Programs by Region

MADRID, SPAIN

Program Provider: USC

Program Site: USC Madrid center at the International Institute in central Madrid. Course options at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid and the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid for students with advanced Spanish language ability.

Duration: Fall, Spring, or Year. Each of the program's four options runs on a slightly different academic calendar.

Academics: The Madrid program offers a wide selection of courses and is divided into four options:

Take four USC courses at the International Institute in central Madrid. Fields of study available are Art History, International Relations, Psychology, and Spanish. Students take a minimum of two Spanish courses. (Option I)

Take two USC courses at the International Institute, two courses for international students in the Curso de Estudios Hispánicos (CEH) at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, and up to 3 units in humanities courses alongside Spanish students at Carlos III. (Option II)

In the spring semester only, take two USC courses at the International Institute and directly enroll in two regular courses at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid alongside Spanish students. (Option III)

In the spring semester only, take two USC courses at the International Institute and directly enroll in two regular courses at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid alongside Spanish students. (Option IV)

Students may take courses for major, minor, or elective credit and may take no fewer than 16 units of coursework. Courses are taught in Spanish unless otherwise indicated. The courseload is similar to that at USC. Students taking courses at a Spanish university can expect an academic culture that is very different from what they are accustomed to in the U.S.

Accommodations: Students live in homestays with Spanish families located throughout Madrid. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are provided seven days a week.

Activities and Other Program Features: Each semester there are several day trips to areas close to Madrid such as Toledo and Segovia, and there are longer trips to other regions of Spain such as Catalunya and Andalusia. Participants learn on-site at museums and historical sites within and beyond Madrid and attend dance, music and theater performances. Students can meet for several hours each week with a Spanish student for language practice. While taking courses in Spanish, living with a Spanish host family, and participating in program-sponsored trips and activities will faciliatate a particpant's use and acquisition of Spanish, it is incumbent upon the participant to be highly self-motivated and actively seek opportunities to communicate only in Spanish as much as possible.

Eligibility: Minimum 3.0 GPA and two semesters of college-level Spanish or the equivalent. Some options require more Spanish. See the four options below.

OPTION I

Description:
In Option I students take four USC courses at the International Institute. Courses are available in intermediate and advanced Spanish, art history, international relations, and psychology.

Eligibility:
Minimum cumulative USC GPA of 3.0; 2 semesters of college-level Spanish (or the equivalent) with a Spanish course or the USC Spanish language placement exam taken within one year before the start of the prgram.

Course Load:
Students take four 4-unit USC courses for a total of 16 USC units.

Units:
Option I students may not take fewer than 16 or more than 16 units.

Academics:
Courses are 4 USC units each and are taken for a USC letter grade. The letter grade appears on the USC transcript, and the grades are factored into one's USC GPA. The courses are taught by local faculty approved by academic departments at USC and follow USC-approved syllabi.

Courses:
-    SPAN 220 Spanish III
-    SPAN 240 Spanish IV
-    SPAN 265 Spanish for Communication: Society and the Media
-    SPAN 266 Spanish for Communication: Arts and Sciences
-    SPAN 304 Survey of Fiction
-    SPAN 320 Iberian and Latin American Cultures: Readings on Society
-    SPAN 373 Modern and Postmodern Spanish Fiction
-    SPAN 464 Introduction to Conetmporary Spanish Theater
-    IR 468 European Integration (taught in English)
-    AHIS 496 Paintings in the Prado Museum (taught in a mixture of English and Spanish)
-    PSYC 499 Special Topics: Minority Mental Health in Spain or Crosscultural Psychology in Spain (taught in English)

Calendar:
In the fall semester Option I courses begin at the very beginning of September and run through the second week of December. As the course schedule is determined by USC, there is a one-week fall break builit into the semester calendar.
In the spring semester Option I courses begin in the second week of January and run through the first week of May. There is a one-week spring break built into the semester calendar.

OPTION II

Description:
In Option II students take two or three USC courses at the International Institute, two or three courses alongside other international students in Curso de Estudios Hispánicos (CEH) at the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Carlos III), and up to two 1-unit or 1.5-unit humanities courses alongside Spanish students at Carlos III.

Eligibility:
Students must have completed either Spanish 265 or Spanish 266 at USC and have a B average or better in college-level Spanish courses.

Course Load:
-Two or more USC courses (4 USC units each; A-F grading basis)
-Two or three CEH courses at Carlos III (3 USC units each; credit/no credit)
-Up to two Carlos III humanities courses (cursos de humanidades)--(1 or 1.5 USC units each; credit/no credit)

Units:
Option II students may earn a maximum of 18 USC units and must take a minimum of 16 USC units.

Academics:
Students take two USC courses at the International Institute.

All CEH courses at Carlos III are taught in Spanish. Most CEH students are from the U.S., with some from a variety of other countries.
Students are placed into a CEH Spanish language course on the basis of a placement test taken on site.

Students must take at least one CEH course in addition to the one CEH language course.

In addition to the CEH courses, students may take up to two cursos de humanidades alongside Carlos III students. Students should NOT plan to earn major or minor credit for cursos de humnidades because they yield just 1 or 1.5 USC units, courses offered change from semester to semester, and the syllabi are not available until the course begins, at which point it is far too late to get pre-approval for major or minor credit from your academic advisor.

Courses:
-Two USC courses (4 units each) as listed under Option I above.

