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
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Full-time, First-Year Students | ||
| First year seminars | 0-2 | |
| University Seminar I | ||
| University Seminar II | ||
| Core Curriculum Program | ||
| University Core Curriculum | 42 | |
| 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 3302 | Spanish Composition | 3 |
| SPAN 3312 | Spanish Grammar | 3 |
| 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 3313 | Introduction to Translation | 3 |
| 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 Hours | 120-122 | |
Course Sequencing
| First Year | ||
|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | |
| UNIV 1101 | University Seminar I | 1 |
| ENGL 1301 | Writing and Rhetoric I | 3 |
| SPAN 1311 | Spanish I | 3 |
| MATH 1332 or PHIL 2303 | Contemporary Mathematics or Introduction to Logic and Critical Thinking | 3 |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Spring | ||
| SPAN 1312 | Spanish II | 3 |
| ENGL 1302 or COMM 1311 | 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 |
| Hours | 16 | |
| Second Year | ||
| Fall | ||
| SPAN 2311 | Spanish III | 3 |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| Lower Divisional Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| SPAN 2312 | Continuing Spanish | 3 |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| University Core Curriculum | 3 | |
| Lower Divisional Elective | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| 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 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Spring | ||
| SPAN 3302 | Spanish Composition | 3 |
| SPAN 3304 | Spanish Civilization | 3 |
| SPAN 3313 | Introduction to Translation | 3 |
| University Electives | 3 | |
| University Electives | 3 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| 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 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| 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 | |
| Hours | 15 | |
| Total Hours | 122 | |
Courses
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.
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.
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.
Study of more complex Spanish sentence structure to further listening, speaking, reading and writing skills at an intermediate level within a Spanish cultural framework.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
A course designed to strengthen the student's oral proficiency in the language through selected readings, videos and oral presentations.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
This course introduces the study of language, the main subfields of Hispanic linguistics, and their application to other sciences.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Examination of representative novels and short stories reflecting the emergence of a post-revolutionary society in Mexico. Conducted in Spanish.
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.
An advanced course designed to provide an introduction to Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quijote.
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.
This course presents an introduction to methodologies, requirements, terminology, and practice of interpretation, with emphasis on simultaneous, consecutive, and sight interpretation.
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.
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.
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.
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.
See College description.
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.
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.