Prospective Students

The Spanish and Portuguese Department offers a M.A./Ph.D. program. Normally only students intending to work toward the Ph.D. are admitted to the graduate program, all our courses incorporate larger cultural, social, and theoretical concerns. Students who have recently completed their Ph.D. in Spanish wrote about a wide range of subjects included but not limited to Latino and Latin American literature, poetry, film ethnicity, environmental issues, and gender studies. UC Irvine is renowned for its focus on critical theory and students may expect to find this interest reflected in the courses of the department. 

Additional and specific training in other academic areas is provided by the different emphases offered in the School of Humanities: Gender and Sexualities | Film and Media Studies | Critical Theory | Visual Studies | Latin American Studies | Chicano/Latino Studies | Asian American Studies

Students entering the Master of Arts degree program in Spanish should complete a minimum of 8 graduate seminars in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese with a passing letter grade of B or better (a B- is not a passing grade; if the course is required, it must be retaken). An introductory course in literary and critical theory (Spanish 239A or B or equivalent) is a requirement for all graduate students. Students are granted an M.A. after the passing of the M.A exam. This exam should take place no later than the fifth quarter of graduate study.

• M.A. Program 
• M.A. Reading List 

A Ph.D. degree requires 16 courses beyond the B.A. or 8 beyond the M.A. There are three mandatory courses in the areas of Linguistic, Luso Brazilian Literature and Culture and Critical Theory. The remaining elective courses are selected with the approval of the student's guidance committee to prepare for the doctoral examination and the dissertation. Students are encouraged to take more than the minimum number of required courses. According to School regulations, the normative time for completion of the Ph.D. is seven years; four years to candidacy, three years in candidacy. The maximum time permitted is eight years.

Continuing students and students that transfer into the doctoral program from elsewhere must take a minimum of 8 graduate courses at UCI, of which six must be in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. With regard to students who enter the Ph.D. program with their master's degree from another institution, the Ph.D. guidance committee will determine the number of courses that will be accepted.

• Ph.D. Program 
• Student Handbook

Student housing is walking distance to the university. Its constant expansion has led to the implementation of a transportation system that connects housing to the main campus. The graduate student housing area includes its own child-care center and pre-primary educational facilities. Shopping, restaurants, supermarkets, UCI state of the art gym and pool and nature trails are all in walking distance of the apartment complexes.

For more information on housing, education, the city of Irvine and nearby cities visit the following sites:

• Campus Housing
• General Information on UC Irvine
• Surviving UC Irvine Without a Car
• Childcare Resources
• Irvine Unified School District
• Information on the City of Irvine
• City of Newport Beach 
• Laguna Beach
• California Parks and Recreation 

Students accepted into the Graduate Program receive a financial aid package that allows them to live and study at UC Irvine. A description of the different type of financial aid can be accessed here.

Additionally, there is a range of small fellowships funded by the School of Humanities available to all graduate students in the different programs of the School. Typically, these fellowships allow students to participate in regional, national or international conferences, to engage in sustained research outside UCI or devote time to the writing of their dissertation.

Our Department provides small fellowships for conference travel. Additionally, starting in their second year students have the opportunity of teaching summer courses to supplement the University stipend.

Applications for fellowship opportunities inside the School or the department are normally announced via email. Information is also available in the Humanities Center section of the School of Humanities website.

All fellowships and financial opportunities administered by the School of Humanities and the Spanish Department are competitive. Admittance into the program does not guarantee access to this funding.

For more information, go to: Funding | Graduate Division