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Latin American and Latino Studies

Casa Latina, lower level, Merrill College
(831) 459-4284
http://www.lals.ucsc.edu
Program Description
| Faculty | Course
Descriptions
The Latin American and Latino Studies (LALS) Department
prepares students for bilingual and bicultural participation in
a rapidly changing world. Both Latin America and U.S. Latino communities
are being transformed by globalization; at the same time, deep historical
legacies continue to be very present. The Latin American and Latino
Studies Department integrates the study of Chicano and Latino communities
in the U.S. with analysis of the histories, politics, cultures,
and societies of Latin America and the Caribbean.
LALS courses deal with changing political, social, economic, and
cultural realities, including immigration and transnational communities;
gender, racial, and ethnic identities; social movements; diverse
forms of cultural expression; ongoing political and economic restructuring
in Latin America; and the challenges of political and economic empowerment
for Latino communities in the U.S. To understand these processes,
we draw from interdisciplinary perspectives, including the social
sciences, the humanities, and the arts.
In addition to academic knowledge, LALS also provides opportunities
for students to acquire practical, real-world skills. Through program-related
internship and field-study experiences, students can acquire useful,
pre-professional skills in any of the following key areas: community
development/advocacy, public policy, education, journalism, media,
performance, and research/writing, among others.
Latin American and Latino studies courses span a number of disciplines
and are augmented by courses taught by participating faculty in
various departments. The Latin American and Latino Studies Department
compiles a quarterly list of course offerings from across campus
that count toward the major.
Graduates of the LALS major have made careers in a wide variety
of fields, including teaching, community organizing, community and
government service, journalism and the media, environmental science,
global economics, health care, legal services, library science,
music, publishing, and research. Many have gone on to pursue advanced
degrees in the U.S. or abroad in anthropology, bilingual education,
communications, ecology, economics, geography, history, law, literature,
public health, and sociology-to name a few.
Three lower-division courses are required for the major:
Latin American and Latino Studies 1, Introduction to Latin
American and Latino Studies
and two lower-division electives (select from courses listed below):
Latin American and Latino Studies
80A, Peoples and Cultures of Latin America
80B, Social Movements in Latin America
80C, Power and Resistance in the Americas
80D, Political Social Change in Mexico
80F, Latinos in the U.S.: A Comparative Perspective
80H, Comparative Latina/o Histories
80N, Drug Wars in the Americas
80Q, Música Latina
80X, Central American Culture and Society
Community Studies 80A, Chicanos and Social Change
History
34A, Introduction to the History of the Americas: Colonial
Period
34B, Introduction to Latin American History: National Period
Spanish Literature 60, Introduction to Literary Genres
Music
4 A and 4B, Latin American Ensembles (three quarters
fulfill one lower-division elective)
80F, Music in Latin American Culture: Regional Traditions
Other courses numbered 1-80 on Latin American and/or
Latino subjects may be substituted with approval in advance from
the Latin American and Latino Studies Department.
Courses with similar content taken at other institutions may
be substituted with approval from the Latin American and Latino
Studies Department upon declaration of major.
Without exception, Latin American and Latino Studies 1 must
be taken at UCSC.
In addition, all majors must complete nine upper-division courses,
including core courses, two of which are mandatory (no substitutions):
Latin American and Latino Studies
100A, Politics and Society: Concepts and Methods
100B, Culture and Society:Transculturation
The remaining seven electives must meet the following
criteria:
three must be within a specific cluster that is related to Latin
American/Latino studies from within a single field (e.g., anthropology,
Brazilian studies, cultural studies, economics, education, environmental
studies, film and digital media, history, history of art and visual
culture, literature, politics, sociology). These may or may not
be Latin American and Latino studies courses.
at least one must concentrate on pre-twentieth-
century topics
at least one must center on Chicano/a-Latino/a issues
at least two must be taught in Spanish or Portuguese, one by an
LALS associated faculty
All Latin American and Latino studies majors are expected to
learn to speak, read, and write Spanish or Portuguese and to make
use of these skills on a regular basis in their academic work.
Majors must take at least two upper-division courses taught
in Spanish or Portuguese. At least one of these courses must be
taught by core or participating LALS faculty. Before participating
in study abroad programs or upper-division course work in Spanish
or Portuguese, students must demonstrate proficiency in the language
equivalent to completion of Spanish 6 or 56 or Spanish
for Spanish Speakers 63. Students who have achieved fluency in
Spanish or Portuguese through life experience may request exemption
from this requirement.
All majors are strongly encouraged to undertake either
a field study in Latin America, the Caribbean, the Latino community
in the U.S., or formal academic study abroad through the Education
Abroad Program (EAP). These paths are the best ways to improve
your language skills, explore the nature and direction of your
own specific academic and career interests in relation to Latin
American and Latino studies, and deepen cross-cultural understanding
and relationships based upon personal experience.
