Course description
Latin American Studies is a broad program that encourages students to learn more about the importance of Latin American social, cultural, political, and economic systems. Latin America is an area of growing importance to the United States, and Florida is a primary gateway to Latin America. Courses in this multidisciplinary program are varied and the faculty members are drawn from six university departments.
Faculty
The Latin American Studies Program has a diverse faculty with varied fields of interest. All of our faculty members excel in his/her field of expertise, and all of them are active in publishing articles or presenting research at specialized conferences. Faculty members also travel abroad with students. Recent field courses have gone to Peru, Guatemala, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Belize, Uruguay, and Mexico. Every year, Dr. Anne Hallum takes students to Guatemala to work with the Alliance for International Reforestation. Other opportunities include Dr. Robert Sitler's Internship in the Mexican American Community course, which allows students to use their developing language skills among members of the local Mexican population.
Special Features
Latin American Studies at Stetson University is enhanced by the many opportunities afforded to our students to study and experience life directly in the region. The Study Abroad program in Guanajuato, Mexico, gives students the chance to spend a summer or a semester studying in Mexico and improving their Spanish skills. We also have internship opportunities that allow students to realize a project abroad -- in Mexico, Argentina, Guatemala, or Uruguay. Every year, the Hollis Mentored Field Experience courses sponsor a two to three-week trip abroad in a Latin American country to study in a particular field with the assistance of an accompanying professor with expertise in that area. All of these opportunities are a valuable component to the study of Latin America in Stetson University.
Course Information
In addition to your general education requirements, students need to complete an overview of Latin American issues from the perspective of the Humanities, and the Social Sciences, and be proficient in Spanish -- the language spoken by most of Latin America. Students choose at least one Latin American course from at least three of the seven departments represented in the program: Communication Studies & Theater Arts, Economics, Geography, History, Modern Languages & Literatures, Political Science, Sociology, and Art and six to nine credits from other courses from the same seven departments, all of which have Latin American content. Your Senior Project will complete your coursework.
Internship Opportunities
Internship in the Mexican American Community course; Summer Internships in Mexico, Uruguay, and Argentina; Internships for environmental work in Guatemala and Nicaragua through the Alliance for International Reforestation.
Alumni Highlights
The choices afforded to a student in this program are varied, but one thing is certain, most of the students who take part in our internships return to the United States changed forever. Some of our graduates have gone on to pursue graduate studies in Latin American Studies, work in Colombia in a language school, join the Peace Corps, and become a medical missionary in Haiti.
