The honours program in Romance Studies at UBC Vancouver offers an initiation to graduate work and to advanced academic writing and research.
Honours students participate in our research seminar and, under the guidance of a supervisor, write an extended research paper on an original topic. Honours students are particularly well qualified for professional research positions.
Admission Requirements
Admission to the honours program in Romance Studies is not automatic. Interested students should apply for the Romance Studies honours program, normally before the end of their second year.
To enter the honours program, a student must have:
- at least third-year standing, or be entering Year 3
- a B+ average in their overall degree program
- completed RMST 300, 301, and 302
- completed one of FREN 202, ITAL 202, SPAN 202, or PORT 202, or demonstrated a proficiency level of A2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in at least one of these languages
Apply directly to the honours program using the online Advising Contact Form.
Degree Requirements
Students must have completed at least one of FREN 302, ITAL 302, SPAN 302, or demonstrated a proficiency level of B1 on the CEFR for Languages in one of the Romance languages by the completion of this program. Students must complete a total of 60 credits and 48 credits of which must be at 300-level or above.
Students are encouraged to consult with the FHIS Student Programs Coordinator as early in their degree program as possible for guidance in planning a course of study that will best prepare them to achieve their academic and professional goals within the field.
6 credits from:
- 200-level courses in FREN, ITAL, SPAN, or PORT
Note: Students with no prior background in any of these Romance languages are encouraged to take lower-level courses towards this requirement. If students already have a proficiency level of A2 on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages in one of these Romance languages, students may be exempt from this requirement. Please contact FHIS Student Programs Coordinator for further inquiry.
6 credits from:
- Any of these Romance languages, chosen from the following:
- FREN 301 (3) Intermediate French I
- FREN 302 (3) Intermediate French II
- ITAL 301 (3) Intermediate Italian I
- ITAL 302 (3) Intermediate Italian II
- SPAN 301 (3) Intermediate Spanish I
- SPAN 302 (3) Intermediate Spanish II
- PORT 301 (3) Advanced Portuguese
Note: If students already have 300-level proficiency in one Romance language, they are to take 6 credits of another Romance language or other literature/culture courses at the upper-level. Please contact FHIS Student Programs Coordinator for further inquiry.
6 credits from:
- RMST 100 (3) Introduction to Romance Cultures
- RMST 201 (3) Introduction to Literatures and Cultures of the Romance World I: Medieval to Early Modern
- RMST 202 (3) Introduction to Literatures and Cultures of the Romance World II: Modern to Post-Modern
- RMST 260 (3) Introduction to the Analysis of Portuguese and Brazilian Cultures
- RMST 270 (3) Introduction to Hispanic Cultures
- RMST 280 (3) Revolution!
- or FREN, ITAL, SPAN, PORT, CTLN or LATN at any level
Note: These 6 credits cannot be exempt even though students already have a proficiency level of A2 on CEFR in one language. For example, if a student has a A2 level in French, this student can choose to take upper level courses in French OR can also take lower level courses in one or several other Romance languages.
9 credits from:
- RMST 300 (3) History of the Romance Languages
- RMST 301 (3) Prose Fiction and Non-Fiction of the Romance World
- RMST 302 (3) Theatre and Poetry of the Romance World
3 credits from:
- RMST 499 (3) Honours Essay
The Honours Essay represents an extended personal research project (in finished form usually about 20-25 pages typewritten) carried out under the supervision of two members of the FHIS Department’s Faculty: a supervisor who will meet regularly with the student and a second reader.
Honours students are responsible for registering for 499, choosing the general area for their graduating essay, and finding a supervisor by the beginning of the term in which they plan to complete the essay.
FHIS “Honours Thesis Course Form” (approved by the FHIS supervisor) should be submitted to the FHIS Undergraduate Advisor 2 weeks in advance of the course start. The start date must align with the start of a term. Upon approval of the Romance Studies Associate Head, the student will be formally registered.
The student and their supervisor will work together to develop the topic and prospectus (the plan for the essay). The student and the supervisor together should approach a faculty member to be the second reader with some expertise in the intended topic. The second reader should be approached before the third week of the term in which the essay is being written.
