Overview
Over 400 million people around the world speak Spanish – which is why learning the language makes you a powerful asset to employers in an age of global opportunities.
This course offers the ability to learn Spanish for all regardless of your previous experience – from complete beginners to advanced speakers – and equips you to read, write and speak the language on an advanced level appropriate for the demands of today’s job market. You will also have the chance to acquire a critical awareness of the societies and cultures of the Spanish-speaking world, as well as transferrable skills that can be applied in multiple professional and academic settings.
In order to truly immerse yourself in the Spanish and Latin American cultures, and in most degree combinations, you will spend an extended period studying abroad in Spain, Mexico, Chile, or Argentina. This opportunity to refine your language skills will be enhanced by the research-led teaching you will enjoy in Stirling. There is also normally the opportunity to work abroad with the British Council to enhance your CV (subject to successful application), which offers you time you continue learning and experiencing the language and the culture.
If you would like to explore multiple subjects, Spanish and Latin American Studies can be combined with several other courses. From Accountancy or French and Education (Secondary) or Business Studies to Law and Journalism, each combination is designed to help you work towards your vision for the future right from the outset of your studies.
When graduating, the best student will receive the Blanco White prize.
Entry requirements
SQA Highers
ABBB
GCE A-level
BBB
IB Diploma
28
BTEC (Level 3)
DDM
Essential subjects
To apply for a combined degree with French and Spanish, you’ll require one of these languages at Higher or A-level (or equivalent).
Essential subjects must have been taken within the last five years to ensure your required subject knowledge is current. Recent work experience can be taken into consideration in place of a formal qualification.
Widening access students
Widening access students may be eligible for an adjusted offer of entry. To find out if this applies to you go to our widening access pages.
Care-experienced applicants will be guaranteed an offer of a place if they meet the minimum entry requirements.
SQA Advanced Highers
ABB
GCE A-levels
ABB
IB Diploma
32
Essential subjects
Spanish
Essential subjects must have been taken within the last five years to ensure your required subject knowledge is current. Recent work experience can be taken into consideration in place of a formal qualification.
Scottish HNC/HND
Year one minimum entry - Bs in graded units.
Access courses
University of Stirling access course - for mature students only. You must pass the course with 50% or above.
SWAP access course - for mature students only.
Email our Admissions Team for advice about other access courses.
Foundation Apprenticeships
Considered to be equivalent to 1 Higher at Grade B
Essential subjects
To apply for a combined degree with French and Spanish, you’ll require one of these languages at Higher or A-level (or equivalent).
Essential subjects must have been taken within the last five years to ensure your required subject knowledge is current. Recent work experience can be taken into consideration in place of a formal qualification.
English, Welsh and Northern Irish HNC/HND
Merits and Distinctions
English, Welsh and Northern Irish access courses
Access to Higher Education - 60 credits, minimum 45 at QCF Level 3, pass at 60% or above.
Essential subjects
To apply for a combined degree with French and Spanish, you’ll require one of these languages at Higher or A-level (or equivalent).
Essential subjects must have been taken within the last five years to ensure your required subject knowledge is current. Recent work experience can be taken into consideration in place of a formal qualification.
Advanced entry is not available for this course.
If English is not your first language you must have one of the following qualifications as evidence of your English language skills:
- IELTS Academic or UKVI 6.0 with a minimum of 5.5 in each sub-skill.
- Pearson Test of English (Academic) 60 overall with a minimum of 59 in each sub-skill.
- IBT TOEFL 78 overall with a minimum of 17 in listening, 18 in reading, 20 in speaking and 17 in writing.
See our information on English language requirements for more details on the language tests we accept and options to waive these requirements.
Pre-sessional English language courses
If you need to improve your English language skills before you enter this course, our partner INTO University of Stirling offers a range of English language courses. These intensive and flexible courses are designed to improve your English ability for entry to this degree.
Find out more about our pre-sessional English language courses
Course details
In semesters 1-3 you will take Spanish at either beginners' or advanced learners' level, plus two modules in other subjects, allowing you to develop your interests and enhance your critical and analytical skills. As far and as soon as is possible, the classroom language is Spanish.
In the first two semesters, beginners focus exclusively on developing their Spanish linguistic skills with a dedicated language course (with some opportunities to introduce the student to the concept of Cultural Studies in Spanish and Latin American Studies). The course for advanced Spanish learners comprises tuition in written and spoken Spanish, including cultural aspects drawn from the Spanish-speaking world.
During semesters 3-4, beginners and advanced language students will deepen their language knowledge, as well as study Spanish and Latin American cultures. You will acquire skills of how to express yourself in an informed and critical way, orally and in writing, in and about the fields of your study.
In semesters 5-8, you will continue with the study of language in its written and spoken forms and choose from a variety of thematic optional modules. Previous option modules have discussed topics on: Creative Writing in Spanish; a Specialist Translation module; Sexuality and Gender in Latin American TV, Film and Culture: Border Cultures from the Hispanic World; and studies of the aftermath of Empire in the Spanish-speaking world. In your final study year, you may write a dissertation on your chosen subject in place of a taught module. If you are taking a Single Honours degree in Spanish and Latin American Studies, it is mandatory to write a dissertation.
In our Single Honours and many of our combined degrees there is a compulsory period of study abroad for a semester in a Spanish-speaking country. If there are compelling reasons for which it is not possible for you to undertake the semester 6 abroad, we strongly urge you to spend a minimum of four weeks in a Spanish-speaking country, usually in a language school, or engage in any other activities discussed in advance and approved by your study abroad advisor. You should also seek advice from the International Office on grant availability but expect this minimum residence to be undertaken at your own expense and during vacation time.
