Bilingual and Bicultural Skills at Work


Never before has a demand for Spanish been higher in the national and global workforce. A minor in Spanish can provide a competitive advantage for job candidates in virtually any professional field. Whether you work in the United States or abroad, a solid foundation in Spanish can make you stand out in careers in business, health care, education, and social and government services.

Latinos have become the largest and fastest growing minority ethnic group in the United States, and the United States stands today alongside Mexico, Spain, Colombia and Argentina as one of the five largest Spanish-speaking countries in the world.

Successful students who complete the online minor in Spanish should attain American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages proficiency level of at least intermediate high in reading, writing, speaking and listening comprehension.

Students in the program will also acquire a broad functional understanding of the cultural and historical underpinnings of the Spanish-speaking world, through the courses in literature, culture and Latin American civilization.

 

Courses

Or one of the electives listed below (must meet prerequisites for electives)

 

Prerequisites

Students should have completed four recent semesters of elementary and intermediate Spanish, or equivalent by other means, before entering the Spanish Minor program.   A placement exam is available to admitted students on the Department of World Languages website.  These prerequisite courses are available through the Global Campus in a Self-Paced Online (correspondence), or in a semester-duration course format: Elementary Spanish I and II, and Intermediate Spanish I and II (SPAN 1003, 1013, 2003, 2013).   These courses should be completed one at a time, sequentially.

Students normally would complete the five courses required for the minor in a minimum of three semesters, following prerequisites. SPAN 3003 and SPAN 3103 can be taken one at a time or simultaneously. Students can then complete SPAN 3113 and 4003, either sequentially or simultaneously. Once students have completed SPAN 3113, they have the prerequisite to enroll in the final course in the minor, SPAN 4223.

 

Study Abroad

Students who are able to participate in the U of A summer study abroad programs in Madrid or in the Puebla, Mexico, service learning program (with options in business, healthcare, education or community service) may substitute those 6 study abroad credit hours for two of the required courses in the minor (normally not Intro to Literature nor Advanced Grammar).

For students in the online BA in Interdisciplinary Studies degree program or U of A degree-seeking students:

In order to add this minor, students must consult their advisers for their academic majors.