The Bachelor of Arts in Latin American Studies

Total Course Requirements for the Bachelor's Degree: 120 units

See Bachelor's Degree Requirements in the University Catalog for complete details on general degree requirements. A minimum of 40 units, including those required for the major, must be upper division.

A suggested Major Academic Plan (MAP) has been prepared to help students meet all graduation requirements within four years. You can view MAPs on the Degree MAPs page in the University Catalog or you can request a plan from your major advisor.

General Education Pathway Requirements: 48 units

See General Education in the University Catalog and the Class Schedule for the most current information on General Education Pathway Requirements and course offerings.

Diversity Course Requirements: 6 units

See Diversity Requirements in the University Catalog. Most courses taken to satisfy these requirements may also apply to General Education .

Literacy Requirement:

See Mathematics and Writing Requirements in the University Catalog. Writing proficiency in the major is a graduation requirement and may be demonstrated through satisfactory completion of a course in your major which has been designated as the Writing Proficiency (WP) course for the semester in which you take the course. Students who earn below a C- are required to repeat the course and earn a C- or higher to receive WP credit. See the Class Schedule for the designated WP courses for each semester. You must pass ENGL 130I or JOUR 130I (or equivalent) with a C- or higher before you may register for a WP course.

Course Requirements for the Major: 28-40 units

Completion of the following courses, or their approved transfer equivalents, is required of all candidates for this degree.

4-16 units required:

A minimum fourth-semester competency (e.g., SPAN 202) in Portuguese or Spanish is required for Latin American Studies majors. Students interested in Portuguese can fulfill this language requirement by taking third- and fourth-semester Portuguese from an accredited program either in the United States or through study abroad. Students who have met the language competency prior to enrollment should see the major advisor regarding completion of requirements.

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
PORT 101A	Beginning Portuguese I	4.0	FS	GE
Introduction to Portuguese language and its associated cultures. Emphasis on the fundamental skills of understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Portuguese. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (007752)
PORT 102A	Beginning Portuguese II	4.0	FS	GE
Prerequisites: PORT 101A. Continuation of PORT 101A. Emphasis on the fundamental skills of understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Portuguese. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (007754)
SPAN 101	First-Semester Spanish	4.0	FS	GE
Prerequisites: SPAN 101 is not available for credit to students with two or more years of Spanish within the last three years. Introduction to Spanish language and culture. Emphasis on the fundamental skills of understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Spanish. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009113)
SPAN 102	Second-Semester Spanish	4.0	FS	GE
Prerequisites: SPAN 101 or equivalent. Continuation of SPAN 101. Emphasis on the fundamental skills of understanding, speaking, reading, and writing Spanish. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009118)
SPAN 201	Third-Semester Spanish	4.0	FS	GE
Prerequisites: SPAN 102 or equivalent. Reviewing and expanding of language skills and cultural concepts introduced in SPAN 101 and SPAN 102. This course includes composition and reading. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009121)
SPAN 201N	Spanish for Spanish Speakers	4.0	FA	GE
Prerequisites: Faculty permission. Reviewing and expanding of language skills possessed by speakers of Spanish who have not studied the language formally. This course includes composition and reading. Particular focus on the Mexican-American/Latino experience. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009123)
SPAN 202	Fourth-Semester Spanish	4.0	FS	GE
Prerequisites: SPAN 201 or equivalent. Reviewing and expanding of language skills and cultural concepts introduced in SPAN 101, SPAN 102, and SPAN 201. This course includes composition and reading. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009120)
SPAN 202N	Spanish for Spanish Speakers	4.0	SP	GE
Prerequisites: Faculty permission. Further reviewing and expanding of language skills possessed by speakers of Spanish who have not studied the language formally. Builds on topics studied in SPAN 201N. This course includes composition and reading. Particular focus on the Mexican-American/Latino experience. 3 hours discussion, 2 hours activity. This is an approved General Education course. (009126)

2 courses required:

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
LAST 110	Introduction to Latin American Studies	3.0	FS	GE GC
A survey of the history, geography, culture, and society of Latin America. This course is designed to provide students who are majoring in Latin American Studies, as well as General Education students, with an initial orientation in the study of Latin America on an interdisciplinary basis. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (015750)
LAST 495	Seminar in Selected Topics	3.0	SP	GW
Prerequisites: ENGL 130 or JOUR 130 (or equivalent) with a grade of C- or higher, LAST 110. An in-depth, interdisciplinary seminar that examines selected topics in Latin American culture and society, past and present, through critical reading of, and commentary on, recent scholarship devoted to the region. Readings may include Spanish language sources. Topics vary by semester. Required for majors and minors. 3 hours seminar. This is an approved Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement course; a grade of C- or higher certifies writing proficiency for majors. (005384)

