Spanish, BA

Program Description

The Spanish program offers a major and minor in Spanish. The main focus of the program is to develop the student’s language proficiency and the literary, cultural, practical application, and translation competencies demanded by many professional fields. To accomplish these goals, the Spanish curriculum includes courses in general Spanish Language, Spanish for the Professions, Hispanic Linguistics, Spanish and Spanish-American Literatures and Civilizations, and Translation. These courses are provided for students pursuing a Bachelor of Arts degree in Spanish with or without Secondary Teacher Certification, or Spanish/English Translation Certificate; for those fulfilling Second Language requirements or the Language, Philosophy, and Culture requirement in the Core Curriculum Program, and for those seeking electives to support majors and minors in other fields.

Student Learning Outcomes

Students will:

  • demonstrate advanced proficiency in Spanish through performance on examinations, in-class presentations, and research papers;
  • demonstrate the ability to understand, analyze, and interpret important cultural, linguistic, translatological, and literary issues relating to Spanish-speaking countries, cultures and peoples through in-class presentations, examinations, translation projects, and research papers;
  • demonstrate proficiency in the practice, theory, and ethical aspects of translation, interpretation, culture, linguistics, and literature as they relate to Spanish-speaking countries, cultures and peoples through in-class presentations, examinations, research papers, and translation projects;
  • be prepared to teach Spanish and/or continue their studies at the graduate level.

For students planning to register for 3000 or 4000 level courses, Spanish Faculty approval or a prerequisite of two 2000 courses (or equivalent) is required. For Teacher Certification, both the TExES examination (LOTE-613 [Languages Other Than English]) and the PPR-160 (Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Test) must be completed. For the Translation Certificate, students must complete 16 credits of Spanish translation related coursework and pass an exit exam.

Students interested in Credit by Examination towards the Spanish major or minor must do so through the AP, IB, CLEP, or ACTFL exams. Students who choose the CLEP exam need to be cleared by a member of the Spanish faculty to apply those credits towards the major (or minor) and enroll in upper-division courses. The Bachelor of Arts in Spanish requires a minimum of 36 semester hours in Spanish, out of which 30 must be upper-division. The distribution of upper and lower-division hours can be found below. Students seeking a B.A. in Spanish must complete the following requirements.

About Upper-Division Spanish Courses

To enroll in upper-division Spanish courses, students must first do one of the following:

  • pass two 2000 level Spanish courses.
  • receive an equivalent score on the AP, IB, CLEP, or ACTFL tests.
  • obtain approval from Spanish Faculty.

About the Teaching Certification and the Translation Certificate

  • Students interested in receiving the Teaching Certification in Spanish, see catalog section under Spanish Teaching Certification.
  • Students interested in receiving the Spanish/English Translation Certificate, see catalog section under Certificates.​ Note that only 6 hours from this certificate can be applied to the Spanish major.

About Double-Majors and Double-Degrees

Students who pursue the Spanish major as support for another major or degree in a different discipline are allowed to complete the program with 36 hours, at least 21 of which must be upper-division. Since these students are completing entire programs in another field simultaneously, they are allowed to complete the 36 hours with any distribution of their choice.

General Requirements

Requirements Credit Hours
Core Curriculum Program 42
First-Year Seminars (when applicable)1 0-2
Spanish Major Requirements 36
University Electives 36
Foreign Language Requirements 6
Total Credit Hours 120-122
1

Full-time, first time in college students are required to take the first-year seminars.

