Academics
All students in the Maryland-in-Alcalá program take a total of 15 credits during the Spring semester in Spain.
- SPAN 449: Special Topics in Spanish Civilization (3 credits), taught by Maryland Faculty Direcotr
- Intensive Spanish Language (6 credits), taught by Alcalingua faculty
- Two of the following options:
- Civilization course (3 credits), taught by Alcalingua faculty
- Theater & Cinema Course (3 credits), taught by Alcalingua faculty (additional charge)
- SPAN 386: Experiential Learning (3 credtis), internship evaluated by Maryland Faculty Director
Required courses
1) SPAN449: Special Topics in Spanish Civilization
All Maryland-in-Alcalá students are enrolled in the following course taught by the Faculty Resident Director of the Maryland-in-Alcalá program.
The Resident Director course is a 3-hour-per-week, 3-credit course focused on Spanish culture. The exact topic varies from year to year, depending on the expertise of the Resident Director. You can see examples from the past years below.
SPAN449 Syllabus from Spring 2009 (Sanchez de Pinillos)
SPAN449 Syllabus from Spring 2008 (Lacorte)
Information about the Faculty Resident Director course for Spring 2010 will be available in September 2009.
2) Intensive Spanish language
All students on the Maryland-in-Alcalá program are required to take 6 credits of Spanish language at Alcalingua, the center for Spanish as a Foreign Language at the Universidad de Alcalá. International students from all over the world enroll in these courses.
Upon arrival, students take an oral and written test to determine their placement.
Maryland students must place into level 3 to transfer back credit for 400 level Spanish.
Maryland students who place into level 2 can generally transfer back 300 level Spanish credit.
Maryland equivalencies for Alcalingua's levels are as follows:
Optional Courses
In addition to the required courses above, students choose two of the following four optional courses.
1) Spanish Civilization
Most students choose to enroll in a three-credit Spanish civilization course taught at Alcalingua. This course is the equivalent of SPAN333 at Maryland.
2) Spanish Theater & Cinema
Alcalingua has desgined a course specifically for students in the Maryland-in-Alcalá program that is focused on the cinema and theater of Spain. The program may include up to two local theater productions and film screenings in the Madrid area. This course is the equivalent of SPAN409 (a Spanish major requirement) at Maryland. Please note: There is an additional $675 fee for this course.
c) SPAN 386: Experiential Learning
Students can also choose to pursue a local internship. Students interested in this option will need to submit a resume with their application, so that Alcalingua can evaluate the availability of relevant placements. Students who choose this option will typically be expected to work a total of 135 hours and will also need to submit a number of written assignments (to be graded by the Resident Director) in order to receive credit for SPAN386 Experiential Learning.
Download SPAN386 Syllabus
d) Direct Enrollment at the University of Alcalá
There is very limited availability of this option, due to scheduling conflicts with Alcalingua courses. As regular university courses are taught entirely in Spanish, students are required to take a Spanish proficiency language test upon arrival in Spain. Only students who have successfully completed a 400-level course at the University of Maryland are eligible for this option.
Courses at the University are offered for UM resident credit (3 credits per course).
The following courses were available in Spring 2008. Spring 2009 courses will be posted as soon as they are available.
- Lengua espanola II (SPAN 401)
- Linguística ciencia de la cultura (SPAN 425)
- Literatura española I (SPAN 332)
Credit and Transcripts
Since Maryland-in-Alcala is a hybrid program, credits for the program come back on two transcripts: one from the University of Alcalá and one from the University of Maryland. The UM transcript will reflect the grades earned in the Resident Course, as well as the internship course, if applicable. Each course taken directly at the University of Alcalá will also count for one three-credit course at Maryland and will appear on the UM transcript.
All grades from Alcalingua will be notated on a University of Alcalá transcript. Alcalingua credit will be considered transfer credit for all UM students.