Offered at: San Luis Obispo Campus
Students with majors and minors in World Languages and Cultures have been successful in careers in education, international business, non-profit agencies, the viticulture industry, software and Internet-related services, and government. Others have attended graduate and professional schools in various fields, including languages, literatures, and cultures, applied linguistics, international business, translation and interpretation, education, psychology, law, and medicine. Our graduates have also been selected to teach in secondary schools in Spain (North American Language and Culture Assistants) and France (Teaching Assistant Program in France). In collaboration with the Cal Poly School of Education, we also prepare students for the California single-subject World Languages Teaching Credential. Finally, we work closely with our students to integrate junior- or senior-level education abroad experiences, internships or service-learning experiences in the U.S. or another country, or equivalent professional-level hands-on experiences (with departmental approval) as part of their total capstone experience.
Program Learning Objectives
- Learn to communicate effectively in Spanish and other target languages through speaking, listening, reading, and writing in authentic situations.
- Develop communicative and intercultural competency so that they can work productively both as individuals and in collaboration with others.
- Gain perspective on cultural and historical achievements in the target-language cultures as well as on relevant issues of diversity.
- Cultivate awareness of ethical and professional perspectives that reflect linguistic and cultural heritage.
- Think critically and creatively using Spanish and other target languages and negotiate meaning between the target language(s) and English.
- Develop the life-long ability to evaluate ways in which language and culture provide perspective on the larger world of the arts, sciences, and technology.
Degree Requirements and Curriculum
In addition to the program requirements listed on this page, students must also satisfy requirements outlined in more detail in the Minimum Requirements for Graduation section of this catalog, including:
- 40 units of upper-division courses
- 2.0 GPA
- Graduation Writing Requirements (GWR)
- U.S. Cultural Pluralism (USCP)
Note: No Major or Support courses may be selected as credit/no credit. In addition, no more than 12 units of cooperative or internship courses can count towards your degree requirements.
| Code | Title | Units |
|---|---|---|
| MAJOR COURSES | ||
| SPAN 2201 | Intermediate Spanish I (3B) 1 | 4 |
| SPAN 2202 | Intermediate Spanish II | 4 |
| or SPAN 2206 | Spanish for Heritage Speakers | |
| SPAN 2207 | Introduction to Spanish Linguistics | 3 |
| SPAN 2233 | Introduction to Hispanic Literature | 3 |
| SPAN 3301 | Advanced Writing in Spanish | 3 |
| SPAN 3302 | Spanish Conversation, Composition, and Advocacy | 3 |
| Spanish 3000-level Courses | ||
| Select from the following: | 12 | |
| Introduction to English-Spanish Translation | ||
| Literary Works in Spanish 2 | ||
| Spanish and Latin American Film 2 | ||
| Chicanx/Latinx Works in Spanish 2 | ||
| Spanish for the Professions 2 | ||
| Spanish 4000-level Courses | ||
| Select from the following: | 6 | |
| Advanced Spanish Applied Linguistics 2 | ||
| Advanced Literary Studies in Spanish 2 | ||
| Don Quijote | ||
| Special Advanced Topics 2 | ||
| Capstone Courses | ||
| WLC 3360 | Research Methods in World Languages and Cultures | 3 |
| WLC 4460 | Senior Project | 3 |
| Approved Language/Culture Electives (3000-4000 level) | ||
| Select from the following: 3 | 9 | |
| Indigenous South Americans | ||
| Human Cultural Adaptations | ||
| Culture and Health | ||
| Indigenous North Americans | ||
| Topics in Architectural History, Theory, and Criticism | ||
| Nineteenth Century Art of Europe and the United States | ||
| Design History | ||
| Themes in Renaissance Art | ||
| International and Cross Cultural Management | ||
| Group Performance of Literature | ||
| Intercultural Communication | ||
| Intergroup Communication | ||
| Gender and Communication | ||
| Cultural Influence on Dance in the United States | ||
| International Trade Theory | ||
| Foundations of Bilingual Education and Biliteracy Instruction | ||
| Writing With Style | ||
| Multiethnic Literature of the U.S. | ||
| The Linguistic Structure of Modern English | ||
| Applied Linguistics | ||
| Topics in Transatlantic and/or World Literature | ||
| Topics in Applied Language Study | ||
| Themes in Literature and Culture | ||
| Theories of Language Learning and Teaching | ||
| Approaches to Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages | ||
| Practicum in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages | ||
| Chicana/o/x Non-Fiction Literature | ||
| Chinese American Experiences | ||
| Cultural Production and Ethnicity | ||
| Indigeneity and the Land | ||
| Critical Race Theory | ||
| French Literature in English Translation 5 | ||