The "Option B" study route listed below for semesters 5 and 6 is only for students who have received explicit permission from the course director not to study abroad in semester 6.
Modules
The module information below provides an example of the types of course module you may study. The details listed are for the academic year that starts in September 2024. Modules and start dates are regularly reviewed and may be subject to change in future years.
Course details
You will learn via a combination of lectures, language tutorials, seminars, oral practice sessions with a native speaker and extra curricular activities.
You can study Spanish at advanced level or as a beginner. Years 1 and 2 of our advanced stream are in written and spoken in Spanish to further develop your knowledge of the language. At the same time, you will take an introduction to modern Spanish and Latin American cultures.
The beginners’ stream concentrates on learning the language in Semesters 1 and 2 through a dedicated language programme. In the first semester of Year 2, beginners progress to an intermediate course – enhancing their knowledge of the language while being progressively introduced to the study of Spanish and Latin American cultures. In Semester 4, you will be ready to join students from the advanced course with a good knowledge of the language and have a firm grasp of the necessary skills needed to study Spanish and Latin American cultures more critically and intensively.
Formal assessment is by coursework such as language exercises, essays on set or chosen topics and written for particular reader groups, and oral presentations and engagement. You will also be assessed through exams of various types, including oral exams in Spanish. Written exams require essay-type answers, and language exams test your progress in language structures. Thus modules are assessed by both coursework and examination.
If you study for an Honours Degree in Spanish, you will spend a period of residence abroad. This is usually in Semester 6, and will place you in a Spanish-speaking university. Stirling has exchange agreements with the universities of León, Santander, Sevilla, Jaén, Huelva, Oviedo, Navarra, Córdoba, Granada and Santiago de Compostela. In Latin America, there are exchange agreements with universities in Mexico City, Santiago de Chile and Córdoba in Argentina. In certain degrees, including Single Honours Spanish, the whole of Semesters 5 and 6 can be spent at a Spanish or Latin American university.
You will also have the option of working for a year abroad, normally between semesters 4 and 5. Students often spend this in paid employment – typically as a language assistant teaching English in a school.
Mr José Ferreira-Cayuela, Course Director
+44 (0) 1786 467541
jose.ferreiracayuela@stir.ac.uk
Fees and funding
Scottish students
This fee is set by the Scottish Government and is subject to change.
Although you’re liable for annual tuition fees, if you are domiciled in Scotland you can apply to the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) to have your tuition fees paid by the Scottish Government on your behalf.
You will be charged the annual tuition fee each year when you enrol.
If you need to take additional modules or resit modules, you will be liable for an additional fee.
For more information on courses invoiced on an annual fee basis, please read our tuition fee policy.
Students from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland
This tuition fee may be subject to change depending on guidance provided by the UK Government.
You can apply for financial assistance, including a loan to cover the full cost of your tuition fees, from your relevant funding body. Students from the Republic of Ireland are eligible for a tuition fee loan of up to £9,535 from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS).
We also offer additional funding – such as our Honours Year Scholarship – for students from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland. See our funding opportunities section below for more information.
You will be charged the annual fee each year when you enrol.
If you need to take additional modules or resit modules, you will be liable for an additional fee.
For more information on courses invoiced on an annual fee basis, please read our tuition fee policy and terms and conditions.
International students (including EU)
Eligible students will automatically receive a scholarship worth between £8,000-£30,000 over the duration of your course. See our range of generous scholarships for international undergraduate students.
You will be charged the annual fee each year when you enrol. Your fees will be held at the same level throughout your course.
If you need to take additional modules or resit modules, you will be liable for an additional fee.
For more information on courses invoiced on an annual fee basis, please read our tuition fee policy.
Additional costs
There are some instances where additional fees may apply. Depending on your chosen course, you may need to pay additional costs, for example for field trips. Learn more about additional fees.
See what funding opportunities and loans are available to help you with tuition and living costs.
Students from Scotland
Find funding opportunities for Scottish students.
Students from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland
Eligible students will automatically receive our Undergraduate Welcome Scholarship, Undergraduate Merit Scholarship, and our Honours Year Scholarship, which are worth between £1,000 and £9,250.
International students
Eligible international students will automatically receive a scholarship worth between £8,000-£30,000 over the duration of your course. Find funding opportunities for international students.
If you’re domiciled in the UK, you can typically apply to your relevant funding body for help with living costs. This usually takes the form of student loans, grants or bursaries, and the amount awarded depends upon your personal circumstances and household income.
International (including EU) students won’t normally be able to claim living support through SAAS or other UK public funding bodies. You should contact the relevant authority in your country to find out if you’re eligible to receive support.
We aim to be as flexible as possible, and offer a wide range of payment methods - including the option to pay fees by instalments. Learn more about how to pay.
After you graduate
Preparing you for the world of work
Language skills are highly sought by employers and open up a wide range of careers. Spending time abroad during your degree programme helps you develop cultural awareness, as well as an ability to adapt to new surroundings and work independently or as part of a team. In a job market which is becoming increasingly global, these skills are in high demand across most career sectors.
Your experiences of using Spanish abroad help to prepare you for a range of professional settings and may make your CV stand out from the rest. Combine Spanish with a wide range of other subjects to focus in on your specific ambitions.
We offer a comprehensive employability and skills programme to help you maximise your time at Stirling and develop the attributes required by employers. We also have a dedicated Faculty Employability and Skills Officer and a Careers Service that work in partnership with academic staff to ensure that you get the best out of your university experience, and are given the right opportunities to prepare you for the world of work.
