Master of Arts (MA)

Program Overview

The Master of Arts in Spanish is a freestanding, one-year course of study that may be undertaken as a preparatory degree to apply subsequently to doctoral programs in the field or as a terminal degree by those interested in pursuing careers in education, publishing, government, journalism, literary translation, or non-profit organizations.

Students completing a Master of Arts in Spanish at the University of Toronto can choose one of two concentrations:

  1. Hispanic Literatures and Cultures
  2. Hispanic Linguistics

The focus on Hispanic Literatures and Cultures aims to provide students with a rigorous foundation on issues related to the cultural production of Latin America and Spain. The program orientation is toward cultural studies from a transatlantic and interdisciplinary perspective.

The focus on Hispanic Linguistics aims to attune students to key theoretical issues and theoretically informed experimental work on language acquisition, language structure, language contact and bilingualism, and microvariation in Spanish.

Students in the Literature and Culture focus complement their work in the department with courses in other academic units such as Book History and Print Culture, Centre for Comparative Literature, Diaspora and Transnational Studies, French, History, Linguistics, Centre for Medieval Studies, and Women’s Studies.

Students in the Linguistics focus can expect to become part of a broadly based community of researchers, including linguists and speech scientists working in the Departments of Linguistics, French, Slavic Literature and Culture, Speech Pathology, Engineering, and the OISE Modern Language Centre.

 

Admission Requirements

Applicants to the MA program should have a four-year undergraduate degree (or the equivalent from a recognized university) in Spanish or a cognate discipline, with a final year average of at least B+. In addition to fluency in spoken and written Spanish, students should have a general background in Hispanic literature and/or linguistics, normally demonstrated through undergraduate course work.

The Department advises potential applicants with limited backgrounds in Hispanic studies to take additional courses at the undergraduate level before applying to the MA program; recommended areas of preparation are Medieval & Early Modern Hispanic Literature and Culture, Modern and Contemporary Hispanic Literature and Culture, and Hispanic Linguistics. Such applicants should consult the Associate Chair of Graduate Studies.

The application process is competitive and meeting the minimum standards for admission to SGS does not guarantee acceptance.

For more information about the program, including application deadlines, minimum admission requirements, and program requirements please visit the School of Graduate Studies - Spanish page.

 

Funding your Graduate Studies

For tuition and funding information, please visit the "Funding & Awards" section of this website.