1 course selected from:

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
ANTH 268	Indigenous People of Latin America	3.0	SP	GE GC
Study of the Native peoples of South America, Mexico, and Central America from European contact to the present. The course emphasizes contemporary ethnography and interaction of indigenous people with colonialism and the modern nation-state. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (021187)
CHST 254	Chicana/o Arts and Ideas	3.0	FA	GE USD
This course is also offered as FLNG 254, HUMN 254. An overview of Chicana/o art, literature, and ideology. The course examines the trajectory of the Chicano Movement and follows the development of artistic and intellectual culture down to contemporary times. We explore how Chicano literature asks enduring and universal questions and at the same time reflects a specific historical and cultural reality that is fundamental to the United States experience. Reading, discussions, and reports are in English (with some code-switching in Spanish). 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved US Diversity course. (021205)
FLNG 254	Chicana/o Arts and Ideas	3.0	FA	GE USD
This course is also offered as CHST 254, HUMN 254. An overview of Chicana/o art, literature, and ideology. The course examines the trajectory of the Chicano Movement and follows the development of artistic and intellectual culture down to contemporary times. We explore how Chicano literature asks enduring and universal questions and at the same time reflects a specific historical and cultural reality that is fundamental to the United States experience. Reading, discussions, and reports are in English (with some code-switching in Spanish). 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved US Diversity course. (021205)
HUMN 254	Chicana/o Arts and Ideas	3.0	FA	GE USD
This course is also offered as CHST 254, FLNG 254. An overview of Chicana/o art, literature, and ideology. The course examines the trajectory of the Chicano Movement and follows the development of artistic and intellectual culture down to contemporary times. We explore how Chicano literature asks enduring and universal questions and at the same time reflects a specific historical and cultural reality that is fundamental to the United States experience. Reading, discussions, and reports are in English (with some code-switching in Spanish). 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved US Diversity course. (021205)
LAST 120	Latin American Film and Culture	3.0	SP	GE GC
This course examines films made by Latin American and non-Latin American filmmakers as a means of introducing students to the history of cultures of Latin America from the pre-conquest to the present. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (021121)

15 units selected from:

Select at least 3 units from each group A, B, and C below.

