Spanish Language Program

Composed of seven semesters of language instruction over four year, our curriculum has been carefully designed to foster progressive acquisition of proficiency in Spanish. From the first day of class, students are exposed to the Spanish language and trained to practice the essential skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing) while expanding their vocabulary and learning new grammar points and structures in context. All courses incorporate the study of cultures from different Spanish-speaking countries. Students build their language skills while learning to understand relevant sociocultural and historical aspects of the Spanish-speaking world and appreciate and celebrate the differences between its cultures. A number of our courses also satisfy the University’s Literature Core or the University’s Cultural Diversity Core.

Why learn Spanish?

The study of Spanish invites us into a diverse world of people, cultures, and ideas. Spanish is the second most widely spoken language worldwide, with approximately 400 million native speakers. In the United States, Spanish is both the second most widely spoken language and the most popular second language to study in college. On both an international and national scale, Spanish continues to grow as a language of business, medicine and the sciences, and it plays a special role in international politics as one of the official languages of the United Nations and the European Union.

Knowledge of Spanish introduces students to a wealth of literature, arts, history and humanities. It engages our curiosity for travel and exploration, both abroad and at home, and allows us to forge human connections with other members of the large—and growing—international Spanish-speaking population. The study of Spanish lies at the intersection of practicality, opportunity and all the richness of culture that a foreign language offers. We hope that you will join us to claim your place within the Spanish-speaking world.