Honours Essay Deadlines:
Students should submit their Honours essay prospectus (200-250 words), approved and signed by their supervisor or supervisors, to the RMST advisor by the end of the third full week of the term in which the essay is being written.
The first draft of the graduating essay, in a form fairly acceptable to the supervisor, must be submitted by the Monday of the tenth week of the term in which the essay is being written.
The final draft, amended according to the supervisor's and committee's directions, must be submitted by the Friday of the twelfth week of the term, that is, one week prior to the end of term in which the essay is being written.
30 credits chosen from at least two of the following clusters:
- Cluster R – Romance Studies:
- RMST 303 (3) Short Fiction in Romance Literatures
- RMST 304 (3) Afterlife of the Text: Rewritings and Adaptations
- RMST 305 (3) Introduction to Romance Language Cinema
- RMST 306 (3) Language Contact and Multilingualism in the Romance-speaking World
- RMST 307 (3) Myths, Legends and Tales in Romance Literatures and Cultures
- RMST 310 (3-9) Special Topics in Romance Studies
- RMST 395 (3-6) Special Topics Abroad
- RMST 400 (3) Romance Linguistics
- RMST 402 (3) Visions of Nature and the Environment in the Romance World
- RMST 419 (3) Studies in Romance Languages and Literature
- RMST 495 (3) Research Intensive Seminar in Romance Studies
- Cluster A – French:
- RMST 321 (3) French Literature from the Middle Ages to the Revolution
- RMST 322 (3) French Literatures since the Revolution
- RMST 324 (3) Quebecois Literature and Culture
- RMST 325 (3) French Cultural Identities
- RMST 420 (3-9) Special Topics in Francophone Studies
- Cluster B – Italian:
- RMST 341 (3) Shifting Identities in Medieval and Early Modern Italy
- RMST 342 (3) Italy since the Industrial Revolution
- RMST 343 (3) Masterpieces of the Novella in Italian Literature
- RMST 345 (3) Italian Fascism in Interdisciplinary Perspective
- RMST 350 (3-9) Special Topics in Italian Studies
- RMST 355 (3) Italian Cinema: Neorealism
- RMST 452 (3) Italian Cinema in its Cultural Background
- RMST 453 (3) Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy
- RMST 454 (3) Topics in the Italian Literature and Culture of the Middle Ages
- RMST 455 (3) Topics in the Italian Literature and Culture of the Renaissance
- RMST 456 (3) Classics of Seventeenth-Century Italian Literature and Culture
- RMST 457 (3) Classics of Eighteenth-Century Italian Literature and Culture
- RMST 458 (3) Topics in Nineteenth-Century Italian Literature and Culture
- RMST 459 (3) Topics in Modern and Contemporary Italian Literature and Culture
- Cluster C – Portuguese:
- RMST 361 (3) Studies in Portuguese and Brazilian Literature or PORT 392 (3) Studies in Portuguese and Brazilian Literature (in English)
- RMST 460 (3) Studies in Portuguese and Brazilian Culture or PORT 405 (3) Studies in Portuguese and Brazilian Culture
- Cluster D – Spanish:
- RMST 371 (3) The Global Renaissance: Hispanic Cross-Cultural Contacts
- RMST 372 (3) Hopscotch: Topics in Hispanic Literature or SPAN 312 (3) Hopscotch: Topics in Hispanic Literature (in English)
- RMST 373 (3) Masterpieces in Hispanic Literature
- RMST 374 (3) Mapping Gendered Spaces in Hispanic Literature and Culture
- RMST 375 (3) The Caribbean: Frontiers of the Romance World
- RMST 376 (3) Genre Transgressions in the Hispanic World
- RMST 470 (3-9) Special Topics in Hispanic Studies
- Cluster E – Other Languages:
- RMST 390 (3) Barcelona
Note: Elective course requirements can also be fulfilled by language, literature, and culture classes taught in the target language (French, Italian, Spanish or other approved Romance languages) when students meet the necessary proficiency requirements in that language. Please contact FHIS Student Programs Coordinator for further inquiry.
Program Diagram
Click on the diagram below to download the PDF.
