Spanish Program

With more than 460 million speakers, Spanish is the second most spoken native language of the world. It is the official language in 21 countries and is spoken by more than 13% of the United States population, making it the second largest community of Spanish speakers in the world.

The Spanish Program at Southwest Minnesota State University offers students from all disciplines the opportunity to develop listening, reading, speaking, and writing skills in the Spanish language, and to familiarize themselves with the history and cultures of Spanish-speaking countries. The Spanish Program encourages students to broaden their perspective and increase their understanding and sensitivity to the cultures of the Spanish-speakers worldwide.

The Spanish Program offers courses for persons who have no background in learning Spanish through advanced courses. Heritage speakers are encouraged to enroll in upper division courses to help professionalize their writing and speaking abilities. The Program also offers a Minor in Spanish (16 credits), which includes intermediate and advanced Spanish courses. Other specialty areas involving Spanish are the K-8 World Language and Culture: Spanish Endorsement (for Elementary Education) and the Hispanic Studies Certificate.

Minor in Spanish (16 credits)

Required Courses (7 credits):
Upper level Spanish courses focusing on further development of the four basic language skills through the study of popular contemporary readings and directed conversation.

Elective Courses (9 credits):
Elective courses cover topics such as Latin America and Spanish Cinema; Introduction to Spanish Translation; Spanish for professions (justice, medical, health, social work, etc.). Intermediate Spanish Courses (SPAN 201, 202, 205, 222) also count as electives for the Spanish minor.

Benefits
One of the main benefits of the Spanish Program is that students will obtain skills essential in fields such as International business, education, government service, and the tourism and hospitality industries.

Additionally, the Minor in Spanish is a popular choice among students of medicine, nursing, dentistry, and other health professionals, who want to cater to Spanish-speaking patients and clients.

Heritage speakers may professionalize and expand their speaking abilities and vocabulary as well as learn about other Spanish-speaking countries.