Major

The B.A. in World Languages allows students to specialize in two languages. In the World Languages: Russian major, students choose Russian as the primary language and one secondary language specialization (Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Latin or Spanish). Students must complete at least 23 credit hours of coursework beyond the first-year sequence in the Russian primary language and at least 16 credit hours in the secondary language specialization. The total number of hours depends on the languages studied.

Declare your World Languages Major!

SMU Degree Requirements

An SMU undergraduate degree requires a minimum of 120 credit hours and must include completion of the, one major and a combination of electives and/or other majors or minors. Completion of certain majors requires more than 120 hours to finish the degree. The credit hours within this curriculum are distributed as follows:

Requirements for the World Languages Major: Russian


Core Courses (8 Credit Hours)


Three or four courses from the following: (9-12 Credit Hours)


  •  (abroad only)
  •  (abroad only)

Elective Courses (3-6 Credit Hours)


One course from the following, or two if only three advanced Russian courses are taken:

  •  (with approval from Russian area chair)

Total for the Major Only: 23 Credit Hours + Hours Required for Secondary Language Specialization


Secondary Language Specializations


One secondary language chosen from the following eight specializations:

Arabic


Required Courses


Core Courses (14 Credit Hours)


Elective Courses (6 Credit Hours)


Two from the following, with at least one course at the 3000-level and above:

  •  (when offered in topics related to the Middle East; see area chair for approval)
  • /  

Total: 20 Credit Hours


Chinese


Required Courses


Core Courses (8 Credit Hours)


Two courses from the following: (6 Credit Hours)


Elective Course (3 Credit Hours)


One course from the following:

  •  (with approval from Chinese area chair)

Total: 17 Credit Hours


French


Required Courses


Core Courses (14 Credit Hours)


  •  (or equivalent)

Elective Courses (6 Credit Hours)


Two courses from the following:

  • FREN courses at the 3000-level and above
  •  (with approval from French adviser)

Total: 20 Credit Hours


German


Required Courses


Core Courses (10 Credit Hours)


Elective Courses (9 Credit Hours)


Three  at the 3000-level and above, approved by adviser. One English-language course directly related to German culture and society may be taken from the following:

  •  (with approval from German area chair)

Total: 19 Credit Hours


Italian


Required Courses


Core Courses (13 Credit Hours)


One course from the following:

Elective Course (3 Credit Hours)


  • One 4000-level ITAL course approved by adviser
  • or

  •   (with approval from Italian area chair)

Total: 16 Credit Hours


Japanese


Required Courses


Core Courses (14 Credit Hours)


Elective Course (3 Credit Hours)


One course from the following:

  •  (with approval from Japanese area chair)

Total: 17 Credit Hours


Latin


Required Courses


Core Courses (6 Credit Hours)


Three or four courses from the following: (9-12 Credit Hours)


One course from the following (if only three advanced Latin courses are taken): (3-4 Credit Hours)


  •  (with approval from Latin area chair)

Total: 18-19 Credit Hours


Spanish


Spanish has three tracks, for non-native, heritage and native speakers of Spanish. These categories refer to a student’s linguistic ability and are determined by the Spanish area adviser. As such, tracks and appropriate courses are selected in consultation with the Spanish area adviser.

Track for Native Speakers: Native speakers will start coursework at the 4000 level. In consultation with the Spanish area adviser, they should begin with  or , with one exception: native speakers who have not had formal academic training with written Spanish may begin coursework with .

Track for Heritage Speakers: Heritage speakers must take  and , instead of  and . From the second category below, they may select from , , or  only.

Track for Non-Native Speakers: Non-native speakers may take  before  and/or may take one of the following concurrently with : , , , or .

Required Courses


Core Courses (10 Credit Hours)


  •  

  •  or equivalent
  • or 

  •  or equivalent
  •  

  • or

One course from the following: (3 Credit Hours)


Elective Courses (6 Credit Hours)


Two courses from the following:

  • Advanced SPAN courses at the 3000 level and above
  •  (with approval from Spanish adviser)

Note: Once enrolled in an Advanced Linguistics/Literature Course (SPAN 4340 - SPAN 4383), students are no longer eligible to enroll in SPAN 3000-level courses.

Total: 19 Credit Hours