The LAS undergraduate minor prepares students to have an in-depth understanding of Latin America and Latin American issues with an interdisciplinary approach. LAS undergraduate minor is configured as the necessary addition for students who seek a full language immersion and want to apply their disciplines in a Latin American context.

Students must demonstrate high-intermediate proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, or Haitian Creole, and must complete 15 credits with Latin American content (completed with a minimum grade of C).

About this Minor

View current courses offered in Latin American Studies

Student Learning Outcomes

  • SLO 1: Content
    Students will identify, describe and explain the prevailing issues in and scholarly perspectives on Latin American Studies.
  • SLO 2: Skills
    Students will critically evaluate the significance, quality and veracity of information gathered in the literature, apply it, and communicate that knowledge effectively in spoken and written formats.
  • SLO 3: Skills
    Students will show high-intermediate proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, or Haitian Creole, both in oral and written formats.
  • SLO 4: Professional Behavior
    Students will interface with peers and professors with honesty, ethical behavior, cultural sensitivity.

Required Courses

15 credits with Latin American content (completed with a minimum grade of C), distributed as follows:

  • Three credits of LAS 4935, the undergraduate seminar in Latin American studies. Students may repeat LAS 4935 for an additional six credits if the topics vary.
  • Nine more credits of courses with 100% Latin American content.
  • Three additional credits with at least 25% Latin American or Caribbean content.
  • Only courses at the 2000 level or above will count toward the minor. In addition, students must earn nine credits at the 3000 level or above. Advanced Placement credits do not count.
  • Overseas study credits can count as core or elective courses if approved by the undergraduate advisor in the Center for Latin American Studies.

Of the total credits, no more than three may be individual work. Students must complete a minimum of six credits of coursework exclusive to the minor that cannot count as core courses for toward the major(s) or other minors.

Foreign Language Requirements

Students must demonstrate high-intermediate proficiency in Spanish, Portuguese, or Haitian Creole. The language requirement may be met in one of three ways:

  • Coursework: Successful completion of SPN 2240, POR 3242 or 3243, or HAI 2201.
  • Examination: An Advanced Placement score of 4–5, with approval, or a SAT II score of 700. (For Spanish only.)
  • Individual oral examination to be conducted by language faculty

Language courses at the 3000 level or taken on study abroad programs in Latin America/Caribbean may count as core courses with approval from the Undergraduate Advisor at the Center for Latin American Studies.

Candidates for the minor are encouraged to spend a summer, a semester or an academic year studying in a Latin American country. UF sponsors study abroad programs in several countries. For more information, contact Study Abroad Services in the UF International Center or visit here for a list of programs offered by the Center.

Latin American Content: 100%

The offering of 100% Latin American (LAS) content courses each semester is wide. Below you will find a list of 76 courses that are 100% LAS content. Please note this list is not comprehensive and each semester some new courses with 100% LAS content are offered. If the course you are taking or you want to enroll in is not listed here, just contact the Center’s undergraduate coordinator to check if it will count and to have it add it to your transcript.

LAS 2001 Introduction to Latin American Studies

LAS 3040 Drug Wars and Oil Fortunes in Latin America

LAS 3930 Special Topics in Latin American Studies

LAS 4935 Latin America Area Seminar

 

