The Latin American Studies program offers a minor made up of multidisciplinary courses from up to four departments. Students interested in a minor should meet with academic and career advisors in Tykeson Hall.
Minor Requirements
A total of 28 credits are required for the Latin American Studies minor:
- 20 of the 28 credits must be taken for a letter grade and passed with a grade of C- or better. (Up to eight credits may be taken pass/no pass.)
- 20 of the 28 credits must be upper-division (300- or 400-level).
- 20 of the 28 credits must be taken at the University of Oregon campus in Eugene, OR.
Note these additional parameters for the LAS minor:
- Limit on multiple department credits: No more than four departments, disciplines, or programs can count toward the minor.
- Limit on single department credits: No more than 12 credits from any single department can count toward the major.
- Pre-20th century credits required: A minimum of 4 credits must be earned through completion of a course or courses whose focus is on Pre-20th Century Latin America. Take one of the following courses to satisfy this requirement: LAS 200*, HIST 380, HIST 381, HIST 480, HIST 482, SPAN 341, SPAN 342, or SPAN 343. *If LAS 200 is taken as required introductory course, it cannot also apply toward elective total credits for the LAS minor, though they may be used to satisfy the pre-20th century Latin America requirement.
- Allowances for non-LAS-related credits: Four credits maximum can be in comparative, global, ethnic, and similar courses that are relevant to Latin American studies but lack a minimum of 50% content directly related to Latin America. (Students who seek to take a course that may fall in this category should work with an advisor to submit a substitution request for LAS director review and consideration.)
- Allowances for study abroad credits: Eight credits may be earned through successful completion of pre-approved courses in study abroad program at an accredited Latin American college or university; transfer credits from universities outside Latin America are considered individually, following existing procedures in appropriate departments for determining their equivalence to UO courses.
- Allowances for upper-division language courses as electives for the LAS minor: Spanish, Portuguese, or Indigenous language courses must be upper-division literature and culture courses to count toward satisfaction of the 28-credit minor requirement.
Core Courses
Students must complete core courses for a total of eight credits.
One Required Introduction Course (4 credits)
Preferred course:
- LAS 200 Introduction to Latin American Studies*
Substitution options for current minor:
- PS 330 Governments & Politics in Latin America
One Additional Required LAS Course (4 credits)
Preferred courses options:
- LAS 211 Latin American Humanities: [course title varies]
- LAS 407 Seminar: [course title varies]
Substitution options for current minor:
- PHIL 342 Introduction to Latin American Philosophy
- GLBL 446 Development and Social Change in Latin America
- SPAN 490 20th-Century Latin American Literature: [course title varies]
*These courses satisfy the pre-20th century requirement for LAS minors.
Electives
Take four or more of the courses listed as approved electives for a total of 20 credits. When picking courses, students should keep in mind limitations on types of courses applicable to the minor, as well as upper-division course requirements.
Language Requirement
In addition to the minimum of 28 credits in required and elective courses, all minors are required to demonstrate a second-year level of proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, or an Indigenous language from the LAS area of study.
This will entail completing (with a grade of C– or better or P):
- Two years of college-level Spanish- or Portuguese-language courses, or the equivalent level in an indigenous language.
- Language credits may be earned at the University of Oregon, through an approved overseas program, or transferred from another accredited college or university.
- As an alternative, students may satisfy the language requirement by examination, demonstrating a level of competence equivalent to two years of college-level Spanish, Portuguese, or an indigenous language.
- Students whose native language is either Spanish or Portuguese may substitute equivalent competence in English in lieu of this requirement.