Major

A minimum of eight units exclusive of 101-102 and 201-202 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 towards the major must be taken at Wellesley. SPAN 350, 360, and 370 count towards the major, but normally do not fulfill the two 300-level courses requirement. One course in Portuguese taken at Wellesley at the 203-level or above may be counted toward the major in Spanish.

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 and / or SPAN 242. Qualified students may begin the major at a higher level.

- Breadth: coursework focused on Spain as well as offerings focused on the Americas.

- Depth: two units in which a student concentrates on a special field of their 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.

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

While the department revises guidelines for Honors Theses (as part of our preparation for the External Visiting Committee in the Fall of 2024), the following can be used as a general timeline for honors theses in Spanish. 

To be admitted to the thesis program, a student must apply during her sophomore year and have a grade point average of at least 3.75 in all work above the 100 level and be approved by the department. A student with a GPA in courses being counted toward the major of between 3.5 and 3.75 can petition the department for approval (via the proposed thesis advisor and the chair).

Normally during the senior year, the student enrolls in SPAN 360 in the fall. In order to register, the student will have to receive permission from the chair (who communicates this approval directly to the Registrar). By the end of the fall semester, it is expected that students present work in progress to a subcommittee of the Department (normally three faculty, including the chair). If approved to continue, the chair notifies the Registrar that the student can enroll in SPAN for the spring semester. If determined best that the project not continue, SPAN 360 is converted to SPAN 350.

Specifics regarding the presentation of the final text in the spring and general College guidelines for theses are found here. Samples of projects from the past are available on this website. 

Wellesley Teacher Scholars Program: Teacher Certification/Licensure

Latin American Studies: An Interdepartmental Major
 

Students are referred to the Latin American Studies Interdepartmental Program Page for further information.