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Undergraduate Programs

Spanish Major Overview

Major Requirements

Minor in Spanish

Honors in Spanish

Progression through Courses

Fall '04 Course Renumbering

FLIP Incentive Program

Frequently Asked Questions

Spanish Writing Center

Undergraduate Admissions Info

Course Progression
through the Spanish Major and Minor

The courses in Spanish at the major level (35:103 through 35:198) are grouped in two ways, by content area and by level. By content area, there are courses which focus on literature and literary analysis, on cultural topics, on linguistics and on language skills. By level, there are three main levels, according to how much previous study the student has had in Spanish. Within each level there are courses in literature, culture, and language skills; and at the second and third levels there are also courses in Hispanic linguistics. The great majority of these courses (with the exception of some literature and culture courses) are taught in Spanish, and taking any course in Spanish will give you the opportunity to continue your acquisition of Spanish as a second language.

Students who are just beginning a Spanish major (or minor) should start with Level 1. These are courses which have 35:012 or equivalent as a prerequisite, and are those courses numbered from 35:103 to 35:114. These are the courses which introduce students to work in the Spanish major and minor. Any of these courses can be taken as a first course after completing the General Education Program sequence in Spanish language, or equivalent. These are “5th-semester” courses, that is, courses in which students may earn FLIP credits.

The great majority of Spanish major level courses are Level 2 courses, numbered from 35:115 to 35:169. Students should take at least one, and preferably two, Level 1 courses before progressing to Level 2.  It is strongly recommended that students take one of the Level 1 courses in literature before starting to take Level 2 courses in literature. The general prerequisite for Level 2 courses is at least one course in Spanish above 35:102. Some courses at this level have more specific prerequisites; in particular, some Hispanic linguistics courses have as a prerequisite Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics (35:121).

The best time to do study abroad is when you are at Level 2. Study abroad programs which require equivalent of 5 to 6 previous college semesters of Spanish are at this level, and this will give you a solid foundation completing your Level 3 courses when you return to campus.

Level 3 courses, 35:170 through 35:198, are the most advanced undergraduate courses. All Spanish majors must take at least three courses at this level as part of their major requirements. These are courses which students should plan on taking in their last two semesters of registration. These courses are open to graduate students in Spanish at the M.A. level, and those numbered 35:171-198 require a research paper. In general, literature courses at this level have as a prerequisite at least two previous Spanish literature courses; linguistics courses at this level have as a prerequisite Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics or equivalent (35:121). Some courses may have more specific prerequisites.

At least three of the courses for the major must be from this level.   Courses from study-abroad programs cannot be used to satisfy this requirement.