Program: Latin American Studies, BA - George Mason University

Degree Requirements

Students must fulfill all requirements for bachelor’s degrees , including Mason Core requirements. Students pursuing a BA in Latin American studies must complete additional college requirements for the BA degree in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Students pursuing this degree must complete 33 credits within the major, with a minimum GPA of 2.00.

Four elective courses (12 credits) in Latin American studies

Students may satisfy the electives requirement with any course that contains a significant emphasis on Latin America or the culture, politics, sociology, or history of Latinos living in the United States. In addition, students are strongly encouraged to use an internship (LAS 490) or a study-abroad program to fulfill some of these credits. The electives must be approved by the director of the program.

Language requirement

All Latin American studies majors must demonstrate reading, speaking, or writing knowledge of Spanish or Portuguese by exam or achieving a minimum grade of 2.00 in a 300-level course in the language selected. Upper-level Latin American literature or culture courses taught in Spanish or Portuguese may be used to satisfy the electives requirement.

Total: 33 credits

Writing-Intensive Requirement

The university requires all students to complete at least one course designated “writing intensive” in their major at the 300 level or above. Students majoring in Latin American studies should consult with the director for a course to fulfill this requirement.

Mason Core (40 credits)

Note: some Mason Core requirements may already be fulfilled by the major requirements listed above. Students are strongly encouraged to consult their advisors to ensure they fulfill all remaining Mason Core requirements.

Expand each item below for a link to specific course lists for each category.

Foundation Requirements (15-19 credits)

Mason Core UWCU - Written Communication Credits: 6
Mason Core UOC - Oral Communication Credits: 3
Mason Core UQR - Quantitative Reasoning Credits: 3
Mason Core UITC - Information Technology Credits: 3-7

Core Requirements (22 credits)

Mason Core UFA - Arts Credits: 3
Mason Core UGU - Global Understanding Credits: 3
Mason Core ULIT - Literature Credits: 3
Mason Core UNSL - Natural Science Credits: 7
Mason Core USBS - Social and Behavioral Sciences Credits: 3
Mason Core UWC - Western Civilization/World History Credits: 3

Synthesis/Capstone Requirement (minimum 3 credits)

Mason Core USYN - Synthesis/Capstone Credits: minimum 3

College Level Requirements for the BA degree

In addition to the Mason Core program, students pursuing a BA degree must complete the course work below. Except where expressly prohibited, a course used to fulfill a college level requirement may also be used simultaneously to satisfy other requirements (Mason Core requirements or requirements for the major).

Philosophy or religious studies (3 credits)

Fulfilled by any course in philosophy or religious studies (PHIL, RELI) except for PHIL 323 , 324 , 327 , 393 , 460 . PHIL 253 and RELI 235 cannot be used to fulfill both the philosophy/religious studies requirement and the Mason Core literature requirement.

Social and behavioral science (3 credits)

3 credits in addition to the university-wide requirement in social and behavioral science for a total of 6 credits. The two courses used to fulfill the combined college and university requirements must be from different disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. This requirement may be fulfilled by completing any course in ANTH, CRIM, ECON, GOVT, HIST (except 100 or 125), LING, PSYC, or SOCI and these courses in GGS: 101 , 103 , 110 , 301 , 303 , 304 , 305 , 306 , 315 , 316 , 320 , 325 , 330 , 357 , 380 .

Foreign language

Intermediate-level proficiency in one foreign language. This requirement may be fulfilled by completing a course in a foreign language numbered 202, 209, or 210 (or higher level courses taught in the language) or achieving a satisfactory score on an approved proficiency test. A three course sequence in American Sign Language (EDSE 115 - American Sign Language (ASL) I , EDSE 116 - American Sign Language (ASL) II , and EDSE 219 - American Sign Language (ASL) III will also meet the foreign language requirement. Students who are already proficient in a second language may be eligible for a waiver of this requirement. Additional information on waivers can be found at the Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

Non-Western culture (3 credits)

3 credits of an approved course in the study of a non-Western culture in addition to the course used to fulfill the Mason Core requirement in global understanding. A course used to fulfill the Mason Core global understanding requirement may not be simultaneously used to satisfy this college-level requirement. A course used to fulfill this requirement may be used simultaneously to fulfill any other requirements (Mason Core requirements, college-level requirements, or requirements for the major). Additional information on waivers can be found at the Office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

Electives

Any remaining credits may be completed with elective courses to bring the degree total to 120.

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Latin American Studies, BA