Spanish Major
Learning Goals for the Spanish Major
- Develop an advanced level of linguistic fluency in Spanish
- Recognize texts from a wide array of societies and time periods
- Analyze texts in academic papers and/or public essays
- Utilize diverse critical approaches to the study of literature and culture
- Value the ability to understand, communicate with, and effectively interact with others across cultures
Requirements for the Spanish Major
A minimum of eight units exclusive of SPAN 101-SPAN 102 and SPAN 201-SPAN 202 must be presented for the Spanish major. Also required are at least two 300-level units, including a seminar during the senior year. Both of the 300-level courses counted toward the major must be taken at Wellesley. SPAN 350, SPAN 360, and SPAN 370 count toward the major, but normally do not fulfill the two 300-level courses requirement.
The major in Spanish incorporates considerable flexibility in designing a program of study, but must include the following elements, chosen in consultation with the major advisor:
- Foundational work: normally SPAN 241 or SPAN 243. Qualified students may begin the major at a higher level
- Breadth: course work focused on Spain as well as offerings focused on the Americas
- Depth: two units in which a student concentrates on a special field of her choice, such as:
- A single literary or artistic form (i.e., prose narrative, poetry, film)
- A broad cultural movement or theme (i.e., modernity, feminism, human rights)
- A specific region of the Spanish-speaking world (i.e., Mesoamerica, Southern Cone, the Caribbean, U.S. Latino) and its cultural production
- Historical perspective: at least one unit in Medieval, Renaissance, Golden Age, or Latin American Colonial literature and culture
Upon approval from the department, up to four courses taken during a semester of study away from Wellesley and up to five during a full academic year away may be counted toward the major. No credit for internships, regardless of having a course component, will be counted towards the major.
One course in Portuguese taken at Wellesley at the 203-level or above may be counted toward the major in Spanish.
For students interested in an interdisciplinary approach to the study of Latin America, also available is the interdepartmental major in Latin American Studies, which allows students to choose from a list of courses in different departments, including Spanish. Majors devise their own programs in consultation with the directors of Latin American Studies. Students are referred to the Latin American studies interdepartmental program listing for further information.
Honors in Spanish
The only route to honors in the major is writing a thesis and passing an oral examination. For students entering in Fall 2020: To be admitted to the thesis program, a student must have a grade point average of at least 3.75 in all work in the major field above the 100 level and to be approved by the department; Student with a GPA in the major is between 3.5 and 3.75 can petition the department. See Academic Distinctions.
Teacher Certification in Spanish
Students interested in obtaining certification to teach Spanish in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts should consult Professor Hawes of the Department of Education.
Advanced Placement Policies and Language Requirement in Spanish and Portuguese
Students who demonstrate adequate preparation for advanced work in the language through a placement exam, through an AP score of 5, or through an IB Higher Level Score of 5 or above, may complete the language requirement by completion of one unit of work taught in that language in an advanced course. identified by the department or program, or by completing two semesters of introductory work in a different language.
International Study in Spanish
Qualified juniors are encouraged to spend a semester or a year in a Spanish-speaking country either with Wellesley's consortium program in Córdoba, Spain, and in partnership with Middlebury in Santiago, Chile, or another approved program. To be eligible for study in Córdoba for one or two semesters in Wellesley's Programa de Estudios Hispánicos en Córdoba (PRESHCO), or in Santiago with the Wellesley/Middlebury in Chile Program a student should ordinarily be enrolled in SPAN 241 or a higher-level language or literature course the previous semester.
Courses for Credit Toward the Spanish Major
| EDUC 325 | Seminar: English as a Second Language via Immersion |
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