<p>You need a PhD to get a prime job in classics (academic research, university teaching, curating, etc.), and that takes about 5-7 years to complete. It’s becoming VERY common for people to do at least one MA before a PhD, and doing two MAs is not uncommon, so total time after getting your BA can be 10+ years. </p>
<p>Depending on what your interests are, there’s other ways to work in the field. Conservation is perhaps the most flexible and in demand degree (art history + chemistry double major is the most popular prep at the undergraduate level), but excavations also hire geographers, soil specialists, botanists, zoologists and biological anthropologists, photographers, architects, and other specialists. Master’s programs in Museum Studies and various aspects of cultural heritage are becoming increasingly popular…but many of these programs are too new for anyone to predict how adequately they prepare students for the job market. </p>
<p>Classics is a very language-intensive career field. Most successful applicants to PhD programs in classics have had 3-4 years (or more) of both Greek and Latin. A reading knowledge of German and French and a strong background in classical history, art/archaeology, and culture is also expected. </p>
<p>The job prospects in classics are pretty abysmal. It’s an incredibly competitive field, and most of the best PhD programs admit about 3-5 students out of 100-150 applicants. Life doesn’t get easier for classicists after admission, and only a fraction of graduating PhDs actually get classics-related jobs. Many very accomplished graduates from top PhD programs fizzle out and pursue careers in other fields. </p>
<p>I don’t mean to dissuade you, and it’s a very interesting subject. Be aware what you would be getting yourself into, however, and be sure to consider alternate paths to get to where you’d like to go. A business degree, for example, could allow you to live/work in Rome and pursue classics as a side interest. </p>