Group A: Art and Literature

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
ARTH 471	Ancient Mexican Art	3.0	INQ
A survey of ancient Mexican art and culture of formative, classic, conquest, including the Olmec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Mxtec, Classic Gulf Coast, Toltec, and Aztec. Sites discussed include El Tajin, La Venta, Monte Alban, Milta, Tula, and Tenochtitlan 3 hours lecture. (000841)
ARTH 472	Maya Art	3.0	INQ
An investigation of the art of the ancient Maya of Mexico and Central America prior to European contact, from the Preclassic to Postclassic periods. The relationship of art to religious beliefs and practices will be explored, as well as the development of local styles associated with royal courts. Sites discussed include Tikal, Palenque, Copan, Uxmal, and Chichen Itza 3 hours lecture. (020618)
ARTH 473	Meso-American/Colonial Art	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: ARTH 120. This course is also offered as CHST 473. A survey of Mexican art and culture from the Cortesian Conquest, the Colonial Period of monastery- and church-building, the Revolution of 1810, the Revolution of 1910, and the painters of the great revolutionary mural movement that followed, Rivera, Orozco, and Siqueriros, to contemporary artists who have tended toward international pluralism. Attention is given to the process of acculturation that produced the modern Mexican peoples, their national character, and their contemporary art. 3 hours lecture. (000842)
ARTH 474	Ancient Andean Art	3.0	INQ
An investigation of the art of Peru and adjacent regions prior to European contact. The relationship of art to religious beliefs and practices, political ideologies, and the significance of styles and technologies are examined. Cultures surveyed include Chavin, Paracas, Nasca, Moche, Tiwanaku, and Inka, as well as the Northern Andean civilizations such as San Agustin. 3 hours lecture. (020619)
CHST 454	Chicano Literature	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. This course is also offered as SPAN 454. A study of the Chicano people as reflected in selected films and literature. Discussions will be in Spanish, readings in English and Spanish, reports in Spanish. 3 hours seminar. (001984)
CHST 473	Meso-American/Colonial Art	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: ARTH 120. This course is also offered as ARTH 473. A survey of Mexican art and culture from the Cortesian Conquest, the Colonial Period of monastery- and church-building, the Revolution of 1810, the Revolution of 1910, and the painters of the great revolutionary mural movement that followed, Rivera, Orozco, and Siqueriros, to contemporary artists who have tended toward international pluralism. Attention is given to the process of acculturation that produced the modern Mexican peoples, their national character, and their contemporary art. 3 hours lecture. (000842)
LAST 352	Mexico: Literature and Arts	3.0	FS	GC
An interdisciplinary examination of how Mexican literature and the arts reflect the social and cultural roots of the people of Mexcio. This course is a component of the General Education Upper-Division Thematic Program on Mexico and Central America. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (005377)
SPAN 341	Introduction to Latin American Literature	3.0	FS
Prerequisites: SPAN 301. Introduces students to the study of Hispanic literature and culture, and develops their skills in language comprehension and analysis of prose, poetry, and drama. The works studied will be short stories, full-length plays, and Hispanic-American narrative and lyric poetry. SPAN 341 and SPAN 342 are required of all majors and count as electives for the minor. Either fulfills the prerequisite for all other upper-division literature courses. 3 hours discussion. (009140)
SPAN 441	Hispanic Short Story	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Study of leading short story writers from Spain and Latin America, with background readings and reports on representative authors. Emphasis on contemporary works. 3 hours seminar. (009159)
SPAN 442	Hispanic Theater	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Readings, discussions, reports, and oral interpretation of major dramatic works of Latin America and Spain. 3 hours discussion. (009161)
SPAN 443	Hispanic Novel	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Analysis of representative novels from Latin America and Spain. 3 hours discussion. (009167)
SPAN 444	Hispanic Poetry	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Study of the leading poets of Spain and Latin America. 3 hours discussion. (009172)
SPAN 451	Literature of Mexico	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Readings and reports on literature of Mexico from pre-Columbian to contemporary literature. 3 hours discussion. (009168)
SPAN 452	Viewing the Hispanic Caribbean	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301, SPAN 302; either SPAN 341 or SPAN 342 (may be taken concurrently). Critical analysis of literature and culture of the Spanish-speaking Caribbean, utilizing reading, discussion, oral reports, and written projects. 3 hours lecture. (009170)
SPAN 454	Chicano Literature	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. This course is also offered as CHST 454. A study of the Chicano people as reflected in selected films and literature. Discussions will be in Spanish, readings in English and Spanish, reports in Spanish. 3 hours seminar. (001984)
SPAN 471	Women and Literature in the Hispanic World	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Women in Spanish-speaking society. An approach to culture via a study of women as literary subjects and as writers. The idealization and reality of their existence as reflected through Spanish and Latin American literature. 3 hours discussion. (009182)
SPAN 472	Oral and Written Traditions of the Spanish Speaking World	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Study of the diverse oral and written traditions that both predate and coexist with the literary tradition in Spanish. Topics may include oral narrative such as legends, myths, proverbs, religious beliefs; oral practices in verse such as the troubadour tradition, anonymous epic poetry, popular songs and ballads, and corridos; and written practices such as testimonies, autobiographies, and epistles. 3 hours seminar. (009178)
SPAN 481	Film and Literature in Spain and Latin America	3.0	INQ
Prerequisites: SPAN 301; SPAN 341 or SPAN 342; or faculty permission. Students will consider the elements that constitute literary and cinematic masterpieces by examining films based on a variety of texts: epic poetry, drama, short story, legend, novel, zarzuela, and filmscript. The films will represent the cultural and linguistic diversity in areas of Spain and Latin America. 3 hours discussion. (009183)

