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WELCOME |
Spanish at Cornell boasts a highly recognized faculty in both Spanish American and Peninsular literatures and cultures, making it one of the top programs in the nation in terms of both teaching and research excellence .
We are housed in the oldest department building on campus, Morrill Hall. Faculty with expertise in Spanish can be found not only here, however, but also in many other departments and programs, from City and Regional Planning, to International Agriculture, to Visual Studies. The range of faculty interests and departmental activities is enormous, allowing students to design their own personalized curricula after a few core requirements are met. Many of our students and faculty enjoy a privileged relation with colleagues in History, Anthropology, Art History, Near Eastern Studies, or Comparative Literature (to name a few related areas of study within the College of Arts and Sciences), as well as the Latin American Studies Program and the Latino Studies Program.
Other units at Cornell committed to supporting the work of advanced students in Spanish are the Institute for European Studies and several of the Language Houses.
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MAJOR |
Inquiries of a general nature may first be directed to the Undergraduate Assistant, Cal Hile.
Students who wish to major in Spanish are advised to fill out and print the worksheet for the major and make an appointment to review it with
the Director of Undergraduate Studies, Professor Simone Pinet ,
in Morrill Hall 313. She will take into account the student's interest,
preparation, and career goals and she will assign the student to an adviser.
After achieving proficiency in Spanish, students typically test their interest in the field with classes such as:
• Advanced conversation and composition courses (SPAN 3100, 3110).
• Spanish or Latin American literature survey courses (SPAN 2140, 2150).
THE MAJOR AND THE MINOR IN SPANISH
Courses in Portuguese language and culture may count for the major and the minor in Spanish. Please consult with the DUS. Please note that while 2190 is the course that you must complete to enter the major or minor, neither 2190 nor 2090 may count as electives since they are not advanced courses.
THE MAJOR
Fulfilling the five core courses and 15 credits of elective courses with a grade of B- or higher completes the major. They may all be taken concurrently and do not have to be taken in any particular order. We strongly recommend taking the elective courses in Romance Studies, but you can also choose to take them elsewhere in the University. One of these electives must be a course taught in Spanish in the Department of Romance Studies.
Core courses
The core courses are one language course, three literature/culture survey courses, and one Senior Seminar (designated as such every semester).
Language course:
3110 Advanced Writing Workshop
Survey courses:
2140 Modern Spanish Survey
2150 Contemporary Latin American Survey
2170 Early Modern Iberia Survey
Senior Seminar: Changes every semester, usually alternating a Peninsular topic with a Latin American one, an early modern with a contemporary. Check the catalog to find out what these will be for each academic year.
Electives
15 credits of courses on the literatures, cultures, visual arts, politics, economics, etc. of Iberia, Latin America, the Caribbean, Portuguese, or U.S. Latino. These courses range from the 2000 Perspectives courses to 4000-level seminars. They may be taken in our department or anywhere at Cornell. At least one of these elective courses must be taken in Spanish in the Department of Romance Studies. Departments and Programs that typically offer courses that also count as electives for our major are Government, History of Art, Near Eastern Studies, Economics, History, Latino Studies and LASP. Two Senior Seminars (4 credits) are offered every year in our program. Majors must take either of these in their last year. The Senior Seminar counts as 4 of the 15 elective credits majors must take.
Senior Seminar
Two Senior Seminars (4 credits) are offered every year in our program. Majors must take one of these in their final year.
DIAGRAM FOR THE MAJOR
LANGUAGE COURSE > SURVEYS + ELECTIVES > MAJOR
(3110) (2140+2150+2170) (Senior Seminar+15credits)
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THE MINOR
Students can obtain a minor by taking five courses (15 credits) with a grade of B- or higher. One of these must be an advanced language course, and another must be a Perspectives course. The other three are elective courses, of which one must be taken in Romance Studies. At least two of these five courses should be taken at Cornell.
Please fill out an application, here: Spanish Minor Registration form
Advanced language courses:
SPAN 3100 Advanced Spanish Conversation
SPAN 3110 Advanced Spanish Writing Workshop
Perspectives courses:
SPAN 2200 Perspectives on Latin America
SPAN 2230 Perspectives on Spain
SPAN 2240 Perspectives on the Caribbean
PORT 2800 Perspectives on Brazil
DIAGRAM FOR THE MINOR
1 ADVANCED LANGUAGE COURSE > 1 PERSPECTIVES COURSE + 3 ELECTIVES > MINOR
(3100 or 3110) (2200 or 2230 or 2240 or 2800)
STUDY ABROAD
Students who choose to study abroad should know that, in order to receive credit, Cornell must approve their program (if it is a Cornell-run program, courses are pre-approved). In any case, ONLY THREE courses taken abroad may count for the major, and ONLY TWO for the minor. In no case can a core course be substituted/taken abroad. Students who go abroad for the entire academic year, however, can substitute core courses in consultation with the DUS. In any case, students who wish to go abroad MUST consult with their advisor and the DUS on credit for courses taken there.
