Mar 28, 2024  
2012-2013 Graduate Catalog 
    
2012-2013 Graduate Catalog ARCHIVED CATALOG: CONTENT MAY NOT BE CURRENT. USE THE DROP DOWN ABOVE TO ACCESS THE CURRENT CATALOG.

Spanish, Hispanic Studies M.A.


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The M.A. program in Spanish is flexible, allowing students to concentrate on culture, language, literature, and translation. The program aims to meet the needs of students interested in teaching and other professions.

Before acceptance into the program, students will take a pre-qualifying examination administered by the department that will test their Spanish language skills. Students must pass this examination before being officially admitted to the M. A. program. The exam may be retaken once.

Foreign Language Admissions

Candidates for admission to the graduate program in foreign languages should have the equivalent of the UNLV undergraduate major in the corresponding language with a minimum grade point average of 3.00 in the major field. In some cases, a student who has a bachelor’s degree in another discipline could be admitted to the program upon the recommendation of the department graduate advisor. Possible transfer credit will be determined by the graduate coordinator in accordance with the policies of the Graduate College.

To apply for admission, submit to the Graduate College an application and official transcripts of all college-level work. Two letters of recommendation, a statement of goals, and official transcripts of all college-level work should be sent directly to the department.

Requirements


The 33-hour program includes 9 hours of required graduate course work in Spanish encompassing three areas:

Current Issues in Second Language Acquisition  
or  
Seminar in Spanish Linguistics  
plus  
Textual Analysis  
Writing Workshop  

These courses must be taken in the department. A variety of courses in language, linguistics, literature, and culture will be offered to allow students to complete their degree.

Students may apply a maximum of 9 credits at the 600 level to their graduate program. Upon departmental approval, students may take 6 of their total credits at the graduate level outside the department in an area relevant to their chosen concentration. Students taking the written examination option must include SPAN 798  in their program, while those following the project option must take six credits of SPAN 797  .

Courses taken for graduate credit may not be repeated, with the exception of SPAN 730  and SPAN 740  , provided that topics change. Graduate courses may not be audited without the consent of the instructor. A grade below a B- will place a student on probation. A second grade below a B- will cause a student to be separated from the program.

Final Examination


Written Examination 

Students will take a written Master’s Examination.  Students choosing the written examination option must include SPAN 798  in their program. After completing 21 credits, students, in consultation with the graduate coordinator, will choose for their examination three of the following six areas of concentration: Peninsular culture, Latin American culture, linguistics, Peninsular literature, Latin American literature, and translation theory.  Once these areas are chosen they may not be changed, nor may the option be changed.  The exam will be based on the courses taken as well as on a supplementary list of readings for each area available in the department.  The exam will include three 90-minute sections drafted by the examination committee.  Grammatical accuracy will also be a graded component of the exam.  After passing all three parts of the written exam, students will take an oral examination covering these chosen areas.  Students who do not pass any part(s) of the exam will be allowed to retake the failed part(s) only once.  Students who do not pass all three parts and the oral examination the second time will be separated from the program.   

Final Project Option

Students with at least a 3.8 GPA may (upon the approval of the Spanish graduate coordinator) substitute a final project (six credits of SPAN 797  ) for the written examination.  Before initiating the project, students will establish a three-member faculty examination committee and secure their approval of the project proposals.  If the proposal is rejected twice, the student must take the written examination option.  When accepted projects are completed, students will take the Final Examination, an oral examination covering the final project.  The committee shall consist of the project director, two other members of the graduate faculty, and the graduate faculty representative.  Students whose projects are not acceptable for defense will be allowed to resubmit their project the following semester.  Students who do not secure approval the second time will be separated from the program.  More detailed guidelines will be distributed to enrolled students.  

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