Program Description

Full-time, First-Year Students
First year seminars0-2
University Seminar I
University Seminar II
Core Curriculum Program
University Core Curriculum42
Spanish Base Language
Select 6 hours of the following:6
Spanish III (or credit by examination)
Continuing Spanish (or credit by examination)
Spanish for Heritage Speakers (or credit by examination)
Language and Culture for Heritage Learners (or credit by examination)
Grammar & Writing
SPAN 3302Spanish Composition3
SPAN 3312Spanish Grammar3
Linguistics & Oral Communication
Select 3 hours of the following:3
Spanish Conversation
Spanish Phonetics
Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
Spanish in the Americas
Methods in Foreign Language Instruction
Culture & Civilization
Select 3 hours of the following:3
Spanish Civilization
Latin American Civilization
Civilizations of the Spanish-Speaking World
Spanish Literature
Select 3 hours of the following:3
Introduction to Spanish Literature
Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quijote
Modern Spanish Literature
Topics in Spanish
Latin American Literature
Select 3 hours of the following:3
Introduction to Latin American Literature
Mexican Narrative
Latin American Novel
Topics in Spanish
Translation and Applied Spanish
SPAN 3313Introduction to Translation3
or SPAN 2316 Spanish for the Professions
Spanish Electives
Select 9 hours from any of the following:9
Literature and Culture
Spanish Civilization
Latin American Civilization
Civilizations of the Spanish-Speaking World
Introduction to Spanish Literature
Introduction to Latin American Literature
Mexican Narrative
Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quijote
Latin American Novel
Modern Spanish Literature
Topics in Spanish
Linguistics
Spanish Phonetics
Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
Spanish in the Americas
Methods in Foreign Language Instruction
Translation
Introduction to Translation
Spanish for the Professions
Medical, Scientific and Technical Translation
Business, Commercial, and Legal Translation
University Electives
Select 36 hours of university electives. 36
Foreign Language Requirement
See the College of Liberal Arts for the college language requirement.6
Total Hours120-122

Course Sequencing

Plan of Study Grid
First Year
FallHours
UNIV 1101 University Seminar I 1
ENGL 1301 Writing and Rhetoric I 3
SPAN 1311 Spanish I 3
MATH 1332
Contemporary Mathematics
or Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking
3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
 Hours16
Spring
SPAN 1312 Spanish II 3
ENGL 1302
Writing and Rhetoric II
or Foundation of Communication
3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
UNIV 1102 University Seminar II 1
 Hours16
Second Year
Fall
SPAN 2311 Spanish III 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
Lower Divisional Elective 3
 Hours15
Spring
SPAN 2312 Continuing Spanish 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
University Core Curriculum 3
Lower Divisional Elective 3
 Hours15
Third Year
Fall
SPAN 3303 Spanish Conversation 3
SPAN 3312 Spanish Grammar 3
SPAN 3325 Introduction to Latin American Literature 3
University Elective 3
University Elective 3
 Hours15
Spring
SPAN 3302 Spanish Composition 3
SPAN 3304 Spanish Civilization 3
SPAN 3313 Introduction to Translation 3
University Electives 3
University Electives 3
 Hours15
Fourth Year
Fall
SPAN 3320 Introduction to Spanish Literature 3
Any 3000 or 4000 SPAN course not taken before. 3
University Electives 3
University Electives 3
University Electives 3
 Hours15
Spring
Any 3000 or 4000 SPAN course not taken before. 3
Any 3000 or 4000 SPAN course not taken before. 3
University Electives 3
University Electives 3
University Electives 3
 Hours15
 Total Hours122

Courses

SPAN 1100  Introduction to Service Learning  
1 Semester Credit Hour  

This is a one-credit course in which students in Spanish 1311 or 1312 may enroll and participate. This service learning course aims to promote collaborative learning between college students learning Spanish and people in the community. Available upon application. Repeatable up to 2 hours.

SPAN 1311  Spanish I  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Introduction to listening, speaking, reading and writing skills within a Spanish cultural framework. For students without previous knowledge of the language. (Language laboratory required. One hour per week.) *A lab fee is required for these courses.

SPAN 1312  Spanish II  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Continued practice in listening, speaking, reading and writing skills within a Spanish cultural framework. (Language laboratory required. One hour per week.) A lab fee is required for these courses.

SPAN 2311  Spanish III  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Study of more complex Spanish sentence structure to further listening, speaking, reading and writing skills at an intermediate level within a Spanish cultural framework.

TCCNS: SPAN 2311  
SPAN 2312  Continuing Spanish  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Continued development and review of all language skills at an intermediate level within a Spanish framework with an emphasis in the linguistic and cultural perspective.

TCCNS: SPAN 2312  
SPAN 2313  Spanish for Heritage Speakers  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

An introductory course designed for bilingual students who wish to enhance their linguistic skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing). This course will focus on the cultural and historical aspects related to the heritage Spanish speaker.