Group B: History

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
HIST 380	Colonial Latin America	3.0	FA	GC
An historical survey of pre-Columbian and colonial Latin America, with emphasis on Aztec and Inca societies, Iberia's military, economic, and spiritual conquest, and the ways in which diverse colonial subjects resisted, adapted to, and assimilated colonial rule. Concludes by considering popular and elite culture in the late colonial period and tensions leading toward independence. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (004568)
HIST 381	Modern Latin America	3.0	SP	GE GC
A survey of Latin America since independence from Iberia, highlighting the chaotic years of post-independence state building, the region's integration into the global capitalist economy and the age of mass politics and revolutionary ferment after 1930. The final weeks focus on Latin America's experience with military dictatorship and current transitions to democracy. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (004495)
HIST 382	Modern Mexico	3.0	FA	GE GC
This course is also offered as LAST 350. An interdisciplinary approach to the history and politics of Mexico. This course will introduce students to the panorama of Mexican history while delineating the roots and development of the current Mexican political system. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (004558)
HIST 480	Social Revolution in Latin America	3.0	INQ
This course explores twentieth-century social revolutions in Mexico, Cuba, Chile and Nicaragua. Additional consideration will be given to more recent phenomena in Venezuela and the Mexican state of Chiapas. Evaluates the role played by class, ethnicity, and gender in these movements and considers whether the driving force of social revolution in Latin America is Marxism or nationalist/anti-imperialism. 3 hours seminar. (004647)
LAST 350	Modern Mexico	3.0	FA	GE GC
This course is also offered as HIST 382. An interdisciplinary approach to the history and politics of Mexico. This course will introduce students to the panorama of Mexican history while delineating the roots and development of the current Mexican political system. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (004558)

Group C: Social and Natural Sciences

SUBJ NUM	Title	Units	Semester Offered	Course Flags
ANTH 437	International Development and Globalization	3.0	S2
Explores the historical and contemporary global movements of people, commodities, technology and ideas. Surveys the impacts of colonial relationships on the contemporary world, post-colonialism and the rise of the development era, and contemporary trends resulting in the increased social and cultural integration and differentiation of individuals and groups around the world. 3 hours lecture. (000582)
GEOG 357	Lands and Peoples of Latin America	3.0	FS	GE GC
This course is also offered as LAST 357. Study of the physical environment, human settlement, development, and modern problems of the nations of Latin America. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (021143)
INST 301	International Forum	1.0	FS
A series of presentations on a wide variety of topics of international concern. Lectures, debates, and panel discussions on areas of current international importance. 1 hour lecture. You may take this course more than once for a maximum of 6.0 units. Credit/no credit grading. (004875)
LAST 321	Comparative Politics of Central America and the Caribbean Basin	3.0	INQ	GC
This course is also offered as POLS 321. An interdisciplinary survey of the politics of Central America and the Caribbean Basin. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (005381)
LAST 351	Natural History and Ecology of Mexico and Central America	3.0	FS	GC
Prerequisites: Completion of the lower-division GE Pathway Foundation Physical Sciences and GE Pathway Foundation Life Sciences or faculty permission. LAST 351 explores the natural and human-modified environments of Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. It introduces students to the biological and physical processes that create the natural environments of the region and examines the complex interactions between people and these environments, both past and present. This course is designed to be the Area B course in the General Education Upper-Division Theme I: Mexico and Central America. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (005379)
LAST 357	Lands and Peoples of Latin America	3.0	FS	GE GC
This course is also offered as GEOG 357. Study of the physical environment, human settlement, development, and modern problems of the nations of Latin America. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved General Education course. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (021143)
LAST 489	Intercult Experiential Lrng	1.0 -6.0	FS
Prerequisites: LAST 150, faculty permission. This course will provide students with a genuine cross-cultural experience which will enable them to understand Latin American life from the point of view of the Latin American family with which they will live and the Latin American people with whom they will work. Students will live with a Latin American family and work in a Latin American organization for a six-week period. Students will keep a log of their experiences and prepare a written evaluation of their families and jobs. 6 hours discussion. You may take this course more than once for a maximum of 15.0 units. Special fee required; see the Class Schedule. (005385)
POLS 321	Comparative Politics of Central America and the Caribbean Basin	3.0	INQ	GC
This course is also offered as LAST 321. An interdisciplinary survey of the politics of Central America and the Caribbean Basin. 3 hours lecture. This is an approved Global Cultures course. (005381)

Electives Requirement:

To complete the total units required for the bachelor's degree, select additional elective courses from the total University offerings. You should consult with an advisor regarding the selection of courses which will provide breadth to your University experience and possibly apply to a supportive second major or minor.

Grading Requirement:

All courses taken to fulfill major course requirements must be taken for a letter grade except those courses specified by the department as Credit/No Credit grading only.

Advising Requirement:

Advising is mandatory for all majors in this degree program. Consult your undergraduate advisor for specific information.