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Latino/a and Latin American Studies

Overview

The Latino/a and Latin American Studies (LLAS) major offers an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the societies and cultures of Latin America and the Latino and Chicano experience in the United States. By extending the study of "Latin America" beyond the geopolitical borders of the region to include the Caribbean and the United States, the major emphasizes the importance of migrations, interethnic interactions, and cultural exchanges of Indigenous, European, African, and Asian peoples throughout the Americas. The LLAS program engages students with a variety of perspectives on the socio-political complexities and cultural traditions of the Americas, and the historical development of unique regional societies and cultures. The transnational perspective of our curriculum distinguishes the LLAS major from more traditional area studies programs.

Students in the major develop proficiency in Spanish and take courses from a broad range of academic disciplines and departments, including history, Spanish, sociology, English, music, politics, economics, psychology, and education. LLAS majors are strongly encouraged to participate in study abroad and summer research programs in Latin America or Spain. Our program also encourages students to engage in community-based learning through the different activities available in the Latino and Latin American communities that are integral to the city of Los Angeles. The major prepares students for graduate school as well as for a variety of career paths, including community organizing, social work, education, public history (museums and cultural centers), government, law, public service, and business.

Requirements

Major

The Latino/a and Latin American Studies Major requires 44 units (or 11 courses). The course distribution requirements are: LLAS 101, one Methods course, two classes on Latin America, two classes on U.S. Latinx, three additional electives from any of the courses listed below, LLAS 490, and either SPAN 202 or SPAN 211.

 

Introductory Course

LLAS 101

Introduction to Latina/o and Latin American Studies

4 units

Language Proficiency

Students must complete one of the following:

SPAN 202	Advanced Spanish	4 units
SPAN 211	Spanish for Heritage Speakers	4 units

Methods

Students must complete one of the following:

POLS 300	Research Methods in Politics and Public Policy	4 units
SOC 304	Sociological Inquiry	4 units

Latin American Studies Courses

Students must complete two courses on Latin America selected from the list below:

DWA 222	Latin America Political Economy	4 units
DWA 224/POLS 221	Latin American Politics	4 units
DWA 229/LLAS 229	Introduction to Human Rights: Focus on the Americas	4 units
DWA 240/LLAS 261	Human Rights in Colombia: Comparative Perspectives	4 units
DWA 286	Public Diplomacy in the Americas	4 units
HIST 150/LLAS 150	Colonial Latin America	4 units
HIST 151/LLAS 151	Modern Latin America	4 units
LLAS 102/MUSC 102	Music of Latin America	4 units
LLAS 207/SOC 207	Latina and Latin American Women’s Labors	4 units
LLAS 210/SOC 210	The Struggle for Human Rights in Mexico	4 units
LLAS 223/PHIL 223	Mexican Philosophy, Culture, and Society	4 units
LLAS 252/HIST 252	Religion in Mexico, Pre-Columbian Times to Present	4 units
LLAS 254/HIST 254	The History of Race in Latin America	4 units
LLAS 258/HIST 258	Twentieth Century Mexico	4 units
LLAS 301	Gender and Sexuality in Colonial Latin America	4 units
LLAS 302	The Mexican Revolution	4 units
LLAS 322/SOC 322	Central American Feminisms and Social Movements	4 units
LLAS 355/HIST 355	Indians of Mexico	4 units
LLAS 357/HIST 357	Environmental History of Mesoamerica	4 units
LLAS 358/HIST 358	Food and Drink in Mexican History	4 units
PHIL 223/LLAS 223	Mexican Philosophy, Culture, and Society	4 units
RELS 228/LLAS 228	Religion, Liberation, and Latin American Social Movements	4 units
SPAN 303	Introduction to Modern Latin American Literature and Culture	4 units
SPAN 313	Latin American Film and Culture	4 units
SPAN 314	Latin American Women's Voices in Fiction and Film	4 units

U.S. Latinx courses:

Students must complete two courses on U.S. Latinx selected from the list below:

ECON 324	The Economics of Immigration	4 units
LLAS 202/AMST 202	Latina/o Cultural and Intellectual History	4 units
LLAS 205/POLS 205	Latino/a Politics	4 units
LLAS 206/EDUC 205	The Politics and Pedagogy of First and Second Language Acquisition	4 units
LLAS 207/SOC 207	Latina and Latin American Women’s Labors	4 units
LLAS 213/EDUC 213	Chicano Education	4 units
LLAS 323/PHIL 322	Latinx Philosophy	4 units
LLAS 259/HIST 259	Health on the Move: Immigrant and Refugee Resilience	4 units
LLAS 260/AMST 260	United States Latino Literature and Cultural Studies	4 units
LLAS 304/HIST 300	Mexico-U.S. Borderlands	4 units
LLAS 321/SOC 321	Immigration to the United States from Mexico and Central America	4 units
MUSC 386	Performance and Politics of the United States-Mexico Border	4 units
PHIL 322/LLAS 323	Latinx Philosophy	4 units
SPAN 342	Spanish in the United States	4 units
SPAN 383	Survey of Chicano Literature	4 units

Senior Seminar

LLAS 490

Senior Seminar

4 units

Electives

Three additional electives from any subject area listed above.  At least one such elective must be at the 300-level (to satisfy the College's Second-Stage Writing Requirement).

Minor

To complete the LLAS minor, five courses (20 units) are required in the following distribution: LLAS 101 plus four LLAS electives selected from any of the courses above.

Second-Stage Writing

LLAS majors satisfy É«ÇéÊÓƵ's Second-Stage Writing Requirement by earning the grade of B- or better in any 300-level LLAS course or a course cross-listed with LLAS that is writing intensive (and in which writing is in English). Students are expected to complete this graduation requirement before the beginning of their senior year.

Comprehensive Requirement

To satisfy the comprehensive requirement students will produce a senior thesis in the Senior Seminar. Declared majors propose the topic of their thesis before the end of their junior year. The thesis is a research-based essay of approximately 30 pages integrating both primary and secondary source materials. Successful completion of the senior thesis along with a public presentation of it in the spring semester will satisfy the LLAS comprehensive requirement.

Transfer Credit Policies

The Latino/a and Latin American Studies program policy on transfer credit conforms to College Policy. Courses that address topics central to Latino/a and Latin American Studies approved for transfer by the appropriate department or program will be considered to apply toward the Latino/a and Latin American Studies major and minor. Students should reference the Transfer Credit section for more details.