AMH 3421 Florida to 1845

ANT 3162 Aztec Civilization

ANT 3164 The Inca and Their Ancestors

ANT 4336 The Peoples of Brazil

ANT 4168 Maya Civilization

ARC 3652 Ancient Andean Art

ARH 2613 Introduction to Latin American Art

ARH 3653 Mesoamerican Art

ARH 3662 Latin American Art

ARH 3664 Colonial Art of New Spain

ARH 3665 Colonial Andean Art

ARH 3678 Modern and Contemporary Art from Latin America

CPO 3303 Introduction to Latin American Politics

CP0 4306 Contemporary Problems in Latin American Politics

CPO 4384 Argentina and the Politics of Memory

CPO 4722 Latin American and Caribbean Migration to the United States

ECS 3403 Economic Development of Latin America

GEA 3405 Geography of Latin America

GEA 4464 Amazonia

HAI 3503 Haitian Culture and Literature in Translation

HAI 3564 Haitian Culture and Society

HAT 3564 Haitian Culture and Society

IDS 2334 Chemistry in the Cocina Latina

IDS 2935 Human Rights in Latin America

INR 4244 International Politics of Latin America

JMT 3500 Jamaican Creole, Reggae, and Rastafari

JOU 4951 Noticias

LAH 2020 Introduction to Latin American History

LAH 3100 Emergence of Latin American Nations

LAH 3130 Colonial Latin America

LAH 3300 Contemporary Latin America

LAH 3470 Introduction to Caribbean History

LAH 3725 Race, Religion, and Revolution in the Black Caribbean

LAH 3741 Revolution in the Americas

LAH 3931 Special Topics in Latin American History

LAH 4433 Modern Mexico

LAH 4471 Caribbean History to 1800

LAH 4472 The Caribbean, Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries

LAH 4473 France in the Caribbean

LAH 4602 The Conquest of Amazonia

LAH 4630 Brazil after 1750

LAH 4730 Science and Technology in Latin America, 1492-Present

LAH 4930 History Research Seminar: Latin America

LIT 4192 Caribbean Literature in English

MUH 3541 Latin American Music

PCO 4279 Latinx Psychology

POS 4074 Latino Politics and Policy

POW 3100 Monsters of the Portuguese-Speaking World

POW 3130 Colonial Brazil: Cannibalism, Enslavement and Monarchy

POW 4200 Dystopian Narrative in Brazil

POW 4382 Brazilian Drama.

POW 4455 Becoming Brazil: Nineteenth Century to the Present

POW 4480 Contemporary Brazil Narrative

POW 4720 Deep Brazil: Culture of North and Northeast

POW 4740 Crime Fiction in Brazil

REL 3381 Religion in Latin America

REL 4382 Religion and Politics in Latin America

SPN 3443 Marketing and Advertising in the Spanish-Speaking World

SPN 3520 Culture and Civilization of Spanish America

SPN 3530 Theater for Social Justice

SPN 3930 Topics in Spanish and Spanish American Culture and Civilization

SPW 3030 Survey of Spanish-American Literature: From Discovery to Independence

SPW 3031 Survey of Spanish-American Literature: From Independence to Contemporary Times

SPW 4282 Readings in Contemporary Spanish-American Narrative 1

SPW 4354 Readings in Contemporary Spanish-American Poetry

SPW 4364 Readings in the Spanish-American Essay

SPW 4521 US Hispanic Literature

SPW 4780 Women’s Voices Rising

SPW 4840 Readings in Contemporary Spanish-American Narrative 2

THE 4223 Latin American and US Latinx Theatre

WST 4383 Latinx Sexualities

Latin American Content: 25%

The offering of 25% Latin American (LAS) content courses each semester is even wider than the 100% LAS content courses. It can range from courses addressing tropical forests to anthropology and English courses. Accordingly, if your course does not appear automatically in your transcript, just send the syllabus to the Center’s undergraduate coordinator to validate it.

For example, these 15 courses all count as 25% LAS content courses.

ADV 4400 International Advertising

AEB 4282 International Humanitarian Assist.

AMH 3670 African Diaspora in the Americas

ANT 2000 General Anthropology

ANT 2410 Cultural Anthropology

BOT 2800C Plants in Human Affairs

CPO 2001 Comparative Politics

GEO 2420 Introduction to Human Geography

GEO 2420 People, Place, Culture

GEO 3315 Hungry Planet

INR 2001 International Relations

PUR 4404C International Public Relations

REL 2300 Introduction to World Religions

SPW 3100 Iberian Culture Crossroads

YOT 3500 Yoruba Diaspora in the New Word