Why the Spanish Communication Skills Certificate
APSU students of Spanish engage in curricular and co-curricular experiences that advance their learning and knowledge of the Spanish-speaking world. Each year, more Spanish speaking people move to APSU's service region. Professionals like nurses, educators, and law enforcement officials routinely engage with Spanish speakers, but with a great deal of communication barriers. This certificate will provide a graduate level of Hispanic social, political and economic cultural studies and Spanish communication skills to participating students. This certificate will allow APSU to potentially establish partnerships with organizations in the community such as Tennova, Healthcare Corporation of America, and the Clarksville Police Department too with the intent to improve communications between their employees and Spanish speakers.
The Spanish faculty at Austin Peay are experienced in a variety of fields --translation, linguistics, Peninsular and Latin American culture and film, to name a few—that will provide students with the knowledge and skills in the language and cultures of the Spanish speaking world. There are over 559 million Spanish speakers in the world, with 41 million of those Spanish speakers living in the United States. Learning Spanish (or any additional dialect/language) has been shown to increase cognitive abilities and the process of learning a language helps develop skills that prepare you to step into any career path. If that isn’t enough, the need for Spanish speakers is predicted to increase annually. In fact, by 2050, the United States will be the largest Spanish-speaking country in the world so knowing Spanish will also give you an edge in the job market for the foreseeable future.
This collection of courses will enhance the social, political, economic, and cultural understanding of Hispanics through research. Additionally, the certificate will improve the Spanish communication skills of graduate students and prepare current and future professionals in their specific service industries such as nursing, educators, and law enforcement officials.
Admission Requirements
For information related to admission requirements or to view the courses within each program, please visit the graduate bulletin.
What Will I Learn
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Acquire an advanced knowledge of the Spanish language through the analysis of the language, cultures, and literature of the Spanish speaking world.
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Develop an understanding of the cultures of the 21 Spanish-speaking countries of the world.
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Complete a portfolio with documents and evidence in preparation for life and work in the global and multilingual society.
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Discuss, through a critical lens, a range of cultural, historical, literary, and linguistic topics of the U.S., Latin American, and Spain.
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Compare and reflect on social, political, and economic situations across the globe and their connections with the U.S., Latin American, and Spain.