Goals for Spanish Majors and Minors

Majors in all areas will be able to demonstrate proficiency in interpretive, interpersonal, and presentational modes of communication and basic knowledge of linguistics, cultural studies, or translation as disciplines. The top 75 percent of Spanish or Portuguese majors will be able to carry out conversations in which they can describe, compare, contrast, in all tenses (present, past, and future), with an appropriate breadth of vocabulary and register, and to be understood by a nonsympathetic listener; and to read and write documents written in academic, formal, and/or literary registers of language. Majors will be able to conduct research projects according to the methodologies of the humanities, social, or cognitive sciences and demonstrate intercultural awareness and understanding of the Hispanic or Luso-Brazilian world. Honors students (top 15 percent) will be able to complete independent research, write a thesis, and defend it before a faculty committee.

Spanish majors who choose electives in linguistics will also be able to demonstrate familiarity with basic concepts of linguistics, in particular with issues related to language contact and bilingualism and bilingual education, and be able to design and implement a research project.

Spanish majors who choose electives in translation/interpreting will also be able to demonstrate proficiency at the levels required by preprofessional and professional training for employment in legal, medical, and commercial translation and in other areas; and for further study in law, medicine, editing/journalism, and business, as well as graduate studies in both linguistics and literature.

Spanish majors who choose electives in literature and culture will also be able to demonstrate knowledge of current issues and perspectives in literary and cultural studies in Spanish and the basic body of works in Spanish literature and culture; critically analyze verbal and visual texts; demonstrate familiarity with a range of cultural works from different time periods and geographical regions within the Spanish-speaking world and with the historical phenomena and sociocultural issues that these works negotiate. The top 15 percent of majors will be prepared for acceptance to graduate programs in Spanish.

Portuguese majors will also be able to demonstrate knowledge of current issues and perspectives in literary and cultural studies in Portuguese and the basic body of works in Luso-Brazilian literature and culture; critically analyze verbal and visual texts; demonstrate familiarity with a range of cultural works from different time periods and geographical regions within the Portuguese-speaking world and with the historical phenomena and sociocultural issues that these works negotiate. The top 15 percent of majors will be prepared for acceptance to graduate programs in Portuguese.

Minors in Spanish or Portuguese will be able to demonstrate a level of language proficiency that allows basic conversations on a variety of uncomplicated topics, with basic command of the language, and some spontaneous creative ability; and basic familiarity with the main cultural, literary, and linguistic issues of the Hispanic or Luso-Brazilian world.