Latin American and Iberian Studies

The major in Latin American and Iberian Studies features three tracks:

• Language, Culture, and Society
• Translation Studies
• Latin American Studies

All tracks require the completion of 12 courses (36 credits), including a common core of three required courses.

Language, Culture, and Society

• Diverse perspectives on the languages, literatures, cultures, and societies of Spain, Portugal, Latin America, and the Caribbean

Translation Studies

• A unique undergraduate curriculum examining the theory, history, and practice of Spanish/English translation in cultural context

Latin American Studies

• In-depth study of the histories, societies, and cultures of Latin America and the Caribbean from a variety of disciplinary perspectives

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of the Major in Latin American and Iberian Studies, students will be able to:

1. Communicate proficiently, using all four skills (i.e. speaking, listening, reading and writing), in academic, professional, and everyday settings in the language that is required by their selected track.¹
2. Conduct and disseminate academic research both orally and in writing in the language that is required by their selected track.
3. Identify and analyze cultural representations of the languages, cultures and societies of the Latin American and Iberian world, both their own and those produced by others, in accordance with academic standards.
4. Document data and formulate concrete research questions in order to conduct academic research at undergraduate level.
5. Recognize and utilize appropriate methodologies in order to explicitly outline a research plan to conduct academic research at undergraduate level.
6. Produce scholarly work in dialogue with academic fields such as anthropology, history, and geography at undergraduate level.
7. Apply pre-professional translation skills to a variety of documents in both directions, Spanish to English and English to Spanish.²
8. Assess a variety of theoretical approaches to Translation Studies in order to adopt adequate methodologies for the translation of a variety of documents.

¹ Learning objectives 1 and 2 are exclusively applicable to two of the three tracks offered by the Department of Latin American and Iberian Studies, and which require high proficiency in the Spanish language: Language, culture and society, and Translation Studies. Students who select Latin American Studies track are required to demonstrate intermediate proficiency in Spanish and/or Portuguese.

² Learning objectives 7 and 8 are exclusively applicable to the Translation Studies track.

• Completed UMass Boston online admission application
• Application fee: $60
• An official high school record, leaving certificate and/or graduation examination results or their notarized copies. All documents in foreign languages must be translated by a certified professional. Records must be sent directly from the institution to be considered official.
• Academic recommendation letter (from a school-based counselor and/or teacher)
• 500-word essay
• Test scores

If you seek admission to UMass Boston as an international student, we strongly encourage you to apply online by submitting either the UMass Boston Web Application or the Common Application

Please be sure to send us your application and all required materials by the posted international application deadline.

If you experience any technical problems with the application, please email us immediately at [email protected].