UMass-Boston
Hispanic Studies Program / Latin American Studies Program
The Department of Hispanic Studies /Latin American Studies
The Hispanic Studies Department offers courses in Spanish and Portuguese and in the literatures and cultures of Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. The Department offers students a number of academic options, such as a major or minor in Spanish, courses leading to advanced proficiency in the languages, a program of study in Spanish-English translation, a certificate in Spanish/English Court Interpretation, and an interdisciplinary concentration in Latin American Studies.The Department's rich academic program reflects the composition of its faculty, which includes historians of literature and art, theoretical and applied linguists, and social scientists. The faculty are committed to bringing into the classroom their knowledge and research experience in their respective fields and offering students a solidly grounded yet innovative curriculum centered on the most significant features of the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking worlds.
What you Can Do With It
Given the growing populations of Spanish and Portuguese speakers in the Commonwealth, proficiency in those languages is a decided advantage in the marketplace. Graduates of our program have pursued various career paths and currently occupy an array of professional positions. A number have entered graduate programs in the field and became university professors; many are language teachers in private and public schools; others have found employment as interpreters and translators; still others have used their proficiency in the language to work effectively in institutions such as public sector agencies, banks, software companies, international corporations, and publishing houses.
Where Are Our Graduates Now?
Some of our alumni have stayed to work in the region. After finishing law school, an alumna now has her own practice specializing in labor and immigration law. Another directs a community-based mortgage lending company that assists minority populations in becoming homeowners. Those who have pursued PhDs are now teaching at various universities throughout the country, including UMB. Our graduates also teach in a number of public schools in the Boston metropolitan area, serve as interpreters in local courts and hospitals, and work on behalf of the community in various professional capacities.
Facilities and Resources
Students may take advantage of the University's free access to the Internet, which may be used to retrieve authentic and varied cultural information from throughout the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world, establish electronic connections with students world-wide, and participate in culturally enriching and linguistically enhancing electronic discussion groups. In the University's Language Lab, students can find interesting audio and video resources and equipment to assist them in learning a foreign language as well as instructive and entertaining computer programs designed to reinforce classroom instruction. Through the office of Film Services, they may view culturally significant Spanish and Portuguese-language films.
Major/Minor in Spanish
If you choose to major in Spanish, you will need to complete 30 credits or 10 courses from our advanced offerings, (Spanish 281 and above) all of which are conducted in Spanish. All majors are required to take two survey courses, either in literature or in civilization, one focused on Spain and the other on Latin America. Majors also have to complete one advanced language course above Spanish 281. Majors may choose either a literature or a language track, in which they will take at least five of their ten courses; the remaining two courses may be taken in any area offered by the Department. Major s must complete at least five major courses on campus.Spanish majors who participate in the Latin American Studies Program, the Linguistics Program or the Teaching Preparation Program may, with departmental approval, substitute two courses taken in those programs for two Spanish courses as upper level electives.
Minors are required to take five advanced courses, which must include one course in Spanish literature or civilization, one in Latin American literature or civilization, one advanced language course, and two electives from our list of advanced offerings.
Minors must take three of their five required courses at UMB.
Latin American Studies Concentration and Major
An interdisciplinary program, Latin American Studies offers a general and comprehensive consideration of the historical, economic, cultural, political, and anthropological currents of Latin America and a overview of the living conditions of the millions of Hispanics living in the United States. It also provides students with the opportunity to immerse themselves in the mores and culture of Latin America. Sophomore standing is required for admission into the program.LAS Concentration. A concentrator must complete one 100-level LAS course; four elective courses from a long list of courses focused on Latin America taught by faculty from departments such as Economics, Political Science, History, Anthropology and Hispanic Studies; and a 400-level pro-seminar.
LAS Major. Students may major in Latin American Studies through the Individual Majors Program. In close collaboration with a faculty advisor, students develop an individual program of interdisciplinary study focused on Latin America and emphasizing their own areas of interest and professional goals
The Latin America Studies Program prepares students for jobs in government and private and public agencies and provides a solid foundation for graduate study.
Honors and Awards
The Department recognizes outstanding academic achievement in a number of ways. Students may opt to write an honors thesis, which, when successfully completed, results in the award of honors upon graduation.Hispanic Studies and Latin American Studies also offer separate annual book prizes to students with the highest grade point average in their class.
Spanish majors are also eligible for the Mara Luisa Osorio Prize, awarded annually to a graduating senior with a record of outstanding academic achievement and demonstrated interest in the study of the role of women in the Spanish-speaking world.
Rewarding academic achievement and social activism is also the aim of the Susan C. Schneider Memorial Prize, a cash award given every few years to a an exceptional Latin American Studies concentrator.
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Further Information
For information on applying to UMass Boston, please visit UMB's admissions page.If you have questions or would like to receive UMass Boston application materials, please write, email or call:
Enrollment Services
University of Massachusetts Boston
100 Morrissey Boulevard
Boston, MA 02125-3393Tel: 617 287-6000
(TTY/TDD: 617 287-6010)
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The University of Massachusetts Boston
UMass Boston, part of the five-member University of Massachusetts system, is an urban public university. Large enough to offer a broad range of academic choices, UMass Boston is also small en ough to maintain a closeness of community. Its modern Harbor Campus, three miles from downtown, is situated on a peninsula surrounded by Boston Harbor and Dorchester Bay. The campus houses research and teaching laboratories , a greenhouse, two theaters, an art gallery, an observatory, intramural and intercollegiate athletic facilities, ext ensive computer resources, and the Healey Library. Concerts, lectures, and plays on campus offer additional opportunities for a rich and satisfying student life, and the extensive cultural resources of Boston are nearby.
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University of Massachusetts Boston
Margaret Fitzgerald, Department Administrator,
Department of Hispanic Studies
McCormick Building, 4th Floor, Room 618
100 Morrissey Blvd.
Boston, MA 02125-3393Telephone:........ (617) 287-7550
E-mail:............. margaret.fitzgerald@umb.edu
Comments Last updated
December 8, 2004
