Before going abroad, all students planning to count study abroad coursework toward an RLL major or minor are required to meet with a faculty advisor to discuss the pre-evaluation of courses. Upon return from abroad (once credit has been posted to the UM transcript), RLL majors and minors are required to meet again with an RLL faculty advisor for the final evaluation of their coursework.
French
- Enroll in courses that are taught in French with a 50% (or more) focus on France and Francophone cultures.
- Students should seek programs which allow enrollment at a local university with French-speaking students.
- Students should avoid conversation classes.
- Language courses and introductory thematic courses (i.e. “Introduction à l'analyse littéraire”), often count toward the 270-level.
- Content courses with a specific focus (i.e. “Littérature du XVIIIe siècle”) often count toward the 300-level.
Italian
- Students should seek programs which offer courses conducted in Italian (a limited number of courses taught in English may be accepted).
- Study abroad courses generally count at the 200 or 300-level.
- You will complete your 400-level Italian coursework at UM.
Portuguese
- Students should seek programs which allow enrollment at a local university with Portuguese-speaking students, rather than “courses for foreigners".
Spanish
- Students should enroll at a local university with Spanish-speaking students, rather than “courses for foreigners”.
- Regular university courses, taught solely in Spanish at Hispanic universities, in which our students are mainstreamed with local students, will typically count at the 400-level toward the major and minor. No major/minor level credit will be granted for fine arts, studio, and physical education courses.
- Courses must be at least 3 credits each. Courses that are more than 3 credits will count as one course towards the major or minor.
- All courses must be pre-approved in advance by a Spanish faculty advisor. Failure to seek pre-approval may result in no major/minor credit being awarded for study abroad coursework.
3rd Party Providers and 400-level credit
3rd party study abroad program providers (CIEE, ISA, CEA, etc.) generally do not offer center courses which transfer as 400-level UM Spanish credit.
For Spanish courses in CEA study-abroad programs, 279-399 level credit may be granted, based on evaluation of syllabi, which must evidence that the course was taught in Spanish. No 400-level credit will be given for courses taken in CEA programs.
Study Abroad Credits
All courses for the Spanish major/minor must be at least 3 credits each. Although UM Undergraduate Admissions may grant more than three credits for a course, a maximum of 3 credits for each course taken abroad will only be applied toward a Spanish major/minor.
Internship courses as part of a study abroad
Some study abroad programs offer an internship course, which can be taken in place of the normal center or university course. To be considered as elective credit toward a Spanish major/minor, the seminar portion of the course needs to be taken in Spanish and all coursework should also be completed in Spanish. If taken in English, the course may be considered a cognate toward the Spanish major. Please keep the syllabus and all completed coursework. A Spanish faculty advisor will use this information to grant final approval of the course.
*UM students who study abroad as part of the IES Barcelona program are required to take the seminar which is taught in Spanish. (IES has agreed to guarantee that the Spanish-taught seminar is offered). As part of the Spanish-taught seminar, students will complete their assignments, field studies, presentation, and placements in Spanish. These guidelines apply to the Liberal Arts & Business and Advanced Spanish Studies (Fall/Winter), as well as the Intensive Internship (summer) programs.*
