College of Liberal & Creative Arts
The Spanish Program at San Francisco State offers students a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the language, literature, and culture of Spain and Latin America in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world. The program offers a Bachelor of Arts, a minor.
The Spanish major consists of 30 units of upper-division coursework. Up to 16 units of prerequisite coursework or demonstrated language proficiency is required to begin the major. All upper-division courses are conducted in Spanish, and students are expected to use Spanish in their speaking, reading, and writing.
The Spanish program has different student associations:
- Apertures/Aperturas: A Bilingual Cinema Club: They host events where we view films that open discussions on History, Society, Social Justice, Ecology, Education, and International Relations through film B. We bring visibility to non-commercial cinema from Latin America, Spain, and the United States in a bilingual setting for students of SFSU
- Club Castellano: A place to feel relaxed and confident about speaking Spanish with fellow classmates, chatting about the lessons, lectures, books, and projects.
- Literature and Arts Association of Graduate and Undergraduate Students: The Literary Association of Graduate and Undergraduate Students is a cultural leadership organization that promotes cultural leadership in the literary arts and graduate studies for the Spanish Program and the Comparative and World Literature Program.
Access the list of the major requirements to better understand the structure of the major.
The roadmap puts all of your graduation requirements into an easy-to-follow semester-by-semester plan so you know what to take to stay on track. Whether you are a freshman or a transfer student, you'll be able to find a roadmap that best fits you.
Besides your major requirements, students must complete their GE and University requirements. Be sure to make sure you've completed all of these requirements for graduation.
To learn more about this major, check out the major department’s website below. You can also find out how you can access their faculty advisors who can assist you not just with course choices, but also answer questions about the field and discuss your career plans.
Department of Modern Languages and Literatures
Humanities (HUM) Building, Room 475
Phone: (415) 338-1421
Email: mll@sfsu.edu
Website: https://mll.sfsu.edu/spanish
Coordinator and Associate Professor: Dr. Ana Luengo Palomino
Chair: Charles Egan
Freshmen Student Advising Information
After choosing “Basic Subjects” GE courses in Steps 1-3 of your Orientation process (if you haven’t done so, log onto your Orientation Profile page to follow the “Pre-Orientation Advising Module”), STEP 4 Choosing Major Classes will show you if there are any classes you can take to satisfy major requirements for your first and/or second semester.
Once you have determined your Roadmap above, review the first section below and write down any course recommendations based on your corresponding major roadmap on your Freshmen Class Planner worksheet.
First-year courses in Spanish are designed for students who have had no previous formal training in Spanish and are not native speakers. Those students should take SPAN 101 in the first semester and SPAN 102 in the second semester, both of which focus on basic language skills: understanding, speaking, reading, and writing.
Students who are heritage speakers usually enroll in SPAN 215 – Spanish for Heritage Speakers.
Students who have questions about language proficiency or want to test out of lower-division course(s) should contact aluengo@sfsu.edu to take the placement test.
A score of3 or 4 on AP Spanish Language and Culture or a score of 3 on AP Spanish Literature and Culture is equivalent to SPAN 101, SPAN 102, and SPAN 103.
A score of 5 on AP Spanish Language and Culture or a score of 4 or 5 on AP Spanish Literature and Culture is equivalent to SPAN 101, 102, 205, and SPAN 206.
- Interpreters and Translators
- Teaching
- Social Service
- Advertising
- Journalism
- Literary and Cinema Critic
- Radio and Television Broadcastings
- Communications and Internet Companies
- International Business
- International Organizations
- Government Agencies
- Libraries
- Cultural Agencies
- Tourism
Transfer Student Advising Information
Please see the box above labeled “Major Curriculum/Roadmaps & GE/University Requirements” for information on what courses to take in your first semester at SF State. View our Frequently Asked Questions for Transfers for helpful tips and additional information.