*Ver información en español aquí.
Master's Degree
Our program fosters the comprehensive study of Hispanic culture, literature, and language. It devotes increased attention to the rich diversity of Hispanic cultural texts and to their interdisciplinary study while also promoting broad understanding of Spanish and Latin American literature. The Master's gives careful attention to acquainting students with the traditions of scholarship in our field as well as a range of current textual theory, criticism and research methods. Study of Portuguese and other Romance literatures and cultures, Comparative Literature, Romance and Spanish Linguistics, and other related disciplines may be included in the Master's Degree program. The degree is earned normally in six academic quarters.
Our MA Graduates
Some graduates of our MA Program pursue careers in teaching at the secondary and community college levels, while others use their Spanish skills in business, politics and translation. Many of our MA students go on to pursue doctoral studies in a variety of fields.
Advanced Study and Research Support
The University of Washington Library system, exceeding 5,000,000 cataloged volumes and more than 50,000 serials, ranks high among the acclaimed American academic research libraries. The University's exceptional support facilities include the generously endowed Simpson Center for the Humanities, and the Center for Advanced Research Technology in the Arts and Humanities. The latter provides high-level expertise (including optical scanning, database, and programing support) for the University's humanities departments. The University's many theaters, concert halls, galleries, language-learning and media centers, broadcasting stations, and satellite reception facility, are also used by students and faculty in research, instruction, and performance projects.
Financial Support and the Cost of Study
Graduate students in the Department of Spanish & Portuguese Studies may be awarded Teaching Assistantships an entire academic year. These Academic Student Employee positions are covered under a union contract and include health insurance. The positions pay at least $27,000 for the 2024-2025 academic year and are expected to be similar in 2025-2026. Teaching Assistantships also include a waiver of the Tier 1 graduate tuition. For 2024-2025, in-state graduate tuition is $6,264 per quarter, and non-resident is $10,937. Even with this waiver, ASE’s are responsible for paying other tuition-related fees each quarter, usually costing a few hundred dollars. In addition to departmental opportunities, there are also Study Abroad programs led by our faculty that might provide other means of TA support.
Inquiries and Applications
Applications for Teaching and Research Assistantships received by December 15th will be assured preferred consideration for the Department's financial support. Applications for admission to graduate study must also be received by December 15th, for admission the following autumn quarter. For more detailed information and/or to submit an application, please visit the Admission Requirements & Application Forms page.
The Graduate Faculty
(See also Faculty Page)
Angélica Amezcua (Ph.D., Arizona State University) Heritage Language Program Director, studies Spanish language Education and Research.
Ana Fernández Dobao (Ph.D., University of Santiago de Compostela) Language Program Director, studies applied linguistics and second language acquisition.
Anthony Geist (Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley), studies 20th-century Spanish literature (particularly the Generation of '27 and poetry since Franco), Modernism & Postmodernism, and cultural studies.
Donald Gilbert-Santamaría (Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley) studies the novel and theater of Early Modern Spain. His next major project is a study of autobiography in Early Modern Spain.
Ana Gómez-Bravo (Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley), studies Medieval Literature.
Elizabeth Hochberg (Ph.D., Princeton University) studies popular cultures, visual culture, and prose fiction.
Leigh Mercer (Ph.D., Brown University) studies 18th- and 19th-century Spanish literature and Spanish cinema.
José Francisco Robles (Ph.D., El Colegio de México) Graduate Program Coordinator, research interests include science, philosophy, and literature in Colonial Latin America, and the relationship between literary production and knowledge in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
Juan Pablo Rodríguez Argente (Ph.D., Yale University), studies Medieval Hispanic literature, Textual Studies, and Ecocriticism.
Adjunct Faculty Members
Adjunct faculty who contribute to the Department's graduate program include the following
(See also Adjunct Faculty Page)
Lauro Flores Chair, Department of American Ethnic Studies
Emeriti Faculty
Edgar O'Hara (Ph.D., University of Texas) Professor Emeritus. Studies Latin American poetry, especially modern and contemporary, as well as poetic theory.
Suzanne Petersen (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin) Associate Professor Emerita. Studies the Pan-Hispanic ballad tradition from its origins to our time, and medieval literature, especially poetry (the popular lyric and the Libro de buen amor).