Teaching

According to the PhD Regulations of the University of Catania, “doctoral students are required to attend on a full-time basis all activities provided by the PhD program in accordance with the procedures established by the Faculty Board.” The PhD Program offers the following types of teaching activities.

Area Lectures

In-depth theoretical and methodological lectures will be provided to offer a broad and updated overview of the various research directions across the philological, philosophical, literary, and linguistic fields. The lectures also aim to foster open dialogue on how to fruitfully frame different research pathways, taking into account the diverse needs of doctoral students. The lecture hours are supplemented by a reading list established by the area faculty, comprising preparatory readings for the lectures as well as further reading.

Upon completion of the lecture hours, an assessment is conducted in the form of a written report.

Introduction to Digital Humanities

These hours aim to introduce doctoral students to the use of technologies in humanities research, enriching the theoretical and methodological approaches of the four areas and steering candidates toward innovative research fields—both as the repurposing and reuse of pre-existing materials and tools, and as a launchpad toward contemporary digital cultures. To this end, foundational concepts of natural language processing will be introduced, alongside the use of specific software for querying textual databases.

Keynote Address

Each year, the PhD program organizes an inaugural keynote address for the academic year on the themes of interpretation, aimed at doctoral students across all three years.

General Seminar on Interpretation

Every year, a visiting professor from another university is invited to deliver a lecture aimed at all four areas of the PhD program to stimulate interdisciplinary reflection on the shared theme of interpretation. Along with doctoral students, members of the Faculty Board also attend the lecture and actively participate in the subsequent discussion.

Interdisciplinary Seminars

Each year, the PhD program organizes four seminars given by four visiting professors from other universities on the themes of interpretation, intended for doctoral students across all three years. The four invited speakers, representing the disciplines that constitute the PhD program, are asked to reflect from their respective fields in a cross-cutting manner on the shared concept of interpretation. The four seminars—which typically take place over two days to allow ample time for discussion—are attended by both doctoral students and members of the Faculty Board, who actively join in the following debate.

Academic Communication in the Humanities

An introductory course on written and oral academic texts for first- and second-year doctoral students, featuring practical activities and group work. Special attention is dedicated to the doctoral thesis, analyzing its structure, formal characteristics, and citation styles.

European Grant Writing

Each year, the PhD program organizes a meeting on European project design and grant writing. Dr. Teresa Caltabiano, coordinator of the University's International Research Office and member of the Board of Directors of APRE (Agency for the Promotion of European Research), conducts an introductory seminar on European Union research funding programs, international mobility, and organizational models for services supporting European research.

Foreign Languages

In collaboration with the CLA (University Language Centre), specialized courses are offered in academic English (40 hours, B2 level) and a second foreign language (40 hours).

University Training Offer

The University of Catania organizes seminars, disciplinary and interdisciplinary training activities, and PhD Days dedicated to doctoral students, aiming to further explore best practices related to effective research evaluation.