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Spanish, M.A.

Saint Louis University's graduate program in Spanish can be finished in two years. Courses are offered year-round on accredited campuses in the dynamic urban areas of St. Louis, Missouri, or Madrid, Spain.

SLU's Spanish M.A. program focuses broadly on language, literature and culture, with courses offered in the three primary areas of Latin American studies, peninsular studies and linguistics. 

Curriculum Overview

Degree requirements include 30 credits of coursework, a final written examination and a final oral examination. Students may fulfill all or part of the program requirements on either campus. 

Fieldwork and Research Opportunities

Students may fulfill all or part of the program requirements at the University's main campus in St. Louis or SLU's international campus in Madrid.

Students who wish to pursue the program exclusively in Madrid may complete it in three summers (extendable to five) or through a combination of summers and regular spring and fall semesters.

Careers

A master's degree in Spanish is well suited to those planning or already engaged in professional careers such as teaching, translating, foreign service or international affairs, and provides excellent preparation for doctoral studies. Graduates of SLU’s Spanish M.A. program have gone on to careers in education, law and nonprofit institutions.

Graduates will be able to determine viable future career paths through exposure to the field, guidance on professional issues, support in professional development, and networking/connection to peers and mentors both inside and outside of Saint Louis University.

Admission Requirements

  • Undergraduate Spanish major (or equivalent)

Application Requirements

All application materials must be submitted through the Office of Graduate Admission

  • Application form and fee
  • Official transcripts (in English)
  • Résumé or curriculum vitae (in English)
  • Three letters of professional recommendation assessing the applicant's potential for graduate study
  • Professional goal statement: This 1000-word statement should be in Spanish. The candidate should describe professional and intellectual goals and specific reasons for interest in graduate studies in Spanish, and demonstrate how these goals align with the curricula offered by SLU’s M.A. program.
  • Writing sample: This 10-page piece may be in English or Spanish, can be an excerpt from a longer piece and should demonstrate the candidate’s capacity for graduate-level academic work.
  • Interview in Spanish

Requirements for International Students

All admission policies and requirements for domestic students apply to international students. International students must also meet the following additional requirements:

  • Demonstrate English Language Proficiency
  • Financial documents are required to complete an application for admission and be reviewed for admission and merit scholarships. 
  • Proof of financial support that must include:
    • A letter of financial support from the person(s) or sponsoring agency funding the student's time at Saint Louis University
    • A letter from the sponsor's bank verifying that the funds are available and will be so for the duration of the student's study at the University
  • Academic records, in English translation, of students who have undertaken postsecondary studies outside the United States must include:
    • Courses taken and/or lectures attended
    • Practical laboratory work
    • The maximum and minimum grades attainable
    • The grades earned or the results of all end-of-term examinations
    • Any honors or degrees received.

WES and ECE transcripts are accepted.

Application Deadlines

To be given priority consideration, complete applications must be received by

  • April 1 for the fall semester (classes beginning in August)
  • October 1 for the spring semester (classes beginning in January)

Review Process

Each item listed above is taken into careful consideration by the examining committee before making admission recommendations.  

Tuition

Tuition Cost Per Credit
Graduate Tuition $1,310

Additional charges may apply. Other resources are listed below:

Net Price Calculator

Information on Tuition and Fees

Miscellaneous Fees

Information on Summer Tuition

Scholarships and Financial Aid

For priority consideration for departmental graduate scholarships, students should complete their applications by the program admission deadlines listed.  

For more information, visit the student financial services office online at http://www.slu.edu/financial-aid.