Field studies are independent, community-based study projects
for academic credit, done under faculty sponsorship and arranged
on an individual basis. Local opportunities for internships and
field study in Latino communities on California's Central Coast
are numerous. Credit for up to three upper-division courses may
be applied towards the major from field study and study abroad
combined. Field study may count for two upper-division courses.
Please contact the Latin American and Latino Studies Department
for further information regarding the field-study process, course
credit, and a listing of local field-study programs.
Study Abroad
Students may apply to study at foreign universities through EAP.
EAP offers opportunities for students to study at universities
in Mexico City and Monterrey, Mexico; San José, Costa Rica; Santiago,
Chile; Rio De Janeiro, Brazil; and Madrid, Cadiz, Córdoba, Alcalá
de Henares, Granada, and Barcelona in Spain. Sophomores, juniors,
and seniors with two years of university-level Spanish may apply.
In addition, through the EAP Field Research Program (FRP) in Mexico,
during fall and spring quarters, students take classes in Mexico
City and undertake a two-month research project while gaining
first-hand experience of life in Mexico. The FRP offers six sites
for regional research: Guadalajara, Merida, Monterrey, Morelia,
Oaxaca, and Querétaro. Sophomores, juniors, and seniors may apply.
Students may also take an intensive Spanish language program in
Morelia, Mexico, during the summer; in Concepción, Chile, during
the fall; or in Cordoba, Spain, during the fall or spring. Freshmen,
sophomores, juniors, and seniors may apply. Application deadlines
are generally several months to a year in advance of the program,
so come to the office early to plan your study abroad program.
All credit for EAP classes transfers back to your UCSC transcript.
Financial aid applies to all but summer programs and includes
airfare and living costs.
Every major must complete a senior exit requirement in order to
graduate. The preparation and completion of this requirement is
structured into the senior year. There are five options to choose
from:
good to excellent performance in a Latin American and Latino
Studies senior seminar (194 series), including a final research
paper (20-30 pages), completed by the first or second quarter
of the senior year;
an extended research paper, 20-30 pages in length. This paper
often builds on related course work and requires approval from
the relevant faculty adviser before the end of the winter quarter
of the senior year. Students may take a 2- or 5-unit independent
study to complete this paper;
a senior thesis is generally between 40-60 pages and is the result
of one or two quarters of sustained independent research under
the supervision of the faculty adviser;
a senior project can be either a creative project or a community-action
project. Creative projects include web site design, video, performance,
slide show, photo exhibit, or other media work. A short written
analysis of the student's experience in conducting the project
is required. Community-action projects often involve sustained
research and/or activity conducted in a community organization
or public interest group, usually stemming from an internship.
A short written analysis of the connection between the student's
activity and research and the project itself is required;
the Student-Directed Seminar option is available to unusually
qualified students only. It requires three quarters of preparation
directed by a faculty adviser and approval by the Academic Senate
Committee on Educational Policy. This option can be taken only by
petition with the approval of the faculty adviser. Petition forms
are available at the Latin American and Latino Studies Office.
The following are two recommended academic plans for undertaking
basic preparation for the Latin American and Latino studies major.
Plan One is a guideline for students who are committed to the
major early in their academic career. Plan Two is for transfer
students.
| Plan One |
Entering Freshmen |
| Year |
Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
1st
(frsh) |
Span 1 |
Span 2
LALS 1 |
Span 3
LALS 80-series |
2nd
(soph) |
Span 4
or SPSS 61 |
Span 5 or SPSS 62
LALS 100A
LALS 80-series |
Span 6 or 56 or SPSS 63
LALS 100B |
| Plan Two |
Junior Transfers |
| Year |
Fall |
Winter |
Spring |
3rd
(jr) |
Span 4 or SPSS 61
LALS 1
LALS 80-series |
Span 5 or SPSS 62
LALS 100A
LALS 80-series |
Span 6 or 56 or SPSS 63
LALS 100B
LALS upper-div |
4th
(sr) |
LALS upper-div
LALS upper-div
LALS 195B |
LALS upper-div
LALS upper-div
LALS 195C |
LALS upper-div
LALS upper-div |
The combined major option, requiring fewer courses than
a double major, is established with the global economics, politics,
and sociology majors.
Latin American
and Latino Studies/Global Economics
For the combined major in Latin American and Latino studies/global
economics, students complete a total of seven lower-division course
requirements for both the Latin American and Latino studies and
global economics majors. Students are assigned a faculty adviser
from each discipline. Upper-division course requirements include
Economics 100A, 100B, and 113; Latin American and Latino Studies
100A and 100B; and five additional elective courses, two from
economics and three from Latin American and Latino studies. Two
of the upper-division courses must be taught in Spanish (or Portuguese)
and two to four (at least one quarter) must be courses of academic
work, internship, or field study abroad in a Spanish- or Portuguese-speaking
country. The comprehensive requirement is met by the completion
of a senior thesis on a topic suitable to both global economics
and Latin American and Latino studies, supervised by a faculty
member from either department and read and approved by the student's
advisers from both departments.
