The Department of Spanish and Portuguese is an interdisciplinary department focused on the language, cultural formations, and critical thought emerging from Latin America, the Caribbean, the Iberian Peninsula, and the Luso-Afro-Brazilian world. Spanish and Portuguese are among the world’s leading languages of culture, sociopolitics, and commerce. Once languages of empire, Spanish and Portuguese are now the lingua franca of important sectors of the Global South, and Spanish is the growing second language of the United States. We practice inclusive, decolonial approaches to language and translation; critical and comparative approaches to film, literature, performance, music, and visual art; humanistic engagements with historiography, memory, and archives; and we participate in debates in philosophy and critical and social thought, including Black and Indigenous perspectives from the Global South. Students are encouraged to study away at NYU Madrid or NYU Buenos Aires, where they may fulfill major or minor requirements through site-specific classes and immersive experiences. In addition, students participate in internships and collaborate on the online undergraduate journal, Esferas.
Linguistics
Linguistics is the science of human language. It seeks to determine that which is necessary in human language, that which is possible, and that which is impossible. While linguists work to determine the unique qualities of individual languages, they are constantly searching for linguistic universals—properties whose explanatory power reaches across languages. The discipline of linguistics is organized around syntax (the principles by which sentences are organized), morphology (the principles by which words are constructed), semantics (the study of meaning), phonetics (the study of speech sounds), phonology (the sound patterns of language), historical linguistics (the ways in which languages change over time), sociolinguistics (the interaction of language with society), psycholinguistics, and neurolinguistics (the representation of language in the brain). Current research by faculty members extends across the field, including topics in the interaction of syntax and semantics, phonetics and phonology, languages in contact, pidgin and creole languages, urban sociolinguistics, and computer analogies of syntactic processes.
Joint Honors
Writing an honors thesis allows majors to undertake advanced, independent research, analysis, and writing under close faculty guidance. By writing an original thesis, students participate in the production of new knowledge and critique, and make genuine contributions to our field. Engaging in self-designed research can be one of the most exciting experiences of a college career. Students with an overall and major GPA of 3.65 qualify. Those interested in pursuing joint honors in Spanish and Linguistics should consult with directors of undergraduate studies in both departments during or before the second semester of their junior year.
Admissions
New York University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions supports the application process for all undergraduate programs at NYU. For additional information about undergraduate admissions, including application requirements, see How to Apply.
This joint major requires ten 4-credit courses (40 credits) completed with a grade of C or better (courses graded Pass/Fail do not count), which is five courses in each department as outlined below.
The prerequisite for entering the major is either SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish, or SPAN-UA 51 Advanced Spanish for Spanish-Speaking Students. Note that neither course counts toward the major.
The CAS foreign language requirement is satisfied upon successful completion through the Intermediate level of a language. This may be accomplished in fewer than 16 credits, but those credits must then be completed as elective credit.
2
This SPAN-UA 3XX course cannot double-count toward the next requirement.
3
Chosen with the advice of the director of undergraduate studies, these courses are numbered in the 200-, 300-, and 400- range and are taught in the Spanish language. Students may count one Applied Language Course (numbered at the 100 level) toward the major, and they may also count 4 credits of Internship, which may be completed in a combination of two 2-credit courses.
Course Numbering System (Spanish)
Effective fall 2020, the department has extensively renumbered and reorganized many of its courses. Courses in Spanish (with the designator SPAN-UA) and Portuguese (with the designator PORT-UA) above the intermediate level fall into the following categories:
Courses numbered in the 50/60-range are bridge courses focusing on the acquisition of oral and written language skills that facilitate the transition from basic language courses to the major.
Courses numbered in the 100-range are applied language courses in which students practice language in specific contexts, including translation, creative writing, and the study of language for professional settings, while they reinforce and deepen their linguistic proficiency. The 100-level also includes courses in experiential learning, including internships.
Courses numbered in the 200-range are the foundation courses for the major, including Key Works, Key Words, and courses in Cultural History. They are taught in Spanish, English, or Portuguese depending on the semester and course.
Courses numbered in the 300-range combine the acquisition of critical and methodological skills with a writing-intensive component, offering students the opportunity to expand their knowledge of the field as they develop greater proficiency in writing. These courses are taught only in Spanish or Portuguese.
Courses numbered in the 400-range are advanced electives usually taught in Spanish or Portuguese. These courses showcase the interdisciplinarity of our field and focus on critical and comparative approaches to literature, visual art, performance, music, and film; on historiographic engagements with memory and archives; and/or focus on contemporary debates in philosophy and critical and social thought.
Courses numbered in the 500-range are advanced electives usually taught in English. These courses showcase the interdisciplinarity of our field and focus on critical and comparative approaches to literature, visual art, performance, music, and film; on historiographic engagements with memory and archives; and/or focus on contemporary debates in philosophy and critical and social thought.
Admission to Courses above Intermediate Spanish
Students who have completed SPAN-UA 4 Intermediate Spanish II or SPAN-UA 20 Intens Intermed Spanish must take Advanced Spanish (SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish (formerly Advanced Grammar and Composition, SPAN-UA 100) as a prerequisite for upper-level courses, unless otherwise noted in course descriptions.
Note: Students may choose the "extensive" sequence of SPAN-UA 1, 2, 3, and 4 in lieu of the "intensive" sequence of SPAN-UA 10 and 20, and graduate with the minimum 128 credits.
1
This course is a prerequisite for entering the major. The course does not count toward major requirements.
