The Department of Romance Languages, Cultures, and Diasporas offers four majors and five minors.
Majors:
Minors:
Majors
Major in French
Students who major in French are expected to achieve advanced proficiency in oral and written French and to demonstrate a general understanding of the history of French and Francophone literatures and cultures. No more than 6 credit hours of AP or IB credit may count toward the 30 credit hours required for the major. Students may count up to 12 hours of pre-approved courses taken with our study abroad partner programs. All majors are strongly urged to spend a semester or a year studying abroad. Majors should consult their advisers about their choice of major courses each semester.
Major in Romance Languages, Cultures, and Diasporas
The major in Romance languages, cultures, and diasporas requires 33 credit hours. Students must demonstrate proficiency in two Romance languages.
Major in Spanish
The major in Spanish requires 30 credit hours in Spanish courses numbered 3301W and above. See the Undergraduate Catalog for information on applying study abroad, Maymester, or other experiences toward the requirements.
Major in Spanish and Portuguese
This major focuses on the two dominant languages of the Iberian Peninsula and Latin America and their literatures and cultures. The basic requirement for this major is a minimum of 33 credit hours in Spanish and Portuguese. A student who studies abroad may be able to substitute similar culture or literature courses with the permission of the director of undergraduate studies.
Minors
Minor in French
The minor in French require 18 credit hours. Students are encouraged to participate in a French study abroad program.
Minor in Italian Studies
Students who minor in Italian studies are expected to achieve intermediate proficiency in oral and written Italian, to demonstrate a general understanding of the history of Italian literatures and cultures, and to develop an awareness of the ways Italian studies intersects with other disciplines. The minor in Italian studies requires 15 credit hours of coursework.
Minor in Portuguese
The minor in Portuguese consists of a minimum of 15 credit hours.
Minor in Spanish
The minor in Spanish requires a minimum of 18 credit hours. See the Undergraduate Catalog for information on applying study abroad, Maymester, or other experiences toward requirements.
Minor in Spanish for the Professions
The minor in Spanish for the Professions requires a minimum of 18 credit hours. See the Undergraduate Catalog for information on applying study abroad, Maymester, or other experiences toward requirements.
Courses
To view a full listing of courses and descriptions, see the Undergraduate Course Catalog. For full descriptions of topics courses being offered each semester, please see YES.
See courses offered specifically by the Department of Romance Languages, Cultures, and Diasporas:
Language Placement
If you have prior language experience, please see the language placement guidelines for details on testing to help determine your course placement. Online placement tests are available for both French and Spanish languages. For placement guidance for other languages, consult with the director of undergraduate studies of that language.
Honors
French Honors
- All the requirements for the French major (30 credit hours).
- A 3.5 grade point average in courses that count toward the French major.
- Six credit hours of thesis credit under French 4998 and 4999 (Senior Honors Thesis), culminating in a written thesis.
- An oral examination on the thesis and its area in the last semester of the senior year.
A three-member Honors Committee will administer the program. Students must submit the name of the faculty adviser and the proposed thesis topic to this committee for approval during the second semester of the junior year. The committee will set guidelines for the thesis topic proposal, publish deadlines each year, and administer the oral examination.
To apply for the French Honors Program, submit the application to Nathalie Debrauwere-Miller.
Spanish Honors
Candidates for honors in Spanish who meet college and departmental requirements must complete 36 credit hours in Spanish courses numbered 3301W and above. Students satisfy the requirements of the Spanish major (30 credit hours), in which one of the required literature courses is either Spanish 4980: Undergraduate Seminar (3 credit hours), which may be taken during either the junior or senior year. If Spanish 4980 is not available, it may, with permission of the adviser to the Honors Program, be substituted by an “enriched” undergraduate literature course in which the instructor assigns outside research and a second or longer term paper.
The remaining 6 credit hours of the honors program consist of a senior honors thesis, which is completed during the senior year as independent study (Spanish 4998–4999) under the direction of a faculty adviser. Candidates must submit a proposal for the thesis to their prospective faculty adviser no later than the second semester of their junior year. The completed thesis must be submitted within the second semester of the senior year (deadlines are available from the department). An oral examination on the thesis and the general area of research, administered by a committee of the department, will follow.
To apply for the honors program and/or ask questions regarding the program, please contact the department’s director of undergraduate studies.
Declaring a Major or Minor
- Visit the University Registrar’s website.
- Click on “Major/Minor Declaration/Change.”
- Sign in and follow the prompts to select your major(s)/minor(s).
- Once you have completed all of the required documentation, click submit.
Once you have officially declared, you will hear from your faculty adviser as the registration period approaches to set up a meeting to discuss courses and lift the registration hold.