Latin American and Latino Studies/Politics
For the combined major in Latin American and Latino studies/politics,
students complete three lower-division course requirements. One
of the lower-division courses must be Latin American and Latino
Studies 1 (no substitutions). For transfer students, a petition
may be made to substitute the other lower-division courses (one
Latin American and Latino studies elective, one course from Politics
1-79) with appropriate course work from another institution. The
10 upper-division courses include four core course requirements
(Latin American and Latino Studies 100A and 100B, Politics 100
and 140C), two courses from any Politics Department sequences
(comparative, American, international, and theory), and four upper-division
electives. To complete the senior comprehensive requirement, students
may take either a Politics (190) or Latin American and Latino
Studies (194) senior seminar.
Latin American and Latino Studies/Sociology
Students are required to take a total of 14 courses and satisfy
a comprehensive requirement. There are four lower-division course
requirements, two each from the sociology and Latin American and
Latino studies majors. One of the lower-division LALS classes
must be Latin American and Latino Studies 1 (no substitutions);
transfer students may petition to replace the other lower-division
class with an appropriate course from another institution. Students
are assigned a faculty adviser from each discipline. Upper-division
requirements include six core courses: Latin American and Latino
Studies 100A, 100B; Sociology 103A, 103B, 105A, and 105B; and
four additional elective courses, two from Sociology and two from
Latin American and Latino Studies. At least one of the Latin American
and Latino Studies upper-division courses must be taught in Spanish
or Portuguese, and at least one course in the sociology/Latin
American and Latino studies combined major must be on Chicano/Latino
issues. Up to three relevant courses taken through study abroad
programs from which credits are transferable to UCSC may be credited
toward the major when the content is deemed appropriate by the
faculty advisers of both sociology and Latin American and Latino
studies. Students can satisfy the comprehensive requirement in
one of three ways: (1) writing a senior thesis, (2) passing an
appropriate Latin American and Latino Studies Senior Seminar (194
series), or (3) completing the sociology course option of two
additional sociology upper-division cluster III courses. If the
thesis option is selected, it should be planned in consultation
with an adviser from each department, completed under the supervision
of a faculty member from either department, and read and approved
by both advisers; one adviser is sufficient if this faculty member
belongs to both departments.
The minor in Latin American and Latino studies consists
of seven courses, including two lower-division courses (Latin
American and Latino Studies 1 and one other lower division course)
and five upper-division courses (including either Latin American
and Latino Studies 100A or 100B and any other four upper-division
courses that count towards the major). Knowledge of Spanish and/or
Portuguese is highly recommended, but not required for the minor.
The Department of Latin American and Latino Studies
offers a parenthetical notation in Latin American and Latino studies
for Ph.D. students in anthropology, environmental studies, history,
history of consciousness, literature, psychology, and sociology
(additional departments pending approval). This concentration
in Latin American and Latino studies provides graduate students
with opportunities for interdisciplinary study with faculty from
across the campus. Completion of the program will be listed on
the graduate degree as a parenthetical notation. The request must
originate in the degree-granting department. Students in other
departments wishing to pursue a parenthetical notation in Latin
American and Latino studies should consult with the chairs of
their respective Ph.D. programs and of Latin American and Latino
Studies. A list, updated annually, of regularly offered approved
graduate courses is available in the Latin American and Latino
Studies Department office.
Requirements for the Notation
Committee Composition. The
student must have a designated graduate adviser from among the
Latin American and Latino studies core, participating, or affiliated
faculty. This adviser will be in addition to the graduate adviser
from the student's home department. The Latin American and Latino
studies adviser must serve on the student's qualifying examination
committee and/or on the student's dissertation committee.
Writing. The student must
prepare a significant piece of writing in the area of Latin American
and Latino studies. This writing may take the form of a substantial
seminar paper, master's essay, or doctoral dissertation chapter.
Course requirements. The student
must take five graduate courses in Latin American and Latino studies,
including the required LALS 200. The courses can be selected from
among the graduate offerings of any UCSC department, as long as
they are taught by core, participating, or affiliated Latin American
and Latino studies faculty.
Teaching. The student must
serve as a teaching assistant in at least one Latin American and
Latino studies course or teach a Latin American and Latino studies
course independently in the regular curriculum or in Summer Session.
Courses. Graduate course work
in Latin American and Latino studies is available both in the
Latin American and Latino Studies Department and in other UCSC
departments. Graduate courses to date in the Latin American and
Latino Studies Department include
200, Bridging Latin American and Latino Studies
210, Latina Feminisms: Theory and Practice
212, Latina/o Ethnographic Practice
297, Independent Studies
299, Directed Reading
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