Latin American Studies
Why take courses in Latin American Studies?
Latin American studies at Oberlin is an "area studies" program where courses from many disciplines and departments count for the major, as long as the course uses its discipline to study Latin America and Latin Americans (including Latines in the United States). If you're interested in the history, art, economy, music, politics, film, anthropology, literature, sociology, and dance "south of the border" -or in the people living in or passing through that border- Latin American studies is for you.
What kinds of questions does Latin American Studies explore?
-
How did the Spanish colonial history of Latin America produce different treatments of indigenous societies than in North America?
- How have music and dance been used to "package" Latin America for global consumption, and how have some music and dance genres contributed to cultural nationalist projects in Latin America?
- What is driving the increasing waves of immigration from Mexico and Central America, and what can governments do about it?
- What is "magical realism" --and what other types of literature have come out of Latin America?
- How has Latin America contributed to the discourse of universal human rights which has helped reach justice to countries after dictatorships?
What advice would you give students interested in taking courses in Latin American Studies?
Take our half-credit course LATS 100 as soon as you can: it's a tasting menu, where after two weeks of foundational material (and posing some basic questions), each week a College professor from a different department gives a class about Latin America from their disciplinary perspective.
Students interested in taking courses in the department typically "find" LATS by accident, getting excited about a course or a professor in a different department (CINE, or ARTH, or POLT, etc.), then moving sideways, taking LATS 100 along the way, to study the field further. (The second example in the table below is of a double-major in Latin American Studies and Art History.)
Taking Courses
Course placement
Proficiency in one Latin American language is required. If that's Spanish, then HISP 304, or its equivalent (demonstrated through APs and placement testing); for any other language, contact the department chair.
Courses for non-majors or general interest
- LATS 100, What Is Latin America?
Getting started in the major
Consider doing study abroad in Latin America, either in the programs that the college is generally affiliated with in Chile, Argentina, etc., or in the Border Studies Program, a program which begins at University of Arizona Tucson and which takes the students all through Mexico to study the migration routes across that country to the United States. (It also has a new track following environmental justice and sustainability.)
Advanced Placement Credit
The Latin American Studies program does not offer AP/IB credit transfer. Refer to the AP/IB chart for complete information about AP test scores.
Majoring in Latin American Studies
Provided are two examples of how a student could distribute courses required for the major over three or four years, with the second table specifically geared toward an example of a double-major in Latin American Studies and Art History. See the catalog for additional details about major requirements.
Sample Four-Year Plans
| Fall | Spring | |
|---|---|---|
| Y1 | LATS 100 (HISP 203) |
HIST 110 (HISP 304) |
| Y2 | HISP 318 CAST 201 |
HISP 210 |
| Y3 | CAST 229 | ANTH 278 |
| Y4 | DANC 105 | LATS 400 |
| Fall | Spring | |
|---|---|---|
| Y1 | ARTH 157 | |
| Y2 | LATS 100 AAST 122 |
ARTH 370 (HISP 304) |
| Y3 | CAST 226 ARTH 252 |
Study Away |
| Y4 | HIST 109 | HUMS 400 |
Related Areas of Study
Africana Studies; Anthropology; Art History; Cinema Studies; Comparative American Studies; Dance; Economics; Ethnomusicology; Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies; Hispanic Studies; History; Politics
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Latin American Studies Major Requirements
Latin American Studies Department