holdings of the LBJ School of Public Affairs. The Department of French and Italian also has its own small library and reading room providing reference materials as well as a convenient and quiet place to work.

Exchange Programs

Graduate students in French can apply for a number of exchange programs arranged through the Department. Qualified applicants can spend an academic year as an English-language lecteur at the University of Montpellier or the University of Amiens, or as an assistant in a French lycée, usually in Paris.

Teacher Training and Supervision

Each Teaching Assistant receives teacher training by means of general orientation, a course on teaching methodology (398T), and assignment as an apprentice to a full-time faculty member whom the TA observes in the classroom and consults daily. Every opportunity is given for TAs to practice-teach and improve their instructional skills before becoming full-fledged instructors of a course section. Distinguished teaching is recognized each year through a number of teaching awards.

French-Italian Students Organization (FIGSO)

Graduate students of the Department elect annually two representatives to a university-wide Council of Graduate Students whose purpose is to defend the rights and interests of all Graduate Students at UT. The French-Italian Graduate Students Organization (FIGSO) also elects annually two representatives to the departmental Graduate Studies Committee so that this committee may profit from student views on such subjects as curriculum changes.

Conferences and Lectures

The University Public Lecture Committee, the Department of French and Italian, and various other Departments sponsor lectures and conferences.