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HONORS |
Superior students who wish to undertake a guided research project are encouraged to do an honors thesis in the area of their choice during Fall and Spring of their senior year. Students select a member of the Spanish faculty to direct the writing of the essay on the research topic of their choice.
Guidelines for Senior Honors Thesis Spanish Majors:
Students wishing to write an honors thesis should have a GPA of at least 3.0 in all subjects and 3.3 in the Spanish major.
The honors thesis allows the student to synthesize readings and perspectives acquired during the course of an undergraduate education. The thesis topic should extend the student's work already begun in a course or a sequence of courses taken before the senior year.
Students should consult with the Honors Program Supervisor late in the Spring of their junior year, or very early in the Fall of their senior year if they are considering enrolling in the year-long honors thesis course. Among other things, the Honors Program Supervisor can provide them with a list of potential faculty supervisors.
Only a faculty member in Romance Studies may approve the topic and supervise the thesis. For students engaged in interdisciplinary work, co-supervisors are strongly encouraged. It is the responsibility of the student to identify and contact potential co-supervisors outside the Department of Romance Studies. Experience suggests that supervision works best when the student has already taken a course from the faculty member and knows his/her expectations and approach. The nature and extent of contact between the student and the supervisor depend upon mutual agreement. If possible, the Honors Program Supervisor will from time to time call a meeting of all seniors doing honors theses to allow students to share ideas about their work.
An honors thesis may take many forms, mutually agreed upon by the student and the supervisor. In one common scenario, the student will write an essay of approximately fifty pages in length, drafted and revised in a series of carefully planned stages. Timetables may vary, but the following deadlines have proved useful to other students in the past: September 15, outline; October 15, bibliography; November 15, first chapter or subdivision; February 15, second chapter or subdivision; March 15, third chapter or subdivision; April 15, completed first draft.
Honors theses are normally written in Spanish. Exceptions can be made on a case-by-case basis.
Projects will be read by a second faculty member (which could be the co-supervisor), selected by the student in consultation with the supervisor and the Honors Program Supervisor. The second reader may belong to a department other than Romance Studies. The supervisor and the second reader will determine the final grade and the level of honors. All students receive a grade of "R" for the first semester's work.
The final version of the thesis must be submitted to the supervisor and the second reader by May 1. A copy of the final version of the thesis should also be handed in to the department for their archives. No flexibility with regard to the May 1 deadline is possible, because of strict university regulations for submission of grades and honor designations.
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STUDY ABROAD |
All Spanish majors are strongly encouraged to study abroad, and popular ways to do so include the semester or year in Spain program at the University of Seville, or the Summer program in Bolivia. Other students study abroad through other recognized programs in such attractive locations as Barcelona, Madrid, Buenos Aires, Lima, or Quito. Course work completed in Spanish literature, linguistics, history, and art is given credit toward the major after it has been approved by both your Spanish adviser and the Director of Undergraduate Studies. If you plan ahead your semester or year abroad and know exactly what course you need and wish to take abroad, you can get this approval before you leave for Spain.
Spain Program: The Seville program is co-sponsored by Cornell, The University of Michigan, and the University of Pennsylvania. Students enrolled in this program spend the first three weeks in a residential college located on the campus of the University of Madrid, where they take a course in Spanish language and contemporary society and take advantage of special lectures and field trips in Madrid and Castile. The program then moves to Seville, where students enroll in as many courses at the University as their language competency and interests permit. These courses are supplemented by courses designed especially for the program by Seville faculty as well as a seminar offered by the resident director, who is chosen from the faculty of Cornell, Michigan, or the University of Pennsylvania. In Seville students live with selected families, or, in a few cases, in the colegios mayores.
Bolivia Program: The Summer program in Cochabamba, Bolivia is sponsored by the Latin American Studies Program and accepts both undergraduate and graduate students. Students live with Bolivian families and normally take two courses with Cornell faculty who participate in this program. In addition to course work in Bolivian culture, politics, and social movements, the program features the opportunity to do intensive study in Quechua--the native language spoken by many Bolivians--as well as Spanish, and to participate in research and internships with grass-roots communities, government offices, and businesses.
