Hispanic Studies

Major

For students declaring a Hispanic Studies major, the core requirements are the following: 

• At least 9.5 courses
• These must include HISP 304 (or equivalent).
• These must also include two 400-level courses taken at Oberlin.
• At least 7 of the 9.5 courses must be courses conducted in Spanish.
• All majors will take the two-credit (half-course) HISP 501 capstone course.  (See capstone guidelines below).
• Before taking a 400-level course, students must have taken two Spanish-taught 300-level courses above HISP 304.

Further recommendations:

• Students are encouraged to take at least two of the four survey courses, combining one Spanish and one Latin American survey, as well as one pre-19th century and one post-19th century survey (e.g., HISP 309 and 318, or HISP 310 and 317).

Additional stipulations:

• Language courses at the beginning or intermediate levels (taken at Oberlin, abroad, or at other institutions) will not count toward the major.
• Up to 1 full course may be counted toward the major at the 300-level for a score of 5 on the AP Spanish language or literature exam.
• Courses in the First-Year Seminar Program (FYSP) taught by Hispanic Studies faculty on topics related to the Spanish-speaking world may count toward the major, as may any other course taught at Oberlin (e.g. in History, Politics, Anthropology, Comparative American Studies, etc.) whose central focus falls within Latin American, Latino/a and Iberian Studies.
• Up to 3 full courses of transfer credit per semester, including coursework done abroad, may be counted toward the major, for a maximum of 5 courses.  This does not include any AP credit granted.
• Courses in which a student has earned a letter grade lower than a C- or P cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the major.
• Courses taken abroad or at other institutions cannot be counted as 400-level credit.

Capstone Guidelines:

Students who major in Hispanic Studies will do a capstone project based on a 400-level seminar they take in the spring of their junior year or the fall of their senior year. In the spring of their senior year (the last semester for summer graduates, the penultimate semester for December graduates) they will enroll in a 2-credit/half-course Hispanic Studies Capstone course, HISP 501. As part of this course, which meets once a week for a 1.5-hour period, students will expand the term paper of their 400-level seminar into a 15-20 page research paper (written in Spanish) and prepare a 15-minute oral presentation based on the paper, to be given at the end of the semester. In consultation with their Hispanic Studies advisor, students may request permission to base their capstone work on a course taught outside of the Hispanic Studies department. An Honors project in Hispanic Studies automatically fulfills the capstone requirement.  (Note: These guidelines apply to students who declared a Hispanic Studies major in Fall 2015 or later.  Students who declared a Hispanic Studies major prior to that date will enroll in HISP 500 concurrent with the 400 level seminar they select for their capstone course.)

Study abroad and double majors:

All Hispanic Studies majors are strongly encouraged to spend at least one semester in a Spanish-speaking country. Students may pursue a double major, or a major/minor combination with Latin American Studies or other related fields such as Classics and the other modern languages, Sociology, Anthropology, Comparative Literature, Art, History, Comparative American Studies, or Politics. Studies in Hebrew present a Hispanic Studies major with a rare opportunity for research in the Medieval area, while combining Italian and Spanish is both useful and important for studies in the Renaissance and Golden Age.

Minor

Minor

For students declaring a Hispanic Studies minor the core requirements are the following:

• at least 6 courses;
• these must include at least 5 courses at or above the 300 level, taught in Spanish, including at least one course at the 400 level taken at Oberlin.

Further information about the minor:

• Language courses at the beginning or intermediate levels (taken at Oberlin, abroad or at other institutions) will not count toward the minor.
• Up to 1 course may be counted toward the minor at the 300-level for a score of 5 on the AP Spanish language or literature exam.
• Courses in the First-Year Seminar Program (FYSP) taught by Hispanic Studies faculty on topics related to the Spanish-speaking world may count toward the minor, as may any other course taught at Oberlin (e.g. in History, Politics, Anthropology, Comparative American Studies, etc.) whose central focus falls within Latin American, Latino/a, and Iberian Studies.
• Up to 2 courses of transfer credit, including coursework done abroad but not counting AP credit, may be counted toward the minor.
• Before taking a 400-level course, students must have taken two Spanish-taught 300-level courses above HISP 304.
• Students are encouraged to take at least two of the four survey courses, combining one Spanish and one Latin American survey, as well as one pre-19^th century and one post-19^th century survey (e.g., HISP 309 and 318, or HISP 310 and 317).
• Courses in which a student has earned a letter grade lower than a C- or P cannot be used to fulfill the requirements of the major.

