Spanish

Spanish: Major

Studying the language, cultures, and literatures of the Spanish-speaking world, you will gain vital writing, speaking, and communication skills, improve your analytical abilities, and develop a cross-cultural awareness and global perspective at home and abroad.

The Department of Spanish seeks to prepare students to engage with the diverse communities, cultures, and traditions found in the Spanish-speaking world, including those in the US. Our program provides opportunities for students to increase their intercultural competence and develop advanced writing, speaking, reading, and communication skills in Spanish. Drawing upon faculty expertise in literature, film, cultural studies, linguistics, Latin American, Latinx, and Iberian studies, creative writing, digital and medical humanities, decolonial theory, and race and ethnicity, among other areas, our curriculum also allows students to hone their critical thinking, their creative expression, and key academic and intellectual skills. We welcome students from all language backgrounds, including native and heritage speakers of Spanish as well as second language learners.

Spanish majors can complement their degree with courses in other academic programs at Holy Cross, including Latin American, Latinx and Caribbean Studies. Interested Spanish majors can also receive their license to teach at the middle through secondary level through our partnership with the Teacher Education Program.

Our Study Abroad programs allow students from any major to expand their language skills and study a variety of subjects while they experience life in Spanish-speaking countries. Study Abroad offerings include year-long and extended semester programs in Argentina, Ecuador, Peru, and Spain.

Our students benefit from close interaction with native Foreign Language Assistants from Argentina and Spain in weekly practice sessions (called Practicum) integrated into our language courses. A number of our courses incorporate Community-Based Learning projects and other experiential learning opportunities. Students can also participate in a rich variety of co-curricular activities and events organized by the Spanish Club. Moreover, our bilingual literary and cultural review fósforo: Revista de Inspiración Hispánica, provides a forum where students may publish their creative work alongside their professors, Foreign Language Assistants, and other members of the community.

Students interested in learning Spanish have the option of taking courses in the Directed Independent Spanish Curriculum (DISC) program. These elementary- and intermediate-level language courses offer an alternative approach to language instruction for students who are motivated to work independently and enjoy using technology. Guided by a professor, students work with online materials and attend weekly Practicum sessions with our Foreign Language Assistants. 

Program Highlights

We offer language classes from elementary to advanced levels and a wide variety of courses in the following areas:

  • Focused Language (including creative writing, medical Spanish, translation, and Spanish for business, among others)
  • Culture and Cinema
  • Linguistics (e.g. bilingualism in the Spanish-speaking world, second language acquisition)
  • Textual Analysis
  • Readings in Literature
  • Advanced Pre-modern Studies
  • Advanced Modern Studies
students in front leon sign
Study Abroad

Study abroad at major universities in Spain, Peru and Argentina.

students in a classroom
Bilingual Journal

Contribute to “fosforo,” a bilingual journal of literature, art and ideas.

Spanish News

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Holy Cross’ Chapter of Sigma Delta Pi Earns National Award
Omicron Epsilon, Holy Cross’ Chapter of the National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society Sigma Delta Pi, has been named an “Honor Chapter” for its outstanding activities in 2019-20, an award that was bestowed to only 11 out of 627 chapters nationwide. …
collage of faculty headshots
Holy Cross Welcomes 11 Tenure-Track Faculty Members
At the start of the 2020-21 academic year, Holy Cross welcomed 11 new tenure-track faculty members, joining the following departments: biology, classics, English, mathematics and computer science, philosophy, psychology, sociology and anthropology, Spanish, and world languages, literatures and cultures. The …
The Holy Cross entrance on Linden Lane
Montserrat Student Ambassadors Facilitate Community for First-Years During Remote Semester

It’s called the Montserrat Tip Column, a resource of recommendations from sophomores serving in the Montserrat Student Ambassador Group. The ambassadors—or MSAGs as they are called among the faculty ...