Spanish

A major in Spanish allows students to study Spanish language and Hispanic literature and culture either as beginners or advanced learners. Students who enter the major at post-HSC (or advanced) level will be exempted from some language subjects.

The purpose of the major in Spanish is to provide a course of study which allows any student, regardless of their background in the discipline, to include in their degree a specialisation in Spanish which will enable them to:

− comprehend normal spoken and written Spanish in any situation;

− express themselves clearly and accurately in spoken and written Spanish in a wide range of situations;

− use their increasing knowledge of the structure of the foreign language to move from dependence on formal instruction to ongoing independent acquisition of linguistic proficiency;

− gather and synthesise information on topics of current interest from different Spanish-language sources and in different media;

− gain a broad overview of Hispanic cultural and literary traditions;

− recognise and respond personally to culture-specific information and cultural suppositions in Spanish source material, and to differences between Hispanic culture and their own cultural heritage;

− make effective use of linguistic resources such as bilingual dictionaries, Web searches, and descriptive grammars;

− better understand the structure and the communicative resources of their own language;

− include one or two semesters of study abroad in a Spanish-speaking country at an exchange university as part of their Wollongong undergraduate degree.

Major Study

A major in Spanish for beginners or near beginners consists of 66 credit points, and must include 18 credit points at 100-level, 24 credit points at 200-level and 24 credit points at 300-level, as set out below. Students who have achieved a strong 2 Unit HSC pass or equivalent may choose to enter the language sequence at the level of SPAN251, and complete a 54 credit points major comprising 6 credit points (civilisation) at 100-level, 24 credit points at 200-level and 24 credit points at 300-level, as set out below.

All students wishing to enter the Spanish major at the level of SPAN251 must obtain formal approval from the Spanish co-ordinator.

Subject to the pre-requisites listed in the subject database, language and literature/civilisation subjects may be taken independently of one another, e.g. Spanish for Beginners I may be taken without also taking SPAN110. However, students wishing to complete a major in Spanish must complete the sequence set out below.

Native or near-native speakers, whose major also consists of 54 credit points, may be granted waivers for SPAN251 and SPAN252. Such waivers will be granted only at the time of first enrolment in Spanish, in accordance with the Program's policy and with the formal approval of the Spanish co-ordinator or the Convenor of Program. Replacement subjects to make up the 54 credit points for the major are to be chosen from the additional subjects listed below. Credit may be granted for language courses taken at University level in accordance with established University of Wollongong guidelines.

Minor Study

A minor study in Spanish consists of four sequential subjects in Spanish. The minor will consist of 28 or 32 credit points of language study (28 credit points for students beginning at 100 -level and 32 credit points for students beginning at upper levels). Students may not cross-count any subjects from the minor in any other minor or major study.

Example: A student beginner could take a minor by studying SPAN151, SPAN152, SPAN251 and SPAN252.

A student who had studied Spanish to HSC level and was commencing university Spanish at second level could take a Minor by studying SPAN251, SPAN 252, SPAN 351 and SPAN352.

Whilst the minor will not be stipulated on the student's testamur at graduation, it will be recorded on the academic transcript.

Study Program

Last reviewed: 6 November, 2007