Spanish (SPAN) Major

Requirements for Spanish Major

 Bachelor of Arts in Arts and Sciences

System General Education Requirements*: 30

• Goal #1 Written Communication:
  ENGL 101
   , and
  ENGL 201
    Credits: 6
• Goal #2 Oral Communication:
  SPCM 101*
    Credits: 3
• Goal #3 Social Sciences/Diversity  Credits: 6
• Goal #4 Arts and Humanities/Diversity  Credits: 6
• Goal #5 Mathematics  Credits: 3
• Goal #6 Natural Sciences  Credits: 6

Institutional Graduation Requirements**: 5

• Goal #1 First Year Experience
    Credits: 2
• Goal #2 Cultural Awareness and Social and Environmental Responsibility
    Credits: 3

College Requirements: 2

Bachelor of Arts 

• Modern Languages* (completion and competency in one language at the 202 level or a department-approved advanced upper division language course) Credits: 3-14 *Included in the major
• Social Sciences  Credits: 2

See the College of Arts and Sciences  for additional information about Bachelor of Arts Specifications  and Bachelor of Science Specifications .

Major Requirements: 36

Required Courses: 12

• SPAN 201 - Intermediate Spanish I * **(COM)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 202 - Intermediate Spanish II * ** (COM)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 310 - Practical Language Skills
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 330 - Reading and Writing for Communication
    Credits: 3

Upper Division Electives: 24

• Specific distribution according to emphasis
• Must include at least 16 additional upper-division electives, for a minimum of at least 20 upper-division electives in the major
• May include up to 4 credits of 200-level classes.   

The following is a suggested sequence for the non-specified 24 major credits.

      Advanced Language/Linguistics Electives: 3-6*

• SPAN 308 - Spanish for the Health Professions
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 340 - Phonetics
    Credits: 3 Credits: 3
• SPAN 350 - Spanish for Business Communication (COM)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 443 - Linguistics
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 444 - Introduction to Translation
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 492 - Topics (COM)
    (if linguistics) Credits: 3
  *1 or more courses are required for the Humanities Emphasis
  *2 or more courses are required for the Professional Emphasis

      Literature and Culture Electives: 6-9*

• SPAN 355 - Introduction to Latin-American Literature I (COM)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 353 - Introduction to Spanish Literature I (COM)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 433 - Spanish Civilization and Culture (COM) (AW)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 435 - Latin American Civilization and Culture (AW)
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 476 - 19th and 20th Century Spain
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 484 - 19th and 20th Century Latin America
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 492 - Topics (COM)
    (if literature or culture) Credits: 3
  *3 or more courses are required for the Humanities Emphasis
  *2 or more courses are required for the Professional Emphasis

      Basic and Advanced Electives: 12*

• SPAN 211 - Intermediate Oral Practice I (COM)
    Credits: 2
• SPAN 212 - Intermediate Oral Practice II (COM)
    Credits: 2
• SPAN 296/396/496 - Field Experience
    Credits: 1-6
• SPAN 386 - Service Learning
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 415 - Extensive Reading in Spanish
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 437 - Topics in Film Studies
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 486 - Early Modern Spain
    Credits: 3
• SPAN 491 - Independent Study (COM)
    Credits: 3
  *12 or more credits from this section OR approved courses not already used to satisfy major requirements

General Electives: 44

Required Total Credits: 120

Notes

Major Coursework: A minimum grade of “C” is required for a Spanish course to count towards the major or minor. Major courses used to fulfill the Institutional requirements (IGRs) must be different from those taken to fulfill the General Education requirements (SGRs).

Placement: Students who have a background in modern language study before entering the University should take the Placement Examination to determine the appropriate course in which to enroll. Credit may be obtained for courses exempted upon completion of one course in the department, with a grade of “C” or better, and the payment of the established fee to the Academic Evaluation and Assessment Office. Please refer to Modern Language Credit under Academic Evaluation in the catalog for more detailed information.

Oral Proficiency Interview: An official Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) certified by the American Council in the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL) is required of all students majoring in Spanish. A minimum ranking of Intermediate Mid is required for all Spanish Majors and Intermediate High for majors with a teaching specialization.

Curriculum Notes

* The 30 credit Board of Regents System General Education Requirements (SGRs) must be completed as part of a student’s first 64 credits.

** South Dakota State University has a 5 credit Institutional Graduation Requirement (IGRs).

(G) Globalization Requirement.

(AW) Advanced Writing Requirement.

Students must take the proficiency examination after completing 48 credits. English 101, and a course in each of the General Education areas of social science, mathematics, natural science, and humanities and arts must be taken prior to taking this exam.