The Spanish Program offers a variety of courses in Spanish language at all levels, and in Hispanic literature, culture, and civilization. Language courses focus on the development of oral, grammar, writing, communicative and intercultural skills, while literature and culture courses help develop linguistic, critical thinking, and analytical skills.
Starting from the 2026 academic year, the Spanish Program is introducing new program requirements for both major and minor.
New program requirements1
Learn more about the new requirements and how to declare a specialization:
1The required number of lower-level credits will change if a student demonstrates the required proficiency level via a placement test or chooses to take the intensive courses SPAN_V 103 and 203, which are designed for students with prior experience in Spanish or other Romance languages.
Course equivalency2
| Old course codes | New course codes |
| SPAN 357 & SPAN 358 3 | SPAN 310 |
| SPAN 364 & SPAN 365 3 | SPAN 320 |
| SPAN 404 | SPAN 340 |
| SPAN 406 | SPAN 360 |
| SPAN 409 | SPAN 390 |
2This course equivalency table is only to provide assistance with the transition from the old program. The learning objectives of the old courses are redesigned and adjusted to be aligned with the new upper-level courses.
3The course equivalency for SPAN 357, 358 and SPAN 364, 365 are for recommendation. If you have taken any of these four courses before, please reach out to fhis.undergrad@ubc.ca for assistance or refer to the FAQ below.
Which course do I start with?
Students are encouraged to review the Spanish Placement Guidelines and take the Language Placement Questionnaire to determine their entry level.
Frequently asked questions
You can request to us for a switch into the new requirements if you would like to. If you decided to stay in the old requirements and have completed one or more of SPAN 357, 358, 364, 365 previously, please reach out to fhis.undergrad@ubc.ca for assistance.
For SPAN 340, 360 and 390:
If you have not completed the older versions of these courses (SPAN 404, 406, 409), you can register for these 3 new courses and they can be used in your Cluster A requirement of Spanish major/minor and your degree.
If you have completed any of these courses' older versions, then you may not be able to register for the new versions and use them for your program and degree due to credit exclusion.
For SPAN 310, 320:
Scenario 1: You have completed one of SPAN 357/358
- Major students:
- Consider taking SPAN 320. Your completed SPAN 357/358 will be counted towards SPAN 310 requirement.
- Minor students:
- Your completed SPAN 357/358 will be counted towards SPAN 310/320 requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 2: You have completed one of SPAN 364/365
- Major students:
- Consider taking SPAN 310. Your completed SPAN 364/365 will be counted towards SPAN 320 requirement.
- Minor students:
- Your completed SPAN 364/365 will be counted towards SPAN 310/320 requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 3: You have completed both of SPAN 357/358
- Major students:
- Consider taking SPAN 320. SPAN 357 will be counted towards your SPAN 310 requirement and SPAN 358 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement.
- Minor students:
- SPAN 357 will be counted towards your SPAN 310/320 requirement and SPAN 358 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 4: You have completed both of SPAN 364/365
- Major students:
- Consider taking SPAN 310. SPAN 364 will be counted towards your SPAN 320 requirement and SPAN 365 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement.
- Minor students:
- SPAN 364 will be counted towards your SPAN 310/320 requirement and SPAN 365 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 5: You have completed one of SPAN 357/358 and one of SPAN 364/365
- Major students:
- Your completed courses (one of SPAN 357/358 + one of SPAN 364/365) will be counted towards your SPAN 310 and 320 requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
- Minor students:
- One of your completed courses (one of SPAN 357/358 + one of SPAN 364/365) will be counted towards your SPAN 310/320 requirement. The other course will be used in your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 6: You have completed both of SPAN 357/358 plus one of SPAN 364/365
- Major students:
- SPAN 357 will be counted towards SPAN 310 requirement and SPAN 364/365 you completed will be counted towards SPAN 320 requirement. SPAN 358 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
- Minor students:
- SPAN 357 will be counted towards your SPAN 310/320 requirement. The rest two courses will be used in your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 7: You have completed both of SPAN 364/365 plus one of SPAN 357/358
- Major students:
- SPAN 364 will be counted towards SPAN 320 requirement and SPAN 357/358 you completed will be counted towards SPAN 310 requirement. SPAN 365 will be counted towards your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
- Minor students:
- SPAN 364 will be counted towards your SPAN 310/320 requirement. The rest two courses will be used in your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
Scenario 8: You have completed all of SPAN 357/358/364/365
- Major students:
- SPAN 357 and 364 will be counted towards your SPAN 310 and 320 requirement. The rest two courses will be used in your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
- Minor students:
- One of the four courses will be counted towards SPAN 310/320 requirement. The rest three courses will be used in your Cluster A requirement. SPAN 310 and 320 are not mandatory.
It depends.
- If you have completed one of SPAN 357/358, then you are welcomed to register for SPAN 310, earn the credits towards your degree and Spanish major/minor.
- If you have completed both SPAN 357/358, then please consider registering for other Spanish course options instead of 310.
- If you have completed one of SPAN 364/365, then you are welcomed to register for SPAN 320, earn the credits towards your degree and Spanish major/minor.
- If you have completed both SPAN 364/365, then please consider registering for other Spanish course options instead of 320.
No. All the new courses are still under the SPAN course code and they are eligible for Language as Meaning under Ways of Knowing requirement.
No. We did not make changes to our language-focused SPAN courses. For BA language requirement, you can still complete SPAN 202/203 or SPAN courses at 300/400 levels to complete the requirement.
Our major program requires at least 30 credits at 300/400 level and the minor requires 18 credits at 300/400 level. If you choose to take SPAN 303, you will be short of 3 credits in 300/400 level courses for your Spanish major and minor. In this case, please consider taking one extra course from our cluster courses list.
Since these courses are lower-level requirements, you won’t need to take more credits than normal structure to compensate for the credit discrepancies.
Questions? Speak to an advisor.
