Illinois offers extraordinary academic resources and a thriving intellectual community of scholars to support graduate studies in any aspect of medieval studies around the world. These include:
- an interdisciplinary, global program offering a Graduate Concentration in Medieval Studies and supporting graduate students specializing in a wide range of medieval fields
- a pioneering approach to Medieval Studies embracing scholarship on world cultures during a broad span of time in and around the millennium from 500 to 1500 CE
- 40 affiliated faculty in a range of departments across campus
- one of the world’s finest academic libraries, with extensive print and electronic resources for Medieval Studies, diverse medieval manuscript holdings, and a superb Rare Book & Manuscript Library
- a regular Medieval Colloquium series, an annual Lex Veritatis Lecture, and international symposia and conferences
- editorial home of a pathbreaking academic journal, The Medieval Globe
- robust funding for graduate student research and travel, including summer travel abroad (to work in libraries or archives, visit medieval sites, or attend conferences or special seminars); funding applications are invited twice yearly, in the fall and spring semesters
- advanced seminars across the spectrum of the field, including an annual Spring Seminar (MDVL 500) on cross-disciplinary topics such as Animal Studies, Plants and Medicine, The Medieval Lyric, Manuscript Studies, Medievalism.
Please see more information about the admissions process overseen by our affiliated departments.
Already enrolled in an affiliated program? Most students who wish to add the Medieval Studies Concentration do so midway through their program of study, when they have fulfilled at least some of the requirements. After consultation with the Director of the Program, you can request that it be formally added to your degree audit by submitting a petition through the Graduate College Student Portal. Once within the petition form, you will see “add/drop concentration” as a petition type. After submission, your petition will go to your home program and to Medieval Studies for approval. Thereafter, a specialist will check that the concentration is successfully listed in your audit and will track the completion of requirements.
Please contact Carol Symes (symes@illinois.edu) for more information about Medieval Studies at Illinois.