TCCNS: SPAN 2313  
SPAN 2315  Language and Culture for Heritage Learners  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course is designed to guide Spanish heritage language learners, as well as advanced learners of Spanish, in the development of their oral proficiency, written communication, and grammatical accuracy while exploring different cultural aspects from the Spanish-speaking world. It is highly recommended for students who have taken SPAN 2313 and/or who are transitioning into upper-division Spanish courses.

SPAN 2316  Spanish for the Professions  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

The course stresses Spanish for the professions to enhance communication skills and cultural knowledge that will help to serve the South Texas Spanish-speaking population as well as to conduct interactions with Spanish speakers and/or businesses throughout the United States and the world.

Prerequisite: SPAN 2312.

SPAN 3302  Spanish Composition  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A course designed to develop analytical perspectives in literary criticism and to strengthen reading and writing skills in Spanish through intensive reading of Spanish, Spanish American, and Chicano fiction.

SPAN 3303  Spanish Conversation  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A course designed to strengthen the student's oral proficiency in the language through selected readings, videos and oral presentations.

SPAN 3304  Spanish Civilization  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course has been designed to provide a general overview of the cultural, linguistic, and historical experience of the Spanish people within its larger European context. Conducted in Spanish unless otherwise stated. This course may be used to satisfy the university core curriculum requirement in Language, Philosophy, and Culture.

SPAN 3305  Latin American Civilization  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course is designed to provide a general overview of the cultural, linguistic, and historical experience of Latin American people before and after Columbus. Conducted in Spanish unless otherwise stated. This course may be used to satisfy the university core curriculum in Language, Philosophy, and Culture.

SPAN 3307  Spanish Literature I  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A critical approach to the study of early Spanish literature from the Middle Ages through the Eighteenth Century. Literary selections include masterpieces that establish and reflect Spain's literary tradition within its larger European context.

SPAN 3308  Spanish Literature II  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A continuation of a critical approach to the study of Spanish literature from the Nineteenth Century through the present. Representative works of Spanish Romanticism, Realism, Naturalism, and contemporary literature are studied within their larger European context.

SPAN 3309  Spanish American Literature I  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A critical approach to the study of early Spanish American literature from the Pre-Columbian Period through the Nineteenth Century. Selected readings in all literary genres, major themes, writers, and early literary movements will be studied within their larger Latin American context.

SPAN 3310  Spanish American Literature II  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A continuation of a critical approach to the study of Spanish American literature from the Twentieth Century through the present. Representative works of Latin American writers and literary movements: Modernism, Realism, Avant-Garde, Regionalism, Magic-Realism are studied within their larger Latin American context.

SPAN 3311  Spanish Phonetics  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A course designed to study the production and discrimination of the Spanish sound system with a general overview of the geographical and social distribution of phonemic and allophonic variants.

SPAN 3312  Spanish Grammar  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

The course will serve to expand vocabulary, further develop writing skills; understand, apply, and use Spanish grammatical structures, and communicate more accurately in written and oral Spanish within a Hispanic cultural context.

SPAN 3313  Introduction to Translation  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course is an introduction to the theory, methods and practice of English to Spanish and Spanish to English translation of general texts from different fields. Challenges related to culture and language, as well as professional ethics will be examined.

SPAN 3315  Civilizations of the Spanish-Speaking World  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course has been designed to provide a general overview of the historical, sociocultural and political experience of peoples from the Spanish-Speaking world, both from Spain and Spanish America.

SPAN 3317  Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course introduces the study of language, the main subfields of Hispanic linguistics, and their application to other sciences. 

SPAN 3320  Introduction to Spanish Literature  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A critical approach to the study of Spanish literature from the Middle Ages through the present. Representative works of Spanish literature are studied within their larger European context. It is highly recommended that students take any of the following before taking this course: SPAN 2313, 2315, 3302, 3303 have advanced proficiency or faculty permit. Conducted in Spanish, unless otherwise stated. This course may be used to satisfy the University Core Curriculum requirement in Language, Philosophy, and Culture.