-CEH non-language/literature courses (3 USC units each) offered in 2008-2009 included:
- Arte español
- Cine español
- Derecho español y europeo
- Economía española y europea
- Estudios culturales: la culturas españolas en el siglo XX - de la dictadura a la democracia
- Historia de España
- Historia del presente: España de hoy
- Instituciones españolas y europeas
- Medio ambiente y sociedad en España
- Periodismo y medios de comunicación
- Política y sociedad en la España contemporánea
- Teatro español - del texto al escenario

-CEH Spanish language and literature courses (3 USC units each) offered in 2008-09 included:
- Español coloquial
- Español para uso profesional
- Lengua española - nivel intermedio
- Lengua española - composición
- Lengua española y composición - nivel avanzado
- Lengua española y composición - nivel avanzado alto
- Lengua española y composición - nivel superior
- Lengua española - bilingüe A
- Lengua española - bilingüe B
- Literatura española
- Literatura hispanoamericana del siglo XX
- Literatura española de los siglos de oro (XVI-XVII) - introducción
- Teoría y práctica del cuento en español

Cursos de Humanidades (1 or 1.5 USC units) offered in Spring 2009 included:
- Bioética (1.5 USC units)
- Conflictos internacionales contemporáneos (1.5 USC units)
- Criminología y política criminal (1.5 USC units)
- Imágenes de la inmigración en la literatura y el cine (1.5 USC units)
- Los moriscos cuatro siglos después de su expulsión de españa (1,5 USC units)
- La II. república y de la guerra civil española (1.5 USC units)
- Memoria, testimonio, justicia y representación (1.5 USC units)
- El cine como espectáculo de masas (1 USC unit)
- Ópera abierta (1 USC unit)
- Religión y cultura: el patrimonio cultural religioso (1 USC unit)

Calendar: In the fall semester Option II courses begin around the first of September and run through the second week of December. There is not a fall break built into the calendar. In the Spring Option II courses begin in the second week of January and run through late May/early June. There is a spring break built into the calendar.

OPTION III (Spring only)

Description:
In Option III students take two USC courses at the International Institute (4 units each), two CEH courses at Carlos III (3 units each), and one regular Carlos III course alongside Spanish students (4 units), for a total of 18 USC units.

Eligibility:
Students must have completed at least one Spanish-taught 300-or 400-level Spanish course at USC.

Course Load:
-Two USC courses (4 USC units each; A-F grading basis)
-Two CEH courses at Carlos III (3 USC units each; credit/no credit)
-One regular Carlos III course (4 USC units; credit/no credit)

Units:
Option III students may earn a maximum of 18 USC units.

Academics:
Students take two USC courses at the International Institute, two CEH courses at Carlos III, and one regular Carlos III course alongside Spanish students. Carlos III, like other Spanish universities, is restructuring its undergraduate degree programs. As the the older degree programs are being phased out, students can take later-year courses in those programs but not first-year courses. First-year courses are to be taken in the new degree programs. Carlos III offers the following degree programs at its Getafe campus:

Administración de Empresas / Ciencias Políticas / Derecho / Estadística y Empresa / Finanzas y Contabilidad / Humanidades / Periodismo / Sociología

Some examples of courses (4 USC units each) that may be of interest to USC students are:
-Sociología en España
-Problemas Sociales I: desigualidad y exclusión social
-Problemas Sociales IV: sociología de la inmigración
-Organizaciones y Relaciones Internacionales
-Historia de las Relaciones Internacionales Contemporáneos
-Semántica y Pragmática del Español
-Evolución y Variedades del Español
-Macroeconomía Internacional
-Instrumentos y Regímenes de Cooperación Internacional
-Derecho y Religión en Europa
-Narrativa Audiovisual
-Cine Europeo

Calendar:
Option III is available only in the spring. Option III courses begin in the second week of January and run through early June. There is a spring break built into the calendar.

OPTION IV (Spring only)

Description:
In Option IV students take two or three USC courses at the International Institute (4 units each) and one or two courses alongside Spanish students at the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid--also known as la Autónoma.

Eligibility:
Students must have completed at least one Spanish-taught 300-or 400-level Spanish course at USC.

Course Load:
-Two or three USC courses (4 USC units each; A-F grading basis)
-One or two regular Universidad Autónoma de Madrid courses (4 USC units each; credit/no credit)
-Only full year participants in their second semester in Madrid may take more than two Universidad Autónoma de Madrid courses inthe spring semester.

Units:
Option IV students may earn a maximum of 16 USC units.

Academics:
Students take two or three USC courses at the International Institute and one or two regular courses alongside Spanish students at la Autónoma. The Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, like other Spanish universities, is restructuring its undergraduate degree programs. As the the older degree programs are being phased out, students can take later-year courses in those programs but not first-year courses. First-year courses are to be taken in the new degree programs. The Universidad Autónoma de Madrid's new undergraduate degrees are in the following subject areas:

Biología / Ciencias ambientales / Ciencia política (incluso relaciones internacionales) / Ciencias y lenguas de la antigüedad (incluso arqueología) / Economía / Estudios hispánicos—lengua española y sus literaturas / Geografía / Historia / Historia del arte / Lenguas modernas, cultura y comunicación / Psicología / Química

Calendar:
Option IV is available only in the spring. Option IV courses begin in the second week of January and run through mid June. There is a spring break built into the calendar.

Estimated Semester Cost:
Tuition……………………………………$18,557
Additional Expenses*………………$10,913
Total………………………………………$29,470

Cost Updated: 6/10/08
Text Updated: 8/18/08

*Additional expenses include estimated costs for airfare, room and board, books and supplies, health insurance, and personal expenses (which can vary greatly from student to student). USC financial aid, scholarships, and tuition remission may be applied to program costs. Please visit the Office of Overseas Studies for more detailed cost information.