History & Organisation
The Department of Philology at the University of Patras was established in 1994 (Presidential Decree 305/94, Govt. Gazette163/4-10-1994) and admitted its first students in the academic year 1997-1998. The Department became administratively autonomous in the academic year 2001-2002, headed by A. Markos, Professor of Philosophy.
The Department comprises three sections:
and provides the following Programmes of Study:
- Undergraduate Programme in Philology (four-year degree course)
- Postgraduate Programme (2-year Master's course and Doctorate). Students may choose one of three options: (a) Classics, (b) Modern Greek Studies and (c) Linguistics.
The Postgraduate Programme is the successor of the previous postgraduate programme "Comparative Linguistics and Language Variation". This course was offered from 2004-2006 and 2006-2008 funded by the second Operational Programme for Education and Initial Vocational Training (EPEAEK II) - 3rd Community Support Framework (CSF) and the European Social Fund (ESF).
A key aim of the Department is to support research and to foster learning in the areas in which it specialises. The Department seeks to equip its students with the knowledge they require to meet the demands imposed by today's job market.
Another of the Department of Philology's aims is to create a range of interdisciplinary studies by encouraging co-operation among experts from different fields, different schools within the university and at other universities, from Greece and from abroad. As the Department is part of a university whose geographical location makes it one of the most important gateways into Greece from Europe, the Department of Philology encourages contact, joint research programmes and student and teacher exchanges with major universities in other countries.
In the ten years which have passed since it was established, the department has been involved in a broad range of activities, including research and educational programmes, conferences, summer schools and visits from eminent invited scholars from all over the world. Many of the Department's postgraduate students have pursued further study at major universities in Europe and America. The Department has also welcomed dozens of students from foreign universities as part of the Socrates / Erasmus programme.
The academic staff of the Department of Philology includes sixteen Teaching and Research Staff members: one Professor, four Associate Professors, eight Assistant Professors and three Lecturers. The department is active in various research programmes and collaborates with other European universities via the ERASMUS programme by encouraging student exchanges and visits by members of the Teaching and Research staff.
The Chairperson of the department is Mrs. Angeliki Ralli, Professor of Linguistics. The Deputy Chairperson is Mr. Menelaos Christopoulos, Associate Professor of Classical Philology, and Mrs. Sophia Micheli is the Departmental Secretary.
The highest administrative body of the Department is the General Assembly, made up of all members of the Teaching and Research Staff and by elected student representatives.
