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Latin American and Caribbean Studies

The interdisciplinary program in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies (LACS) allows a focus on the peoples, cultures, history, literature, politics, economy, and geography of Latin America and the Caribbean, providing students with a broad-based understanding of the region and with the language and research skills required for advanced scholarship. The LACS program offers both an interdisciplinary Major Concentration, interdisciplinary Honours and Joint Honours degrees as well as a Minor Concentration in Latin American & Caribbean Studies. If you have any questions related general advising in the Program, please contact Professor katherine.zien [at] mcgill.ca (Katherine Zien). All other inquiries can be sent to the Undergraduate Program Director, Professor cecily.raynor [at] mcgill.ca (Cecily Raynor).

Minor

The B.A.; Minor Concentration in Latin American and Caribbean Studies focuses on a broad, interdisciplinary view of key aspects of Latin America and the Caribbean. The program may be expanded to the Major Concentration in Latin American and Caribbean Studies.

Minor Requirements

Major

About Latin-American and Caribbean Studies

Established in 1971, the interdisciplinary program in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies offers a comprehensive array of courses on the peoples, cultures, history, literature, politics, economy, and geography of Latin America and the Caribbean, providing students with a broad-based understanding of this geographic region, and with the language and research skills required for advanced scholarship. The program in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies encourages the free exchange of ideas and perspectives in order to foster an environment suitable for serious reflection and critical analysis.

Study Abroad

Students in the program in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies are encouraged to consider the opportunities for foreign study and research made available by bilateral exchange agreements with leading universities in the Spanish and Portuguese-speaking world. These exchanges are open to all members of the McGill University community. Further information may be obtained from:

Service Point

3415 McTavish Street
Montreal QC H3A 0C8
Telephone: 514-398-7878

or from the International Education website.

An agreement of cooperation with the Center for Latin American Studies at Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.) permits Honours students in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies at McGill to count a portion of their undergraduate coursework toward the degree requirements for Georgetown's M.A. in Latin American Studies, thus permitting completion of the M.A. in one calendar year. See the Program Adviser for additional information.

Undergraduate Degree Programs

The Latin American and Caribbean Studies Program is designed for those students who wish to take advantage of the resources available at McGill to acquire a deeper understanding of the Latin American and Caribbean region and its peoples. The interdisciplinary program in Latin-American and Caribbean Studies offers an Honours, a Joint Honours degree, a Major*, and a Minor concentration as part of the Multi-track B.A. in Arts.

View all courses in the Latin American & Caribbean Studies Major.

Joint Honours

The B.A.; Joint Honours Latin American and Caribbean Studies Component provides students with an interdisciplinary approach to the study of the Latin American and Caribbean region. Students wishing to study at the Honours level in two disciplines can combine Joint Honours programs in any two Arts disciplines. For a list of available Joint Honours programs, see "Overview of Programs Offered" and "Joint Honours Programs." Joint Honours students should consult an adviser in each department to discuss their course selection and their research project. Joint Honours students are expected to maintain a program GPA of 3.30 and, according to Faculty regulations, a minimum CGPA of 3.00 in general.

Students must submit the lacs_498_honours_thesis_approval_form_2024.pdf to the LACS Program Director for approval. Full guidelines on eligibility, supervision and registration can be found on the form.

View the Latin American and Caribbean Studies Joint Honours website

Program Requirements

At least 9 of the 36 credits must be at the 400 level or above.

Required Courses (21 credits)

HISP 243 Survey of Latin American Literature and Culture 1 (3 credits)
HISP 244 Survey of Latin American Literature and Culture 2 (3 credits)
HIST 309 History of Latin America to 1825 (3 credits)
HIST 360 Latin America since 1825 (3 credits)
LACS 497 Research Seminar: Latin America and the Caribbean (3 credits)
LACS 498 Honours Thesis (3 credits)
POLI 319 Politics of Latin America (3 credits)

Complementary Courses (15 credits)

No more than 9 courses in one field.

Anthropology

ANTH 212 Anthropology of Development (3 credits)
ANTH 307 Andean Prehistory (3 credits)
ANTH 319 Inka Archaeology and Ethnohistory (3 credits)
ANTH 326 Anthropology of Latin America (3 credits)
ANTH 422 Contemporary Latin American Culture and Society (3 credits)
ANTH 428 Saints and Mediation in Latin America (3 credits)

Canadian Studies

CANS 412 Canada and Americas Seminar (3 credits)

Economics

ECON 313 Economic Development 1 (3 credits)
ECON 314 Economic Development 2 (3 credits)

English

ENGL 431 Studies in Drama (3 credits) *
* When given under a topic related to Latin American and Caribbean studies.

Geography

GEOG 310 Development and Livelihoods (3 credits)
GEOG 404 Environmental Management 2 (3 credits) **
GEOG 408 Geography of Development (3 credits)
GEOG 410 Geography of Underdevelopment: Current Problems (3 credits)
GEOG 498 Humans in Tropical Environments (3 credits)
GEOG 510 Humid Tropical Environments (3 credits)

** When the topic is related to Panama.

Hispanic Studies

HISP 219 Spanish Language Intensive - Intermediate (6 credits)
HISP 220 Spanish Language: Intermediate (6 credits)
HISP 225 Hispanic Civilization 1 (3 credits)
HISP 226 Hispanic Civilization 2 (3 credits)
HISP 301 Hispanic Literature and Culture in English 1 (3 credits)
HISP 302 Hispanic Literature and Culture in English 2 (3 credits)
HISP 320 Contemporary Brazilian Literature and Film (3 credits)
HISP 328 Literature of Ideas: Latin America (3 credits)
HISP 332 Latin American Literature of 19th Century (3 credits)
HISP 333 Theatre, Performance and Politics in Latin America (3 credits)
HISP 352 Latin American Novel (3 credits)
HISP 356 Latin American Short Story (3 credits)
HISP 358 Gender and Textualities (3 credits)
HISP 437 Colonial / Postcolonial Latin America (3 credits)
HISP 439 Topics: Latin American Literature (3 credits)
HISP 453 20th Century Latin American Poetry (3 credits)
HISP 505 Seminar in Hispanic Studies 01 (3 credits)