2
Chosen through advisement from a list of approved courses. Each course must represent a distinct field of linguistics.
3
Choose from courses taught in Spanish numbered in the 200-, 300- or 400-range. Only one of these four courses may be an Applied Language course (numbered in the 100-range.)
Learning Outcomes
Upon completion of program requirements, students are expected to have acquired:
Proficiency in Spanish that will enable them to communicate their ideas clearly, both orally and in writing.
The ability to structure and develop analytical arguments and analyses (in Spanish) based on close reading of primary sources ranging from literature, to photography and film, to social activism.
An understanding of how to approach the study of human language scientifically.
A knowledge of methods for analyzing linguistic data in the subfields of phonetics, phonology, syntax, semantics, and sociolinguistics.
Students majoring in Spanish and linguistics may double-count no more than two courses between this major and a second major (or a minor), with permission of the directors of undergraduate studies from both programs.
Policy Applying to Transfer Students
Transfer students must complete at least half of the major in residence at New York University.
Placement in Spanish Language Courses
Note: All SAT Subject Examinations were discontinued in the U.S. as of January 2021 and after June 2021 internationally.
For full details, students must consult the website of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, as well as the Spanish language program's polices on course placement and on AP, IB, and A Level exams in this department's section in this Bulletin. To enroll in one's first Spanish language course at NYU, students must have taken the SAT Subject Test in Spanish; have advanced standing credit for Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, A Levels, or equivalent; or have taken the placement examination administered by the University. The exception is students with no previous study of Spanish or who took no more than one year of Spanish in high school, who may enroll in SPAN-UA 1 Spanish for Beginners- Level I. Students from a Spanish-speaking background who wish to study the language may not enroll in any level of Spanish for Beginners (SPAN-UA 1, SPAN-UA 2, and SPAN-UA 10) or Intermediate Spanish (SPAN-UA 3, SPAN-UA 4, and SPAN-UA 20), but must instead enroll in SPAN-UA 11 Intermediate Spanish for Spanish Speakers or SPAN-UA 51 Advanced Spanish for Spanish-Speaking Students (formerly SPAN-UA 111) after taking a special written placement test in the department. Students with transfer credit in Spanish must take a placement test if they intend to register for the language in CAS. Note that after 18 months, a completed SPAN-UA course no longer serves as a prerequisite for more advanced courses; students must take or retake the placement exam. In addition, test scores are valid for only 18 months.
For more information and tables showing appropriate course placement for specific test scores, consult the section on language placement at the department's website. To contact the director of the language program (DLP), write to spanish.dlp@nyu.edu.
Advanced Placement Policies in Spanish
Students who score a 4 or 5 on the Spanish Language exam earn 4 credits for SPAN-UA 4 Intermediate Spanish II and are exempt from the College's language requirement.
Students who are not native speakers, who earned a 4 on the Spanish Language AP exam, and who intend to continue studying Spanish are required to take the NYU online language placement exam to confirm placement into SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish (formerly Advanced Grammar and Composition, SPAN-UA 100). Students who score less than 59 on the online test will be required to take SPAN-UA 60 Advanced Conversation (formerly SPAN-UA 101) before enrolling in SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish. On the first day of classes they will also take an in-class exam to finalize proper course placement. This may result in dropping to a lower level and losing the AP credit. AP scores over 18 months old cannot be used for placement. Native speakers who earned a 4 on the Spanish Language AP exam and intend to continue studying Spanish will need to take a written assessment with the director of the language program (spanish.dlp@nyu.edu) to finalize placement.
Students who are not native speakers, who earned a 5 on the Spanish Language AP exam, and who intend to continue studying Spanish may register for Advanced Spanish (SPAN-UA 50; formerly Advanced Grammar and Composition, SPAN-UA 100). On the first day of classes they will take an in-class exam to finalize proper course placement. This may result in dropping to a lower level and losing the AP credit. AP scores over 18 months old cannot be used for placement. Native speakers who earned a 5 on the Spanish Language AP exam and intend to continue studying Spanish will need to take a written assessment with the director of the language program (spanish.dlp@nyu.edu) to finalize placement.
Students who obtain a score of 4 or 5 on the Spanish Literature exam receive 4 credits for SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish (formerly Advanced Grammar and Composition, SPAN-UA 100) and satisfy the Core language requirement. If they wish to continue taking Spanish classes, they must take a special, advanced language placement evaluation at the Spanish department (not the online placement or usual written exemption exam) and consult with the director of the Spanish language program (spanish.dlp@nyu.edu).
International Baccalaureate (IB) and Advanced Level (A Level) Examinations Policies in Spanish
Students who present a score of 6 or 7 on the High Level International Baccalaureate exam in Spanish "B," or who present a score of B or higher on the Advanced Level exam in Spanish, earn 8 credits for Intermediate Spanish I and II (SPAN-UA 3 and 4) and are exempt from the College's language requirement.
Students in these two categories who are not native speakers and intend to continue studying Spanish may register for SPAN-UA 50 Advanced Spanish (formerly Advanced Grammar and Composition, SPAN-UA 100). On the first day of classes they will take an in-class exam to finalize proper course placement. This may result in dropping to a lower level and losing the IB or A Level credit. IB and A Level scores over 18 months old cannot be used for placement. Native speakers with IB or A Level credit who intend to continue studying Spanish will need to take a written assessment with the director of the language program (spanish.dlp@nyu.edu) to finalize placement.