  1. Graduates will be able to dialogue with key works and recent scholarship in Hispanic Literatures, Cultures & Linguistics.
  2. Graduates will be able to write and conduct research in Spanish, evidencing analysis, argumentation and organization.
  3. Graduates will be able to speak about and present on their coursework and research in Spanish.
  4. Graduates will be able to teach language and cultures of the Spanish-speaking world, using current methods in Foreign Language Pedagogy, with a deep understanding of historical development as well as current relevance.
Latin American Studies
Select at least two courses from the following:6
SPAN 5240
Short Stories: History, Histories
SPAN 5260
Latin American 'Modernismo'
SPAN 5270
Contemporary Latin American Poetry
SPAN 5280
Early Latin American Novel
SPAN 5290
Boom, Mass Media and Utopia
SPAN 5320
Themes in Latin American Literature
SPAN 5330
Narratives on the End of Utopias
SPAN 5340
Quien Es El Otro, Quien El Yo: Identities of the Other in 19th-c. Latin American Narrative
SPAN 5350
Counter Hegemony Discourses
SPAN 5360
Written by Herself: Latin American Women Writers
SPAN 5370
Latin American Film
SPAN 5380
Cultural Stereotypes: Latin America
SPAN 5400
Strangers in a Familiar Land: Displacements in Latin America
SPAN 5521
Hispanic Short-Short Stories (may count for either Latin American Studies or Peninsular Studies, but not both)
Peninsular Studies
Select at least two courses from the following:6
SPAN 5521
Hispanic Short-Short Stories (may count for either Latin American Studies or Peninsular Studies, but not both)
SPAN 5560
Don Quixote by Cervantes
SPAN 5680
Contemporary Spanish Short Story
SPAN 5700
Twentieth-Century Poetry
SPAN 5710
Twentieth-Century Novel
SPAN 5720
Twentieth-Century Drama
SPAN 5740
From the Poetry of Knowledge to the Poetry of the Turn of the Century
SPAN 5750
Spanish Novel After 1970
SPAN 5760
Spanish Literature and Film
SPAN 5770
Verbum: the Journey of Women Poets in Contemporary Spain
SPAN 5780
Contemporary Spanish Women Writers
SPAN 5820
Medieval Short Stories: Power, Wisdom and Fantasy in Tales
Linguistics
Select at least two courses from the following:6
SPAN 5020
Spanish in the World
SPAN 5030
Spanish Linguistics
SPAN 5050
Spanish Phonology and Its Place in the Classroom
Spanish Electives
Select at least four courses from the above categories (Latin American Studies, Peninsular Studies, Linguistics) or from the following:12
SPAN 5040
Methods and Technology for the Teaching of Spanish
SPAN 5041
Methods of Teaching Spanish I: Best Practices and Cultural Diversity in the Classroom
SPAN 5042
Methods of Teaching Spanish II: Assessment and Language Learner Contexts
Total Credits30

Non-Course Requirements

A final written examination over a reading list, as well as a final oral degree examination over coursework.

Continuation Standards

Students must maintain a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.00 in all graduate/professional courses.

Roadmaps are recommended semester-by-semester plans of study for programs and assume full-time enrollment unless otherwise noted.  

Courses and milestones designated as critical (marked with !) must be completed in the semester listed to ensure a timely graduation. Transfer credit may change the roadmap.

This roadmap should not be used in the place of regular academic advising appointments. All students are encouraged to meet with their advisor/mentor each semester. Requirements, course availability and sequencing are subject to change.

Plan of Study Grid
Year One
FallCredits
SPAN 5040 Methods of Teaching Spanish 3
SPAN 5XXXCourse in Peninsular or Latin American Spanish Studies 3
SPAN 5XXXCourse in Peninsular or Latin American Studies 3
 Credits9
Spring
SPAN 5XXX: Course in Peninsular or Latin American Spanish Studies 3
SPAN 5XXX: Course in Peninsular or Latin American Spanish Studies 3
SPAN 5XXX: Course in Linguistics 3
 Credits9
Year Two
Fall
SPAN 5XXXElective 3
SPAN 5XXXElective 3
 Credits6
Spring
SPAN 5XXXCourse in Linguistics 3
SPAN 5XXXElective 3
 Credits6
 Total Credits30

Program Notes

The sequence of courses will vary according to the student’s previous experience with the language and individual preferences.

Students may also take courses at SLU's campus in Madrid.

A maximum of six credits of coursework may be approved for transfer toward fulfillment of degree requirements.

Additional requirements include a final written examination and a final oral examination.

Students can complete all or part of their M.A. in Spanish at SLU’s campus in Madrid. SLU-Madrid offers students immersive events at the Real Academia Española (Spanish Royal Academy) and at Spain's Ministry of Education's Instituto Cervantes.

Learn More

For additional information about our program, please contact:

Amy Wright, Ph.D.
Spanish Graduate Program Coordinator
amy.wright@slu.edu