Majors
About the Major: Program Learning Objectives
The Spanish major program provides students opportunities to:
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Learn to communicate effectively in Spanish and other target languages through speaking, listening, reading, and writing in authentic situations.
- Develop communicative and intercultural competency so that they can work productively both as individuals and in collaboration with others.
- Gain perspective on cultural and historical achievements in the target-language cultures as well as on relevant issues of diversity.
- Cultivate awareness of ethical and professional perspectives that reflect linguistic and cultural heritage.
- Think critically and creatively using Spanish and other target languages and negotiate meaning between the target language(s) and English.
- Develop the life-long ability to evaluate ways in which language and culture provide perspective on the larger world of the arts, sciences, and technology.
Undergraduate Programs
- BA Spanish
- Minors: Chinese, French, German, Italian Studies, Japanese, Spanish
Spanish majors and students with minors from the World Languages and Cultures Department have been successful in careers in education, international business, finance, non-profit agencies, the viticulture industry, and government service. Others have attended graduate and professional schools in various fields, including languages and literatures, linguistics, speech pathology, law, medicine, and engineering. Our graduates have also been selected to teach in secondary schools in Spain (North American Language and Culture Assistants) and France (Teaching Assistant Program in France). In collaboration with the Cal Poly School of Education, we also prepare students for the California single-subject World Languages Teaching Credential. Finally, we work closely with our students to integrate junior- or senior-level education abroad experiences, internships or service-learning experiences in the U.S. or another country, or equivalent professional-level hands-on experiences (with departmental approval) as part of their total capstone experience.
Learn more about the WLC Curriculum at the Cal Poly Catalog website.
Click here to find your flowchart.
Your Spanish major advisor is Dr. Karen Muñoz-Christian (kschrist@calpoly.edu).
Download the Senior Project Manual (PDF) for guidelines and best practices on conducting senior projects. Please check with your Senior Project Advisor for any updates or further recommendations.
Is WLC the right department for me?
Students within the WLC Department are typically highly driven, adventurous, intellectually curious individuals who like to take on challenges. They are motivated to be able to communicate with people from around the world. If you have these qualities and goals, then WLC is right for you!
Some advantages of the WLC Department
Being part of a small department gives students the great advantage of receiving individualized attention from faculty. Unlike large departments, faculty who are amply qualified through advanced work teach WLC classes.
Another advantage of the WLC Department is our sense of community. Students receive individualized attention and mentoring from the beginning of their Cal Poly career through graduation. Students are constantly encouraged to be life-long learners. The WLC Department focuses on enabling WLC graduates to develop linguistic and intercultural competence, global awareness, and the ability to contribute positively to the societies in which they live and work.
What career opportunities are available for WLC graduates?
WLC and French minor graduates have recently received one-year (renewable) teaching positions in French secondary schools through the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF). For more information, please contact Dr. Kennelly or Dr. Thompson.
Students graduating with a B.A. in Spanish prepare themselves for careers in:
- education
- international business
- non-profit organizations
- translation and/or interpretation
- communications
- government service
- foreign affairs
Students are also prepared to advance on to graduate school in Spanish language, literature or culture, law, film and electronic media studies, comparative literature, cultural studies, MFA in creative writing, librarianship, Latino(a), Latin American and/or European Pacific Rim studies, playwriting, single-subject K-12 credential, agribusiness, and international business and marketing.
What about study abroad programs?
The WLC Department strongly encourages all students to take advantage of the many opportunities students have to travel and study abroad. The department currently supports summer programs in Valladolid, Spain and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.
WLC students can also take full advantage of the over 500 approved study abroad programs offered by the International Center: Study Abroad
For those programs sponsored by the WLC Department, Cal Poly, and/or the CSU system, full Cal Poly credit is given.