Advanced Placement

Students qualifying under this program will be assigned advanced standing on the basis of results in the qualifying examinations administered by the College Board and credit will be awarded for HISP 300.  A score of 5 on the Spanish language or literature exam - or a score of a 6 or 7 on the Spanish (Advanced) exam of the IB curriculum - automatically receives credit for 1 full academic course as Hispanic Studies 300.  We encourage these students to consider taking HISP 304 before taking HISP 306, 310, 317, or 318.  HISP 300 counts toward the total number of academic courses required for the major and minor.

Initial Placement

Students who begin Hispanic Studies at Oberlin will take HISP 101. Beyond HISP 101 the particular entry point within the sequence of language courses depends upon a student’s background in Spanish and upon the results of a placement test, administered at the beginning of each semester for those beginning HISP 102, 202, 203, and 304. The placement test is required of every student with a prior knowledge of Spanish who wishes to enroll, except for students who have taken the AP exam and scored a 5 (see above).

The placement exam will be available online during registration.  Please see the department’s web site at www.oberlin.edu/hispanic

Honors

The Honors Program in Hispanic Studies is a two-semester sequence of two courses of independent study, in consultation with a faculty sponsor, culminating in either an honors thesis or a special project, e.g., a translation, creative writing, or video project.  Students may be invited to participate in the program, but are also encouraged to express their interest to the faculty.  For more information see: http://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/departments/hispanic_studies/capstonehonors.dot

La Casa Hispánica

Since 1962, the department has sponsored La Casa Hispánica. The purpose of La Casa is to provide an environment where students speak Spanish and benefit from activities related to the culture of the Hispanic world. The director and her two graduate assistants are native Spanish speakers from Latin America and Spain. There are rooming accommodations for 28 men and women. Tables at which Spanish is spoken are maintained in El Rincón Latino at Stevenson Dining Hall.

I. Language Courses (Offered Every Year)

• HISP 101 - Elementary Spanish I
• HISP 102 - Elementary Spanish II
• HISP 202 - Intermediate Spanish I
• HISP 203 - Intermediate Spanish II
• HISP 304 - Advanced Grammar and Composition
• HISP 334 - Spanish for Heritage Speakers

II. Survey Courses

• HISP 310 - Survey of Spanish Literature II: The Struggle for Modernity
• HISP 318 - Survey of Latin American Literature II: La Mala Vida

III. 300-Level Courses

• HISP 303 - Conversation and Communication in Spanish
• HISP 304 - Advanced Grammar and Composition
• HISP 306 - Introduction to Literary Analysis
• HISP 334 - Spanish for Heritage Speakers
• HISP 365 - Love and Death: Jewish Literature and Culture of the Americas
• HISP 366 - Love and Death: Jewish Literature and Culture of the Americas LxC

IV. Advanced Courses

• HISP 417 - Saints, Sinners and Other Cursed Women in Early Modern Spain and the Spanish Americas
• HISP 445 - Crime, Sex and Ghosts of the Past: Contemporary Spanish Fiction and Film
• HISP 458 - Borges to Cortazar: Fantasy and Violence in Argentine Literature 1930-1955
• HISP 461 - Wild Laboratories: Political Experiments in 19th Century Latin America
• HISP 501 - Capstone
• HISP 505H - Honors - Half
• HISP 505F - Honors - Full
• HISP 995H - Private Reading - Half
• HISP 995F - Private Reading - Full

Cross-Referenced Course

The following courses may be taken for Hispanic Studies major credit.  Please see the full course description under the department in which the course is listed. (Keep in mind only three courses taught in English may count toward the major).

• ANTH 210 - Indigenous Peoples of Latin America
• CAST 201 - Latinas/os in Comparative Perspective
• CAST 202 - Visible Bodies and the Politics of Sexuality
• HIST 109 - Latin American History: Conquest and Colony
• HIST 110 - Latin American History: State and Nation Since Independence

Portuguese Language and Brazilian Studies