The graduate program in Spanish and Portuguese offers driven and highly independent students the opportunity for advanced graduate work specifically tailored to their own intellectual interests. Flexibility and interdisciplinary are the Spanish and Portuguese section’s signature qualities. While students have the option of concentrating on Latin American or Iberian literatures, they may also design their own research program in conjunction with their adviser that can include an array of theoretical concerns as well as other languages and cultures. Students have worked with faculty in art history, political science, and philosophy, among other programs, as well as in the department’s other languages, such as French, Italian, German, and Yiddish.

All students receive five years of guaranteed funding, with fellowships in the first and fourth or fifth years. Students normally take 12 graduate seminars over the course of their first five semesters, presenting their ABD during their third year of study. During the second fellowship year, students typically conduct dissertation research abroad. Hopkins provides students with many opportunities for internal grants and fellowships, and, within the department, students can apply for additional summer research funding and a 6th year writing fellowship.

While in residence, our students also learn to be teachers. Graduate teaching assistants learn to teach a range of courses, including Spanish or Portuguese language from the elementary to more advanced levels. Students also often have the opportunity to teach introductory courses in Latin American and Iberian literature and culture. In the latter stages of the program, students can also apply to teach courses on their own research under the Dean’s Teaching Fellows program.

How to Apply

Find application dates, materials, and key information on the Admissions page.

Related Programs

The Graduate Certificate Program in Film and Media is offered by the Center for Advanced Media Studies.

It educates doctoral candidates of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences in the theory, aesthetics, and history of film, video, and other audio-visual media, including emergent objects of the digital age.