Drawing on a distinguished history initiated in 1825 by Lorenzo Da Ponte, celebrated librettist of Mozart's operas and first teacher of Italian at Columbia University, the department is known for providing broad coverage of Italian literature and boasts a faculty that represents a diverse spectrum of interests and critical approaches. In addition, students are able to take advantage of the rich cultural and scholarly programs sponsored by the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies in America. The Paterno collection, housed in Butler Library, is a unique resource for the study of Italian literature. In the MA year, students take ten courses. Students proceeding to the MPhil/PhD program take eight more courses, which can include courses in other departments and programs. Latin, as well as German, or a Romance language other than Italian, is required of all PhD candidates in Italian.Fellowships are awarded in recognition of academic achievement and in expectation of scholarly success. Teaching and research experience are considered an important aspect of the training of graduate students. Thus, graduate fellowships include some teaching and research apprenticeship.