Madrid Program: In this intensive six-week program you will immerse yourself in Spanish culture, significantly improve your language skills, and earn up to eight credits. You’ll use Spanish in and outside of the classroom, get to know and interact with native speakers, participate in site visits to museums and venues of historical importance, attend concerts and theater productions, and experience life in a European nation. In addition, this program will prepare you for early entry into a minor or major in Spanish.
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UNDERGRADUATE INTERESTS |
A Degree in Spanish: At Cornell and Beyond
Spanish majors typically pursue a second major in such departments as Government, Psychology, History, International Relations, and Economics. They often go on to do graduate work in Spanish or other related disciplines, teach in secondary schools, or enter into government, diplomacy, social agencies, and business corporations. Others work in publishing, hospitals, legal firms, and banks, where knowledge of Spanish is increasingly important both for tapping into local resources as well as developing global connections. Many of the Spanish majors combine their work in this field with professional training that prepares them for careers in law or medicine.
Click here for photos of the Seniors' Reception, 2010
Profiles of our graduates
Calie Santana (Arts 1998) came to Cornell from Carolina, Puerto Rico, and is the first person from her high school ever to go to Cornell. While in Ithaca, she did a double major in Spanish literature and the College Scholar program. Her curriculum included classes in Spanish literature, history, human biology, nutrition, anthropology, and biochemistry, and a semester abroad in Spain during her junior year. She also had the opportunity to get involved with Teatrotaller, the Spanish theater troupe on campus, and capped off her career by directing the production of the classic Golden Age play, La vida es sueño. She has recently completed her MD degree from Harvard Medical School (2002). Her emphasis is on public health, dealing with issues of access to health care and integrative models of care and prevention. She is especially interested in issues affecting minority communities and in HIV/AIDS.
Calie finds her major in Spanish gave her the opportunity to tap into research, analytical, and artistic abilities she did not even know she had. She says it was also a wonderful contrast to Chemistry 207-208 and all of the other science courses that dominated her curriculum.
Calie writes: "I wanted to pursue my interest in health in a way that took into account the cultural context of those affected by the diseases I was trying to understand. I dove into nutrition and social anthropology classes, but my literature classes allowed me to grasp important historical events, and the celebrated and anonymous players that made them possible. Most importantly, these works reminded me of the human component to every story, of the great pain and joy that lies behind every one of our experiences as human beings. There is no mistaking the connections between the chilling accounts I read in The Underdogs or Santa Evita and the health issues that have afflicted the countries that gave us Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz and Borges. It seemed to me that a good way to construct solutions to health problems was to learn more about the events, institutions, and traditions that facilitate them.... The communication skills and knowledge that I attained through my studies in the Romance Studies Department are an integral part of my daily life as a medical doctor. Indeed, my best learning comes when I am able to listen closely to a patient and read between the lines. A patient encounter is like opening One Hundred Years of Solitude for the first time--the patient narrates a complicated, somewhat circular story, and I have to try to understand how it affects them and decide how best to help them."
Nina Englander ( Arts 2002) graduated with an independent degree entitled Gender, Culture and Social Change in Latin America. Her undergraduate coursework included courses in Romance Studies, Anthropology, Latin American Studies, Women’s Studies, Government and City and Regional Planning. Nina spent a semester abroad in Ecuador, where she further explored anthropological field research and Latin American culture.
After graduation, Nina moved to Cochabamba, Bolivia for seven months, and continued to utilize her ability to speak Spanish as an intern at a human rights organization called the Andean Information Network (AIN). At AIN, Nina examined the impact of U.S. drug policy on peasant coca-growing families, interviewed human rights victims, and contributed to action alerts articles, press releases and Congressional letters in an effort to critique and change drug policy. Upon her return from Bolivia, Nina went on to work as editorial intern at The Nation magazine, a leading progressive political publication, in New York City. She wrote articles for The Nation magazine and its website, including a piece about human rights violations in Colombia and a review of two new studies of U.S. involvement in state repression regimes in South America. Currently, Nina is working as a legislative intern for New York State Assemblyman Vito Lopez, in Brooklyn. She regularly utilizes the ability to speak Spanish, as a significant portion of the legislative district population is Latino.
USEFUL LINKS|
Arts & Sciences Career Services
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