Spanish, BA | University of Alabama

The Spanish BA provides students with an attractive mixture of introductory, intermediate, and advanced classes that focus on the Spanish-speaking world, both globally (Latin America, Spain) and in the United States. Studies include language, culture, literature, and linguistics content to provide a broad spectrum of Spanish knowledge.

In addition to content, students in this Major will acquire durable and transferrable skills essential for the 21st century. Our classes focus on developing creative and critical thinking abilities, effective written and oral communication, and deep intercultural understanding. Students will learn to identify and avoid logical fallacies and cognitive biases, and exercise careful human judgment to successfully engage in creative problem-solving. They will be able to express ideas clearly and effectively across a wide range of audiences, as well as collaborate with diverse partners. The Spanish Major fosters intercultural understanding in our students to position them for success in localized, globalized, and international workforces.

For more information, check the Requirements tab in this catalog entry, visit https://mlc.ua.edu/, or come see us at 200 B. B. Comer Hall.

Admission into the Major

Course placement information appears in the Spanish course description section of the catalog. Students are expected to formally declare a major no later than the fourth semester of full-time enrollment (or at 61 semester hours for transfer students). Students can declare a major by completing the Change of Major/Minor Application online under the Student tab of myBama. Additionally, students must declare a major with the undergraduate advisor in the department.

Special Opportunities

The Spanish program at The University of Alabama offers a quality education and a range of learning opportunities. These include the Alabama in Spain and Alabama in Colombia summer abroad programs and the Spanish Outreach program in the Tuscaloosa/Northport area. The Department of Modern Languages and Classics also offers honors courses in Spanish.

Students earning the Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree with a major in Spanish must complete all University, College, and departmental degree requirements. These include the general education requirements, the following major requirements, all requirements for an approved minor, and other sufficient credits to total a minimum of 120 applicable semester hours.

Grade Point Average, Upper-level Residency, and other general BCAS requirements can be found at https://catalog.ua.edu/undergraduate/arts-sciences/#requirementstext. A minimum of 12 hours of 300- and 400-level courses in the major must be earned on this campus. Courses taken in UA summer programs (such as Spain and/or Colombia) may be used to satisfy the residency requirement.

Students are responsible for ensuring that they have met all University, College, major, and minor requirements. However, each student must meet with an advisor in the major department for academic planning and to be approved for registration each semester. College advisers are also available for additional assistance with minor, College, and University requirements. For more details, regarding the completion of the Spanish BA, check the departmental website at https://mlc.ua.edu/spanish/undergraduate/major/.

Course Placement

The course level at which students begin their study of Spanish is determined by the language placement score or by having earned credit for prerequisite course(s). Credit by examination awards can be found in the catalog (https://catalog.ua.edu/undergraduate/about/academic-regulations/policies/credit-by-examination/). Students who do not have foreign language course credit should take the UA placement test. The UA placement test is available online at myBama.ua.edu by clicking on the search box and typing "Foreign Language Assessment."

The detailed placement guidelines can be found on the departmental website (https://mlc.ua.edu/undergraduate/language-placement/), or by talking to an advisor (https://mlc.ua.edu/advising/).

Code and Title		Hours
Major Courses
Select three of the following Cornerstone courses:		9
SP 353 or	Spanish Conversation ¹
SP 355	Spanish for Native Speakers
SP 356	Adv Grammar And Compos
SP 364 or	Cultures of Spain
SP 366	Cultures of Latin America
Select two of the following Literature courses:		6
SP 371	Literatures of Spain pre-1800
SP 372	Literatures of Spain post-1800
SP 375	LatAm Literatures pre-1900
SP 376	LatAm Literatures post-1900
SP 377	US Latino Literature
Select one of the following Linguistics courses:		3
SP 383	Fundamentals of Spanish Ling.
SP 384	Spanish Pronunciation
Electives ²
Select one SP elective course at the 300 or 400 level		3
Select two SP elective courses at the 400 level		6
Credit Hours Subtotal:		27
Ancillary Courses
The major and minor in Spanish require the successful completion of the courses below. Students may start directly at the 300 level provided they satisfy the requirements explained in the Course Placement section. Grades in ancillary courses are not computed into the major GPA.
SP 101	Spanish Language & Culture I	3
SP 102	Spanish Language & Culture II	3
SP 201	Spanish Language & Culture III	3
SP 202	Spanish Language & Culture IV	3
Credit Hours Subtotal:		12
Total Hours		39

Non-native or non-heritage speakers of Spanish must only enroll in SP 353 Spanish Conversation.
Native or heritage speakers of Spanish must only enroll in SP 355 Spanish for Native Speakers.

SP 361 Intro Romance Linguistic is taught in English and does not count towards the Spanish major or minor.

Credit Option

Departmental placement credit petition: If placed in SP 201 or above, students are potentially eligible to receive placement credit upon written petition. The placement credit form is available at https://mlc.ua.edu/advising/, it must be submitted to the appropriate faculty member listed in it.

Required Minor

This major requires the completion of a minor.

A Spanish major can lead to a wide range of career opportunities where linguistic and intercultural skills are highly desirable:

Types of Jobs

Professions that value a degree in Spanish vary, but opportunities are especially common in the education field (teaching Spanish, curriculum design, administration), government/intelligence (analyst or diplomatic roles; agencies such as the FBI, NSA, CIA, and others regularly seek translators and interpreters ), healthcare (medical interpreter), and international business (consulting, marketing, banking). A Spanish major is a great double major to have with history, international relations, political science, English, engineering, pre-med, and many others.

Jobs of Experienced Alumni

Our Spanish BA graduates have gone on to become university professors, high school teachers, junior or state college teachers, interpreters, translators, international bankers, international sales representatives, international advertising employees, media consultants, and more.

Learn more about opportunities in this field at the Career Center