Study Abroad
There are many wonderful options all over the world for Hispanic Studies majors and minors to study abroad. This page contains information that will assist Hispanic Studies majors and minors in determining how to integrate study abroad into their Brandeis careers.
We understand that many students who major or minor in Hispanic Studies wish to study abroad in a Spanish-speaking country. We encourage this experience as something that is both academically and personally valuable, especially in the context of developing skills and cultural awareness in a foreign language. We have prepared the information presented here in order to help make the process of selecting courses that will count towards your major or minor at Brandeis easier.
Approved Programs
VIEW HISP Program & Course Examples
Program & Courses Examples pages are organized alphabetically by department. The Brandeis approved program list database is filtered by programs with HISP courses. You may also filter by other parameters like location, housing type, and more.
Experiential Learning
Programs with HISP Internships
programs with HISP Related research
The above links take you to programs that reported they have internships or research available in HISP. Study Abroad Advisors can help you work with the program to learn more about the types of opportunities available, as some may be limited, competitive, or have prerequisites like language requirements.
Receiving Credit in Hispanic Studies
The major and minor in Hispanic Studies at Brandeis comprise the study of the broad spectrum of language, literature, and culture from the perspective of textual analysis. For the Hispanic Studies program, a text may be any example of cultural production open to interpretation, and in particular those that use language as a means of expression: books, stories, films, multi-media, performance, etc.
What is distinct in our discipline, Hispanic Studies, as opposed to other disciplines and fields is the tools we bring to analysis, the fact that, as students of Hispanic cultures, we are not historians, anthropologists, ethnomusicologists, etc., but literary and cultural scholars and critics. To be more specific, any course that we would teach in our Hispanic Studies program which a student takes abroad will count towards the major and minor.
Examples of courses that we would accept for credit (as long as you hadn't taken a similar course already at Brandeis) include:
- Cervantes' Don Quixote
- Spanish/Latin American Films
- The novel/poetry of …. (e.g. the Spanish Civil-War, the post-dictatorship period, etc.)
- Afro-Latin American or Indigenous theater
Examples of courses that we probably would not accept for credit include:
- Arts or Architecture (these course would be taught in the Fine Arts Department at Brandeis)
- Folk dances in Spain / the Andes, etc (these classes would be taught in the Theater department)
- History of Latin America (this course would be taught in the History Department at Brandeis)
- Language classes (however, if you do take a language class, you might be able to skip HISP 105 or HISP 106 upon your return, depending on your level)
- Arabic Literature (even if taught in Spanish, this course is not necessarily pertinent to the study of Hispanic culture)
department credit transfer policies
Students wishing to receive credit in HISP for coursework done off-campus during the academic year should discuss these plans with the Study Abroad Liaison. Students hoping to earn credit abroad toward their HISP major should confirm with the HISP department prior to departing abroad how courses may or may not be able to count. The link above is a list of already pre-reviewed courses and how they can count toward the HISP major/minor. Upon return, semester students should complete the Petition to Request Substitution for a Requirement form for final and formal review.
Study Abroad Liaison
To assist students with their academic choices abroad and to help answer any questions about receiving major/minor credit while abroad, each academic department and program has assigned a faculty member to serve as the Study Abroad Liaison. As every department has different policies regarding credit from abroad, the Study Abroad Liaison can assist you with guidance on major/minor credit. Find the Study Abroad Liaison for HISP.