Majors & Minors

Portuguese Minor | Spanish Major | Spanish Minor

General Distribution Requirement

Except for elementary and intermediate language courses, all courses in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese count toward the general distribution requirement in humanities.

General Education Requirements

Courses that meet the general education requirements in writing, quantitative thinking, internationalism and US identities and differences are posted on the Registrar's web page in advance of registration for each semester.

Additional information regarding the general distribution requirement and the general education requirements can be found in the graduation requirements section of this catalog.

Language Requirement

Students can fulfill the Macalester College foreign language requirement in Spanish or Portuguese in this department by completing one of the following: 1) A score of 4-5 on the Advanced Placement Test offered through high schools; 2) Successful completion of Macalester's SPAN 204 - Intermediate Spanish II or SPAN 220 - Accelerated Intermediate Spanish; 3) Successful completion of Macalester's two-course Portuguese language sequence PORT 111 - Accelerated Beginning Portuguese through PORT 221 - Accelerated Intermediate Portuguese.

Students earn credit for SPAN 101 and SPAN 102 by scoring 5, 6, or 7 on the International Baccalaureate Exam. These students will still need to fulfill the above guidelines for the two-year language requirement.

Students will not receive credit for SPAN 110 if they have previously taken or been awarded credit for SPAN 101 and/or SPAN 102 .

Students will not receive credit for SPAN 220 if they have previously taken or been awarded credit for SPAN 203 and/or SPAN 204 .

Students are expected to satisfy the foreign language requirement through courses at Macalester, unless exceptional circumstances arise.

Students who fulfilled the language requirement by meeting the guidelines above must take SPAN 305 or SPAN 306 before entering the sequence of courses further required for a major or minor in Spanish.

Honors Program

The Department of Spanish and Portuguese participates in the honors program. Eligibility requirements, application procedures and specific project expectations for the department are available from either the department office or the Academic Programs and Advising Office.

Topics Courses

SPAN 194, SPAN 294, SPAN 394, SPAN 494 

Topics courses offer a variety of themes and approaches not found in our regular course offerings. Recent topics courses have included: Marginalized and Subaltern Figures; From Cervantes to García Márquez; Caribbean Oral Traditions; Latinx in the Midwest; Hyphenating Identities; Disparate Journeys: Brazil and the US since the Abolition of Slavery. Prerequisite: varies. Offered fall and/or spring, depending on instructor availability, and announced at the time of registration. (4 credits)

Independent Study

The department offers independent study options in the form of tutorials, independent projects, internships, and preceptorships. For more information contact the department and review the Curriculum section of the catalog.

Portuguese Minor

Minor Requirements

The Portuguese minor consists of five courses beyond PORT 221 - Accelerated Intermediate Portuguese: PORT 331 - Journeys through Brazil; PORT 341 - Voices from the Margins: Afro-Brazilian Women Writers; PORT 381 - Portugal Meets 'the Other', Overseas: Portuguese Navigators from the 15th to 17th Century; and two additional courses approved by the chair of Spanish and Portuguese.

Spanish Major

Major Requirements

A major in Spanish consists of a minimum of nine courses beyond SPAN 204 or SPAN 220 . Every major plan must be designed in consultation with a Department of Spanish and Portuguese faculty advisor. It will include SPAN 305 or SPAN 306; either PORT 111 or PORT 221; and SPAN 488. In addition, students must take a minimum of one course from each of the three areas of the department curriculum (1) Empires, Colonialisms and Resistance; (2) Borders, Identities and Transgressions; (3) Language, Linguistics, and Communities. A minimum of three courses besides the capstone seminar (SPAN 488) must be numbered 354 or above.

In addition, students majoring in Spanish are required to successfully complete one term of a study abroad program, although the Department of Spanish and Portuguese reserves the right to waive this requirement under exceptional circumstances. With prior approval from the Chair, up to two courses successfully taken on a study abroad program can apply toward the courses required for the Spanish major. These classes need to be in Spanish and in disciplinary areas of the humanities such as literature, cultural studies, linguistics, art, and history. (Check with the department for specific guidance about what classes abroad would count toward the minor.) Most study away classes will count at the lower 300-level, so it's best to plan to take your advanced classes (354 and above) on campus. Nevertheless, we can sometimes count one direct-enroll clas as an advanced class with approval from the Department Chair.

Successful completion of SPAN 488 fulfills the capstone seminar requirement.

Spanish Minor

Minor Requirements

Every minor plan should be designed in consultation with a Spanish department faculty advisor and must be approved by the Chair. The Spanish minor requires five courses beyond SPAN 204 or SPAN 220. They must include SPAN 305 or SPAN 306 and two courses numbered SPAN 354 or higher. (Care should be taken to ensure that students have completed the proper prerequisite course for any upper-level course they select.) At least one of the two upper-level course must be taken at Macalester. With prior approval from the Chair, up to two courses successfully taken on a study abroad program can apply towards the Spanish minor.