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Latin American Studies Approved Course List 

LAS Approved Course List Winter 2023

List is subject to change. Please check the course schedule on Triton Link for the latest information.

The following are interdisciplinary courses available at UCSD that are approved to satisfy the requirements of the Latin American Studies Program. This list is dynamic and subject to on-going revisions. Courses not included in this list may be considered for credit based on content and must be petitioned.

Contact the LAS Undergraduate and Graduate Advisor  with any questions on course offerings or petitioning courses.

Courses Offered by the Latin American Studies Program

Undergraduate 

LATI 10. Reading North by South: Latin American Studies and US Liberation Movements. The purpose of this class is to study the multilayered relations between Latin American Studies and US Liberation movements, particularly Third World movements, the Chicano Movement, the Black Liberation Movement, the Indigenous Movement, Human Rights activism, and Trans-border activism. 

LATI 50. Introduction to Latin America (4): Interdisciplinary overview of society and culture in Latin America—including Mexico, the Caribbean, and South America: legacies of conquest, patterns of economic development, changing roles of women, expressions of popular culture, cycles of political change, and U.S.–Latin American relations.

LATI 122A. Field Research Methods for Migration Studies: Seminar (4) Introductory survey of methods used by social and health scientists to gather primary research data on international migrant and refugee populations, including sample surveys, unstructured interviewing, and ethnographic observation. Basic fieldwork practices, ethics, and problem-solving techniques will also be covered. Students may not receive credit for both SOCI 122A and LATI 122A. Recommended: advanced competency in conversational Spanish. Prerequisites:permission of instructor (department authorization required).

LATI 122B. Field Research Methods for Migration Studies: Practicum (12) Students will collect survey and qualitative data among Mexican migrants to the United States and potential migrants, participate in team research, organize data collected for analysis, and submit a detailed outline of an article to be based on field data. Students may not receive credit for both SOCI 122B and LATI 122B. Recommended: advanced competency in conversational Spanish. Prerequisites: LATI 122A; permission of instructor (department authorization required).

LATI 122C. Field Research Methods for Migration Studies: Data Analysis (4) Continuation of SOCI 122B. Students analyze primary data they have collected in field research sites and coauthor an article for publication. Methods for organizing and processing field data, techniques of quantitative data analysis, and report preparation conventions will be covered. Students may not receive credit for both SOCI 122C and LATI 122C. Prerequisites: LATI 122B; permission of instructor (department authorization required).

LATI 150. Digital Oral History in Latin America (4) An introduction to the theory and practice of digital oral history in Latin America. Students will be exposed to the history of orality in the region as a hybrid genre between literature, history, and ethnography. This class will provide a strong theoretical background on oral history as a constant presence in the Latin American cultural scene from the colonial chronicles to the political testimony.

LATI 180. Special Topics in Latin American Studies (4):  Readings and discussion of substantive issues and research in Latin American studies. Topics may include the study of a specific society or a particular issue in comparative cross-national perspective. Topics will vary from year to year. Prerequisites: LATI 50 or permission of instructor, upper-division standing.

LATI 190. Senior Seminar (4): Research seminar on selected topics in the study of Latin America; all students will be required to prepare and present independent research papers. (Honors students will present drafts of senior research theses, of no less than fifty pages in length; non-honors students will present final versions of analytical papers of approximately twenty-five to forty pages in length). Prerequisites: satisfactory completion of LATI 50 and a working knowledge of Spanish.

LATI 199. Individual Study (4) Guided and supervised reading of the literature on Latin America in the interdisciplinary areas of anthropology, communications, economics, history, literature, political science, and sociology. For students majoring in Latin American Studies, reading will focus around potential topics for senior papers; for honors students in Latin American Studies, reading will culminate in formulation of a prospectus for the research thesis. Prerequisites: LATI 50 and working knowledge of Spanish.