Printer-friendly versionPreparation. High school students who have taken courses in economics, history, political science, or other approaches to international affairs, or who have participated in extracurricular activities (such as the Oregon High School International Relations League) may be interested in Latin American studies.
Community college students who have taken courses in international relations may be interested in specializing in Latin American studies.
Careers. Career opportunities for students completing Latin American studies are available through such avenues as the Peace Corps, the U.S. Foreign Service (including the Information Agency), the foreign-aid programs of the United States government, the United Nations and other international organizations, private foundations, international businesses, and international nongovernmental organizations (including church, human-rights, and environmental organizations).
Major Requirements
The major in LAS requires a minimum of 48 credits, passed with grades of C– or better or P, distributed as follows:
| Required Courses | credits |
| Introduction to Latin American Studies (LAS 200) | 4 |
| Latin American Humanities (LAS 211) or Latin American Social Sciences (LAS 212) | 4 |
| Survey of Spanish American Literature (SPAN 318, 319) | 8 |
| Two from Latin America (HIST 380, 381, 382) | 8 |
| Seminar (LAS 407); in exceptional cases, LAS 407 may be subsitituted with an equivalent seminar focusing on Latin America that is offered by another department or program | 4 |
Elective Courses related to Latin America (20 credits)
Of the total 48 credits required for the Latin American studies major,
- No more than 16 credits may be taken in a single department
- No more than 12 credits may be in lower-division courses
- At least 28 credits must be taken on the Eugene campus
- A maximum of 8 credits may be used in independent studies or internships
- At least 8 credits must be taken in courses covering the pre-1800 period
- As many as 16 credits may be from courses related to Latino studies or studies of Hispanics in the United States
- No more than 8 credits may be taken pass/no pass (P/N)
- At least 8 credits must be taken in social sciences departments other than history (e.g., anthropology, economics, ethnic studies, geography, international studies, political science, or sociology)
- Students are strongly encouraged to study in (or enroll in an internship in) a Latin American country at least for one term
Language Requirements. In addition to the minimum of 48 credits in required and elective courses, all majors are required to demonstrate a third-year level of proficiency in Spanish or Portuguese. This will entail completing (with a grade of C– or better or P) the basic two years of college-level language courses and taking at least four 300-level courses taught in the respective foreign language (such as SPAN 301, 303, 305, 318, or 319).
Minor Requirements
Students who want to earn a minor in Latin American studies must satisfy the following requirements.
Language
Students must satisfactorily complete, with grades of C– or better or P, two years of college-level Spanish- or Portuguese-language courses.
Language credits may be earned at the University of Oregon through an approved overseas program or transferred from another accredited college or university. As an alternative, students may satisfy the language requirement by examination, demonstrating a level of competence equivalent to two years of college-level Spanish or Portuguese. Students whose native language is either Spanish or Portuguese may substitute equivalent competence in English in lieu of this requirement.
Credits
In addition to the language requirement, students must satisfactorily complete, with grades of C– or better or P, 28 credits of course work in Latin American studies; 8 of those credits must be completed in courses with the LAS subject code. Latin American courses typically have a minimum of 50 percent of content related to Latin America.
Required Courses (8 credits). Introduction to Latin American Studies (LAS 200) and one from Latin American Humanities (LAS 211), Latin American Social Sciences (LAS 212), or Seminar (LAS 407).
Additional Requirements
- A minimum of 20 credits must be earned in University of Oregon courses; the other 8 credits may be earned through successful completion of preapproved courses in an overseas program at an accredited Latin American college or university. Transfer credits from universities outside Latin America are considered individually, following existing procedures in appropriate departments for determining their equivalence to UO courses
- A minimum of 20 credits must be in upper-division (300- or 400-level) courses
- A minimum of 20 credits must be taken for letter grades
- A minimum of 4 credits must be earned through completion of a course or courses whose focus is on pre-20th-century Latin America
- A maximum of 4 credits can be in comparative, global, ethnic, and similar courses that are relevant to Latin American studies but lack a minimum of 50 percent content directly related to Latin America
- No more than 12 credits from any one department can count toward the minor
- Courses from no more than four departments, disciplines, or programs can count toward the minor
In Spanish, only upper-division literature and culture courses count toward satisfaction of the 28-credit requirement.
Advising
Students who want a major or a minor in Latin American studies should frequently consult a Latin American studies advisor to determine which courses offered during any given academic year may be applied to requirements for the degree or minor.
Sampling of Courses from Other Departments that Satisfy Major and Minor Requirements
Seminar (407), offered by any department or program, that focuses on Latin America
Anthropology. Native Central Americans (ANTH 433), Native South Americans (ANTH 434)
History. Latin America (HIST 380, 381, 382), Latin America’s Indian Peoples (HIST 482), Latin America (HIST 483)
Political Science. Mexican Politics (PS 255), Government and Politics of Latin America I (PS 463)
Spanish. Survey of Spanish American Literature (SPAN 318, 319), Hispanic Literature in the United States (SPAN 328), Colonial Latin American Literature (SPAN 450), 20th-Century Latin American Literature (SPAN 490)
Periodically, other departments and programs such as ethnic studies, geography, history of art and architecture, international studies, sociology, and women’s and gender studies offer courses that may satisfy degree and minor requirements.