Major & Minor

Spanish

The study of the Spanish language, cultures, and literature expands one’s understanding and empathy, enriches learning, and opens doors to more opportunities and experiences.

Resources

New TabCourse Requirements

PDFMajor Checklist

New TabSpanish Language Certificate

PDFMinor Checklist

Spanish textbook

About the Spanish Major

One of the most prominent languages in the world, the Spanish major at Southern Virginia University explores the language, literature, and culture of the Spanish-speaking world through critical reading and writing in the Spanish language. Small class sizes and an intimate educational setting allow professors to address each individual student’s educational needs and interests and for students to develop the skills necessary to communicate effectively across cultures. A perfect companion major, students are highly encouraged to consider pairing Spanish with another major or minor.

With many Spanish-speaking students in the program, students in the major are exposed to different variations of Spanish accents in the classroom. Students with Spanish language proficiency can take a placement test and complete the major in as quickly as two years, and students who have served Spanish-speaking missions or completed more than four years of high school Spanish can enroll directly into the 300-level classes. Those in the program also have the opportunity to join the Spanish Honors Society, Sigma Delta Phi.

Southern Virginia also offers a Spanish language certificate open to anyone in the campus community to take. With a 100% job placement for the University’s Spanish majors, many students in the program go on to attend graduate or medical school.

Learning Outcomes

What you’ll learn in the Spanish major:

  1. Ability to communicate in spoken Spanish on a variety of subjects.
  2. Ability to communicate in written Spanish on a variety of subjects.
  3. Ability to read and analyze Spanish texts.
  4. Broad understanding of the culture of the Spanish-speaking world.
  5. Broad understanding of the literature of the Spanish-speaking world.

Career Opportunities

There is a wide array of potential careers with a Spanish degree, including jobs in interpreting, education, journalism, sales, and more depending on your personal and professional goals.

  • Cultural Affairs Director
  • Diplomat
  • Healthcare Administration
  • Human Resources Director
  • Interpreter/Technical Translator
  • Journalist
  • Linguist
  • Spanish Teacher K-12
  • Speech-language Pathologist

Getting Started in the Spanish Major

Follow these simple steps below to get a head start in the
Spanish Major today.

Enroll

Begin by taking Spanish I (SPN 101) or Spanish III (SPN 201) in your first year, depending on language proficiency

Contact Your Advisor

Get in touch with New Tab, Open Bio for: Professor Iana Konstantinova to discuss your interests and goals

Declare

Turn in a completed PDFDeclare Major Form to the Registrar’s Office

Questions? Contact the Registrar at emailregistrar@svu.edu.

Spanish Faculty

Professor Iana Konstantinova

Iana Konstantinova

Professor of Spanish; Spanish Program Coordinator

Professor Arlene Fuentes

Arlene Fuentes

Assistant Professor of Spanish

“Spanish is one of the most rapidly growing languages in the U.S. and in the world, and the need for people in the workforce who can speak it is only increasing. Here at Southern Virginia we teach not only the language, but also the different Spanish cultures and literature as well, as it provides our students with a broad understanding of how wonderful and rich this language and culture is.”

—Iana Konstantinova, Spanish Program Coordinator
Graduate Jacob Adams
In the News

Jacob Adams (‘23) Receives Sigma Delta Pi’s Prestigious Gabriela Mistral Award

The national collegiate Spanish honors society Sigma Delta Pi today awarded Jacob Adams (‘23) the Gabriela Mistral award. Founded in 1984 and named after the first Latin American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in literature, the Gabriela Mistral award is given to only a handful graduates and undergraduates each year who are active members of the Sigma Delta Pi honors society and have demonstrated noteworthy involvement and initiative in their chapter.

Link to a news articleRead More
Graduate Carlos Duran
In the News

Carlos Duran (’23) Published Twice In Pluma, The First Spanish-language Literary Magazine For The Shenandoah Valley

Carlos Duran, a senior at Southern Virginia University majoring in mathematics and minoring in Spanish, recently had his second Spanish poem, “Mi Sentimiento,” published in Pluma, a Spanish-language literary magazine run by Washington & Lee University and the first of its kind for the Shenandoah Valley.

Links to a news articleRead More
Professor Iana Konstantinova.
In the News

Professor Iana Konstantinova Publishes Spanish Critical Anthology Book

Iana Konstantinova, Professor of Spanish and Division Chair of Social Sciences at Southern Virginia University, co-edited and recently published a critical anthology book on Spanish Metafiction in collaboration with Dr. Sabrina Laroussi, who is an associate professor at the Virginia Military Institute.

Links to a news articleRead More