GRADUATE STUDIES
Graduate Degrees Offered
Duration of the program
It is expected that the M.A. program will take two years to complete and that students will complete their M.A. Comprehensive Examinations during their fourth semester of the program.
Financial aid and Teaching Assistantships
A high percentage of the Department’s graduate students receive financial assistance.
Teaching Assistantships in Spanish are available to candidates on a competitive basis. The award includes a stipend and an 18 credit tuition scholarship. Please check with the Graduate School Office for the current amount of the stipend and for the application forms.
Teaching/Course load for teaching assistants
The normal teaching load for graduate teaching assistants (M.A. students) is two sections of Elementary Spanish (SPAN 1001, 1002 or 1003) each semester. These are four credit courses which meet four times a week for 50 minute periods, unless it is a night section which only meets twice a week. At times, teaching assistants are also given the opportunity to teach an intermediate level course (SPAN 2001 or 2002) which is a three credit course that meets three times a week. Graduate students are permitted to carry up to nine credit hours per semester (three classes) toward the completion of their course work requirements.
Teaching assistants are required to take SPAN 6000: Teaching College Spanish (3 sem. hrs.) during the first fall semester of their assistantship.
As stated in the Graduate Bulletin –Outside work is not allowed without the written permission of the student’s adviser and the Graduate School. Teaching Assistants are strongly discouraged from seeking outside employment. If a student is experiencing financial hardship and must seek additional work, the student must receive written permission from the Director of Graduate Studies and the Graduate School. Under no circumstances will teaching assignments accommodate additional outside employment.
Master of Arts (M.A.) degree requirements
Students may pursue a Plan B course of study.
Plan B students are required to complete 30 credit hours of course work. A thesis is not required.
General Master's Requirements
Course Work for M.A.
At least half of the student’s work as a graduate student must be in courses numbered 6000 and above. M.A. students are required to complete a total of 30 credit hours with one 5000 level (undergraduate course for graduate credit) or 6000 graduate level course in each of the six areas listed below. The remaining 12 credits are to be chosen from the courses offered in each area and subfield on which the student decides to be tested for the M.A. comprehensive examination.
Early Spanish LiteratureSubfields:
- Medieval Spanish Literature
- Golden Age Spanish Literature
Modern and Contemporary Peninsular Spanish Literature
Subfields:
- 18th and 19th Century Spanish Literature
- 20th and 21st Century Spanish Literature
Early Spanish-American Literature
Subfields:
- 15th to 17th Centuries: Pre-Columbian to Baroque Period
- 18th and 19th Century Spanish-American Literature
Modern and Contemporary Spanish-American Literature
Subfields:
- Modernismo and Vanguardismo (1886-1940)
- Boom to 21st Century (1940-today)
Subfields:
- Second Language Acquisition and Pedagogy
- Synchronic Linguistics
- Diachronic Linguistics
Subfields:
- Peninsular Spanish Culture and Cinematography
- Spanish-American Culture and Cinematography
- U .S. Latino(a) Literature, Culture and Cinematography
Note: A course may not be used to fulfill more than one area of study. Depending on the topic, SPAN 6930: Special Topics in Spanish Language, Culture and Literature may be repeated, and can be used to fulfill the appropriate area of study. All 5000-level courses will require additional work at the graduate level, such as: readings, writing assignments, and oral presentations.
Comprehensive Examinations
Candidates for the Master of Arts degree must pass written and oral comprehensive examinations based on the material covered in the student’s course work and the master’s reading list to complete the program.
The oral portion of the comprehensive examination for the M.A. will take place approximately one week following the written exam. The student will be asked to elaborate upon, clarify and/or correct information given in the written exam. No new material will be introduced during this session. The student’s overall performance will not be evaluated until after this session.