SPAN 3325  Introduction to Latin American Literature  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A critical approach to the study of Latin American literature from the Pre-Columbian Period through the present. Selected readings in all literary genres, major themes, writers, and literary movements will be studied with a wide Latin American context. It is highly recommended that students take any of the following before taking this course: SPAN 2313, 2315, 3302, 3303, have advanced proficiency or faculty permit. Conducted in Spanish, unless otherwise stated. This course may be used to satisfy the University Core Curriculum requirement in Language, Philosophy, and Culture.

SPAN 4100  Service Learning  
1 Semester Credit Hour  

This is a one-credit course designed specifically for students who are preparing themselves to serve the community using their Spanish language skills. Students in this course will familiarize themselves with the methodology of a particular field (heritage language teaching, translation, interpreting, etc) to be able to interact and serve Spanish-speaking individuals in the community. Available upon application. Repeatable up to 3 hours.

SPAN 4301  Spanish Civil War and Literature  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Significance of the Civil War for Spanish, European, and world history. Effect of war on literary and cultural life of the country and the response of writers from Spain and Latin America. Conducted in Spanish.

SPAN 4302  Mexican Narrative  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Examination of representative novels and short stories reflecting the emergence of a post-revolutionary society in Mexico. Conducted in Spanish.

SPAN 4303  Spanish in the Southwest  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Cultural and linguistic dimensions of Spanish dialects of the Southwestern United States, with special attention to Texas Spanish and its sociolinguistic perspectives in the bilingual community at large.

SPAN 4304  Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quijote  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

An advanced course designed to provide an introduction to Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quijote.

SPAN 4305  Latin American Novel  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course explores major novels from Latin America from the 20th century to the present.  It examines the different problems, discourses, voices, contexts, and geographies that define this genre in Latin America.

SPAN 4306  Modern Spanish Literature  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A course that focuses on modern Spanish literature. It is highly recommended that students take any of the following before taking this course: SPAN 2313, 2315, 3302, 3303, have advanced proficiency or faculty permit. Conducted in Spanish, unless otherwise stated.

SPAN 4313  Spanish Interpretation  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course presents an introduction to methodologies, requirements, terminology, and practice of interpretation, with emphasis on simultaneous, consecutive, and sight interpretation.

SPAN 4320  Spanish in the Americas  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

A study of the Spanish that was brought to the Americas, its development, propagation and contact with native-American languages, including the sociocultural factors that have contributed to the linguistic variation in contemporary Spanish-speaking societies.

SPAN 4322  Medical, Scientific and Technical Translation  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

An advanced course in translation concentrating on medical, scientific and technical translation. The course is designed to extend student's knowledge of translation theory and consolidate their skills in specialized translation.

SPAN 4327  Methods in Foreign Language Instruction  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

This course is designed to study the current methods in foreign languages, their application in maximizing language proficiency, and the role of the students' culture and language during the learning process.

SPAN 4390  Topics in Spanish  
3 Semester Credit Hours (3 Lecture Hours)  

Study of specialized topics in language or literature. These courses may also be designed to develop terminology and overall Spanish proficiency regarding specific professions: Business, Medical, Criminal Justice, Sociology, etc. May be repeated when topics vary.

SPAN 4396  Directed Individual Study  
1-3 Semester Credit Hours (1-3 Lecture Hours)  

See College description.

SPAN 4398  Applied Experience  
3 Semester Credit Hours  

A practical work experience related to the Spanish area and related careers. It is intended to provide an opportunity for a student to gain first-hand experience in an unfamiliar field. Consequently, Applied Experience credit may not be granted for a student's regular work assignment or for previous work experience. Registration is by application. The application must include a clearly written description of the duties and responsibilities involved in the Applied Experience project, and be signed by the student, the on-site supervisor, and the faculty supervisor. Completed applications must be received in the Dean's Office by the last class day of the semester preceding intended registration. This course is graded "credit" or "no credit." No more than three semester hours of Applied Experience credit may be counted toward the baccalaureate degree. Undergraduate Applied Experience course will include no less than one hundred hours and no more than 150 hours of work experience per semester.

SPAN 4421  Business, Commercial, and Legal Translation  
4 Semester Credit Hours (4 Lecture Hours)  

An advanced course in translation concentrating on business, commercial and legal texts. The course is designed to extend student's knowledge of translation theory and consolidate their skills in specialized translation.