The Graduate Certificate in Latin American Studies (LAS) is an interdisciplinary program, involving multiple departments within the College of Arts and Sciences, which provides a specialized concentration focusing on Latin America and Latinos in the US. This program, housed within the Graduate School, offers students a wide range of course options that examine Latin American societies from the perspective of their history, social structure, economic and political structures, literature, art, and culture. The fifteen-hour program may be completed as a "stand alone" program, or in conjunction with other graduate programs.

Admissions Requirements and Process

Applicants need to have completed an undergraduate baccalaureate degree granted by a United States institution of higher education or its equivalent in another country. To be accepted into the LAS Graduate Certificate Program, students must meet the standard criteria for general admission to the University of Louisville Graduate School, and supply all standard documentation required for admission. Students wishing to pursue the graduate certificate in conjunction with a graduate degree program in another UofL department should first apply and be admitted to the degree program before applying for admission to the LAS Graduate Certificate Program. The Director of the Latin American and Latino Studies Program will interview each student as part of the application process and an Admissions Committee will review applications and decide if a student may be recommended to the LAS Graduate Certificate Program.

Curriculum Requirements

1. The minimum requirement for completion of the LAS graduate certificate is 15 credit hours.

2. Three of the five required courses must be taken at the 600 level.

3. Of the 15 required credit hours, students must take courses with a substantial Latin American content from at least three different disciplines. These may include the following disciplines, but could include others if a course is offered with a substantial Latin American content: Anthropology, Art History, History, Humanities, Linguistics, Modern Languages, Pan-African Studies, Political Science, Portuguese, and Spanish, and Women's and Gender Studies.

4. Of the 15 required credit hours, students must take at least one course from the following list: LAS 680 Issues in Latin America, Spanish 670: Special Topics (seminar with a Latin American topic), Political Science 647: Seminar on Latin America, or History 503/PAS 510: Race Class, and Identity in Latin America.

5. Students must meet a minimum language requirement of three hours of Spanish or Portuguese at the 200 level or above, or demonstrate equivalent language proficiency.

6. A single course may satisfy more than one requirement.

7. Substitutions may be made at the discretion of the Director of Latin American and Latino Studies.

8. Course work toward the graduate certificate in LAS may also count toward the student's graduate degree.

9. Students may not apply 500-level courses taken for undergraduate credit.

Additional courses with substantial Latin American content, which are not listed below, may also be taken to fulfill the requirements for the LAS Graduate Certificate. This list is updated regularly on the LALS Website: http://latinamericanstudies.louisville.edu

• ARTH 542: Special Topics - Mexican Art and Architecture
• ARTH 544: Pan-African Art: Form and Content
• HIST 503: Race Class, and Identity in Latin America
• HIST 533: Revolution and Reform in Twentieth-Century Latin America
• HIST 535/611: The History of Mexico
• HUM 562: Studies in Hispanic Culture
• LAS 680: Issues in Latin American Studies
• LAS 681: Latin American Studies Graduate Internship
• LING 690: Seminar in Linguistics: Theories of Culture/HUM 682/ ENG 682
• LING 690: Seminar in Linguistics: Cultural Metaphors/HUM 682/ ENG 682
• ML 551: Special Topics
• PAS 505: The Black Atlantic
• LAS 510: Race Class, and Identity in Latin America
• PAS 532: Slave Trade and Slavery in the African World
• PAS 533: The History and Popular Culture of the African Diaspora
• AS 542/643: Black Women's Voices
• PAS 581: Pan-African Art: Form and Content
• POLS 554: Democratization and Regime Change
• POLS 563: Women in Developing Countries/WMST 558
• POLS 647: Seminar on Latin America
• POLS 649: Seminar in Comparative Politics
• SPAN 524: Introduction to Hispanic Linguistics
• SPAN 527: Latin American Literature: Colonial Period through 19th Century
• SPAN 528: Contemporary Spanish-American Theater
• SPAN 529: Spanish-American Poetry
• SPAN 530: Spanish-American Narrative
• SPAN 554/654: Hispanic Culture through Film and Media
• SPAN 599: Special Topics
• SPAN 624: Studies in Hispanic Linguistics
• SPAN 634: Spanish for the Workplace
• SPAN 644: Origins and Development of Hispanic Culture
• SPAN 648: Contemporary Issues in the Hispanic World
• SPAN 670: Special Topics
• WGST 558: Women in Developing Countries
• WGST 593: Global Feminism

Please consult the Latin American and Latino Studies website  at http://latinamericanstudies.louisville.edu for a complete list of faculty.