| Special Advanced Topics 2 | ||
| Global Geography | ||
| The Global Environment | ||
| Geography of Latin America | ||
| Geography of the Caribbean | ||
| German Literature in English Translation | ||
| Special Advanced Topics 2 | ||
| The Witch-Hunts in Europe: 1400-1800 | ||
| East Asian Cultures and Civilizations | ||
| Modern Middle East | ||
| Modern East Asia | ||
| A Cultural History of Southeast Asia | ||
| Modern Europe: 1789-1914 | ||
| Modern Europe since 1914 | ||
| Colonial Latin America | ||
| Modern Latin America | ||
| Modern Japan | ||
| Modern China | ||
| History through Film | ||
| Nazi Germany | ||
| Storytelling: Modern Applications of Traditional Narrative | ||
| Medieval Philosophy | ||
| Early Modern Rationalism | ||
| Kant and 19th Century European Philosophy | ||
| Feminist Ethics, Gender, Sexuality and Society | ||
| Aesthetics | ||
| Indian Philosophy | ||
| Chinese and East Asian Philosophy | ||
| Philosophy of Language | ||
| Politics of Race, Class, Gender, and Sexuality in the U.S. | ||
| Global Political Issues | ||
| Intergroup Dialogues | ||
| Topics in Multicultural Psychology | ||
| Multicultural Psychology | ||
| Learning and Memory | ||
| Cross-Cultural International Psychology | ||
| Judaism | ||
| Hinduism | ||
| Buddhism | ||
| Christianity | ||
| Islam | ||
| Religion, Gender, and Society | ||
| Sociology of Gender and Sexuality | ||
| Global Race and Ethnic Relations | ||
| Migration | ||
| Introduction to English-Spanish Translation | ||
| Literary Works in Spanish 2 | ||
| Spanish and Latin American Film 2 | ||
| Chicanx/Latinx Works in Spanish 2 | ||
| Hispanic Literature in English Translation 2 | ||
| Chicanx/Latinx Works in English 2 | ||
| Spanish for the Professions 2 | ||
| Advanced Spanish Applied Linguistics 2 | ||
| Advanced Literary Studies in Spanish 2 | ||
| Don Quijote | ||
| Special Advanced Topics 5 | ||
| Global Theatre and Performance | ||
| Intersectional Feminist Art Histories | ||
| Gender, Race, Culture, Science, and Technology | ||
| Feminist Theory | ||
| World Cultures through Film 2 | ||
| Humanities in World Cultures 2 | ||
| Humanities in Chicanx/Latinx Cultures | ||
| Cultures of Spain: Activities | ||
| Critical Issues in Latin American Studies 2 | ||
| Literatures in World Cultures 2 | ||
| Language, Technology and Society | ||
| Teaching Languages Other Than English in Secondary Schools | ||
| Latin American Studies Internship | ||
| Special Advanced Topics 2 | ||
| GENERAL EDUCATION (GE) | ||
| (See GE program requirements below) | 40 | |
| FREE ELECTIVE | ||
| Free Electives 4 | 27 | |
| Total Units | 120 | |
- 1
Required in Major or Support; also satisfies General Education (GE) requirement.
- 2
Credit may be earned more than once when course is taken with different subtitles or topics.
- 3
Courses from this list may not be double-counted in the major. Repeatable courses may be applied when taken with different subtopics.
- 4
If a General Education (GE) course is used to satisfy a Major or Support requirement, additional units of Free Electives may be needed to complete the total units required for the degree.
General Education (GE) Requirements
- 43 units required, 3 of which are specified in Major and/or Support.
- If any of the remaining 40 Units is used to satisfy a Major or Support requirement, additional units of Free Electives may be needed to complete the total units required for the degree.
- See the complete GE course listing.
- A grade of C- or better is required in one course in each of the following GE Areas: 1A (English Composition), 1B (Critical Thinking), 1C (Oral Communication), and 2 (Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning).
| Lower-Division General Education | ||
| Area 1 | English Communication and Critical Thinking | |
| 1A | Written Communication | 3 |
| 1B | Critical Thinking | 3 |
| 1C | Oral Communication | 3 |
| Area 2 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning | |
| 2 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning | 3 |
| Area 3 | Arts and Humanities | |
| 3A | Arts | 3 |
| 3B | Humanities: Literature, Philosophy, Languages other than English (3 units in Major) 1 | 0 |
| Area 4 | Social and Behavioral Sciences (Area 4 courses must come from at least two different course prefixes.) | |
| 4A | American Institutions (Title 5, Section 40404 Requirement) | 3 |
| 4B | Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3 |
| Area 5 | Physical and Life Sciences | |
| 5A | Physical Sciences | 3 |
| 5B | Life Sciences | 3 |
| 5C | Laboratory (may be embedded in a 5A or 5B course) | 1 |
| Area 6 | Ethnic Studies | |
| 6 | Ethnic Studies | 3 |
| Upper-Division General Education | ||
| Upper-Division 2/5 | Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning or Physical and Life Sciences | 3 |
| Upper-Division 3 | Arts and Humanities | 3 |
| Upper-Division 4 | Social and Behavioral Sciences (Area 4 courses must come from at least two different course prefixes.) | 3 |
| Total Units | 40 | |
- 1
Required in Major or Support; also satisfies General Education (GE) requirement.