History

HIST 197 FYS: Race in Latin America (3 credits)
HIST 223 Indigenous Peoples and Empires (3 credits)
HIST 366 Themes in Latin American History (3 credits)
HIST 409 Topics in Latin American History (3 credits)
HIST 419 Central America (3 credits)
HIST 580D1 European and Native-American Encounters (3 credits)
HIST 580D2 European and Native-American Encounters (3 credits)

Political Science

POLI 227 Developing Areas/Introduction (3 credits)
POLI 473 Democracy and the Market (3 credits)

Honours

The Honours Latin American and Caribbean Studies is designed to meet the needs of students who plan to attend graduate or professional school upon completion of the B.A. This programs provides a comprehensive interdisciplinary understanding of Latin America and the Caribbean, upon which more specialized coursework and research may be based. This program is recommended for students who envision graduate study in a specific discipline, such as History or Political Science.

Students must submit the LACS 498 Honours Thesis Approval Form to the LACS Program Director for approval. Full guidelines on eligibility, supervision and registration can be found on the form.

View the Latin American and Caribbean Studies Honours website.

Courses

LACS 497

Research Seminar: Latin American and Caribbean Studies

This course will be offered every other year beginning in Winter 2025.

LACS 497 is a required course for all LACS programs

Restriction: Open to Program students and to others with permission of the Program Advisor

An interdisciplinary research seminar on topics of common interest to staff and students of the Latin-American and Caribbean Studies Program.

LACS 498

Honours Thesis

LACS 498 is a required course for the LACS Honours programs.

Prerequisite: LACS 497 and permission of the Program Adviser.

This course is required of all students pursuing an Honours Program in Latin-American & Caribbean Studies and may be taken by others with written permission of the Program Adviser.

This course is designed to allow students to pursue interdisciplinary research projects under close supervision.

Students must submit the lacs_498_honours_thesis_approval_form_2024.pdf to the LACS Program Director for approval. Full guidelines on eligibility, supervision and registration can be found on the form.

LACS 499

Internship: Latin American and Caribbean Studies

Internship with an approved host institution or organization.

Pre-requisites: Permission of the Program Advisor

Restriction: Open to U2 and U3 students after completing 30 credits of a 90 credit degree program or 45 credits of a 69-120 credit program, a minimum CGPA of 2.70 and permission of the program Internship Advisor. This course will normally not fulfill program requirements for the seminar or 400 level courses.

People

Undergraduate Program Advisor

Katherine Zien

Associate Professor
Department of English
853 Sherbrooke St. West
Montreal, QC

Office Hours: by appointment via email (katherine.zien [at] mcgill.ca) to Katherine Zien directly.

Program committee

Program Chair

Professor Katherine Zien
Associate Professor (Department of English)
PhD (University of Oregon)

Program Committee

Professor Manuel Balan
Assistant Professor (ISID and Department of Political Science)
PhD (University of Texas at Austin)

Professor Eduardo Kohn
Assistant Professor (Department of Anthropology)
PhD (University of Wisconsin, Madison)

Professor Catherine LeGrand
Associate Professor (Department of History and Classical Studies)
PhD (Stanford)

Professor Cecily Raynor
Assistant Professor (Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures)
PhD (Georgetown)

Professor Fernanda Macchi
Associate Professior (Department of Language, Literatures and Cultures)
PhD (Yale)

Professor Daviken Studnicki-Gizbert
Associate Professor (Department of History and Classical Studies)
PhD (Yale)

Professor Katherine Zien
Assistant Professor (Department of English)
PhD (Northwestern)

Liaison librarian

Marcela Isuster

Liaison Librarian for Latin American and Caribbean Studies
Humanities and Social Sciences Library
McLennan-Redpath Library Complex
Tel: (514) 398-4729

Affiliated Faculty

Professors with active research in Latin American and Caribbean Studies

Student associations

There are two student associations related to the Program of Latin American Studies at McGill:

SLASA is a student-driven organization based in Montreal, Canada. They serve as a social and professional network for the Spanish and Latin American students at McGill University where they have been active since 1989. Throughout the year, they organize many events and activities to celebrate and share our culture as well as to promote the academic success of Spanish-speaking McGill students and integrate our members into the greater Montreal community. They also do social work throughout the academic year and summer to help the Latino community in Montreal and in other Latin American countries like Mexico.

You can learn more about SLASA and their activities in

SLASA

SLASA Facebook

CLASHSA, the Caribbean and Latin American Studies & Hispanic Studies Association represents the students enrolled in major, minor, honours, and joint-honours undergraduate degrees in the Latin American and Caribbean Studies & Hispanic Studies Programs at McGill University. Throughout the year, they organize different events and activities to promote exchanges among students of the Programs, opportunities related to Latin America and the Caribbean, and networking among students and professors.

You can learn more about CLASHSA and their activities in

CLASHSA Facebook

CLASHSA is also responsible for the edition of VOCES an interdisciplinary undergraduate journal showcasing undergraduate work related to Latin American and Caribbean Studies and Hispanic Studies at McGill University.

You can read the latest editions of VOCES at VOCES

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Latin American and Caribbean Studies