Spanish and Portuguese (BA)

Program Description

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 advance dynamic, inclusive 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. To capture the complex linguistic and cultural landscape of Spanish and Portuguese, we offer an integrated major in Spanish and Portuguese that is centered around the study of thought and culture, with students choosing to emphasize either the Portuguese or Spanish language. Students are encouraged to study away at NYU Madrid and NYU Buenos Aires, as well as our summer program in Recife, Brazil, 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.

The department offers several other major and minor programs; please consult the relevant pages of this Bulletin for information about the minor in Spanish, the minor in Portuguese, the major and minor in Latin American and Caribbean Studies, and the joint majors in Romance Languages and Spanish and Linguistics. 

Honors Program

Writing an honors thesis allows students majoring with the Department of Spanish and Portuguese 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 and should confer with the director of undergraduate studies in the second semester of their junior year. During their senior year, students register for SPAN-UA 498 Senior Honors Seminar (fall), then enroll in SPAN-UA 499 Honor Thesis Seminar (spring) , 4 credits each; one of these courses may count as an elective toward the major, while the second is in addition to the nine courses that comprise the degree. Students also present the conclusions of the thesis for different audiences, including participation in the Dean’s Undergraduate Research Conference and the Annual Departmental Showcase. Students write an abstract and have the opportunity to submit an extract of the thesis to Esferas, the department’s undergraduate research journal.

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. 

Program Requirements

The major requires nine 4-credit courses (36 credits) above the intermediate level and completed with a grade of C or better (courses graded Pass/Fail do not count). Students must concentrate in either Spanish or Portuguese and must take at least five courses conducted in their language of concentration as outlined below.

Concentrations

Spanish

¹

Students who place out of this language level will substitute it with additional elective course. 

²

PORT-UA 215 Cultural History of the Luso-Brazilian World may only satisfy one requirement for the major. If taken to satisfy the cultural history requirement, a different elective on the Luso-Brazilian world should be taken to satisfy the requirement for a Luso-Brazilian course.

³

Chosen from advanced SPAN-UA offerings, numbered 60 and above, as per the numbering system described below.

Portuguese

¹

If the Cultural History requirement (above) is met with a course focused on the Spanish-speaking world, that course cannot also meet the requirement for a Spanish-speaking world requirement, and students should choose an additional course to meet this requirement.

²

Chosen from advanced PORT-UA courses, numbered 60 and above, as per the course numbering system described below. 

Course Numbering System

Courses in Spanish (with the designator SPAN-UA) and Portuguese (with the designator PORT-UA) above the intermediate level fall into the following categories:

1. 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.
2. 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,.
3. Courses numbered in the 200 range are the foundational courses for the major. They are taught in Spanish, English, or Portuguese depending on the semester and course. 
4. Courses numbered in the 300 range combine the acquisition of critical and methodological skills with a writing-intensive component. These courses are taught only in Spanish or Portuguese. 
5. Courses numbered in the 400 range are advanced electives usually taught in Spanish or Portuguese.
6. Courses numbered in the 500 range are advanced electives usually taught in English.

Sample Plan of Study

This sample plan of study is for a concentration in the Spanish track of the major in Spanish and Portuguese.

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

Elementary and Intermediate levels of Spanish language study do not count toward major requirements. 

²

CORE-UA courses that are focused on Latin America, Spain, the Caribbean, or the Luso-Afro-Brazilian world may count toward the major and meet the requirement for a cultural history course with DUS approval.

³

Chosen from a selection of SPAN-UA courses numbered 60 or above. Students may choose SPAN-UA courses offered abroad at NYU Madrid or NYU Buenos Aires; these are numbered SPAN-UA 9060 and above. 

⁴

This course meets the requirement for a cultural history course. Other options are offered, focused on the early modern Iberian Atlantic, Latin America, and the Luso-Brazilian world. 

⁵

This course meets the requirement for a Luso-Brazilian course. It may be met with other elective options focused on Portuguese, Brazilian, or Luso-African studies.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of program requirements, students are expected to have acquired:

1. Proficiency in Spanish and/or Portuguese that enables students to communicate their ideas clearly, both orally and in writing;
2. An understanding of some of the primary cultural formations and historical developments within Spanish, Latin American, Caribbean, and Luso-Afro-Brazilian worlds;
3. Knowledge of a range of theoretical and methodological approaches to cultural production, and experience applying these in critical debate, discussion, and in writing;
4. Ability to structure and develop analytical arguments and analyses based on close reading of primary sources drawn from: archival sources; literary and philosophical texts; works of art, music, performance or film; and documents broadly related to cultural expression;
5. Experience with the diversity and cultural resources of the ever-evolving Latin American, Latinx, Caribbean, and Indigenous city of New York.

Policies

Program Policies

Department of Spanish and Portuguese: Policies Applying to All Majors

For all majors in this department, students must discuss and plan their program of study with the director of undergraduate studies. All courses must be completed with a grade of C or better. Courses taken Pass/Fail will not count toward the major. Transfer students must complete at least half of the major in residence at New York University.

Double Counting of Courses

Students majoring in Spanish and Portuguese may double-count no more than two courses between this major and a second major (or a minor). Students should seek guidance from the directors of undergraduate studies (DUS) of both majors or minors.

Placement in Spanish and Portuguese Language Courses (Including: Placement and Exemption Examinations; Advanced Placement and Other Advanced Standing Credit)

For complete information on placement into the correct level of language study and exemption from the Core foreign language requirement, please consult the Department of Spanish and Portuguese webpage detailing its language program policies. Students are responsible for reviewing this page before enrolling in any SPAN-UA or PORT-UA coursework. No credit is ever awarded for any CAS placement or exemption exam.

NYU Policies

University-wide policies can be found on the New York University Policy pages.

College of Arts and Science Policies

A full list of relevant academic policies can be found on the CAS Academic Policies page.