Mexican American Studies, Bachelor of Arts

The mission of the UTRGV Mexican American Studies (MASC) program is to prepare students to critically investigate community knowledge and socio-political, economic, cultural, and artistic conditions of and contributions by Mexican Americans, Chicana/ os and Latina/ os to the history, culture, and institutions of the United States and broader Americas. The Mexican American Studies program offers a Bachelors of Arts in Mexican American Studies, a Minor in Mexican American Studies, a Master of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies in Mexican American Studies, and a Graduate Certificate.

The goal of the BA in MASC is to recognize, validate, and engage students, faculty, and Mexican American, Chicana/o and Latina/o communities as agents of conocimiento and knowledge. Our place-based pedagogies and transdisciplinary methods provide a holistic approach to the study of complex and dynamic Mexican American experiences. We prepare students to critically investigate community knowledge and socio-political, economic, cultural, and artistic conditions of and contributions by Mexican Americans, Chicana/ os and Latina/ os .

Students develop the skills to engage in self-discovery and to communicate their conocimientos to produce salient applied research to effect positive social change in their comunidades . Our position en la frontera requires and enables MASC to have a simultaneous local and hemispheric concentration. This unique transcultural context shapes academic and public conversations regionally, nationally, and globally.

Core Curriculum - 42 Hours

The Core Curriculum serves as a broad foundation for the undergraduate degree. All candidates for a bachelor’s degree must achieve core student learning outcomes, including communication, critical thinking, empirical and quantitative skills, teamwork, personal responsibility and social responsibility, by completing courses within each category or component area of the Core Curriculumas outlined below.

The University has approved specific courses that satisfy Core Curriculum Requirements. Approved courses can be found on the Core Curriculum Page. Students seeking the most efficient way to complete the core curriculum and major or minor requirements are advised to take approved courses that can fulfill both requirements. Although core curriculum courses can also be used to fulfill major or minor requirements, earned credits hours are only applied once. The courses listed below fulfill core curriculum and major requirements. Students who have completed a core curriculum category with courses other than those listed below will still be required to take the listed course(s) to meet major requirements.

040 Language, Philosophy & Culture - 3 hours

MASC 2301Introduction to Mexican American Studies

3

060 American History - 6 hours

MASC 2327Mexican American History I

3

MASC 2328Mexican American History II

3

Major Requirements - 36 Hours

Required Courses - 18 hours

Mexican American Studies - 9 hours

MASC 2351/ENGL 2351Introduction to Mexican American Literature

3

MASC 3332/HIST 3332Mexican American History

3

MASC 4350Research Methods in Mexican American/Chicanx/Latinx Studies

3

Spanish language - 9 hours

Choose from:
SPAN 1311Beginning Spanish I

3

SPAN 1312Beginning Spanish II

3

SPAN 2311Intermediate Spanish I for Non-Native Speakers

3

SPAN 2312Intermediate Spanish II

3

SPAN 1315Spanish for Heritage Language Learners I

3

SPAN 2313Spanish for Heritage Language Learners II

3

SPAN 2315Spanish for Heritage Language Learners III

3

Prescribed Electives - 18 hours

Complete 6 hours from 3 categories below for a total of 18 hours. 12 hours must be advanced. 

Special Topics courses may be offered and applied to the Mexican American Studies degree plan at the discretion of the department.

Anthropology

ANTH 4304Indians of North America

3

ANTH 4323Mexican American Culture

3

ANTH 4348Peoples and Cultures of Mexico

3

ANTH 4350Mexican American Folk Medicine

3

ANTH 4369Archaeology of Mexico and Central America

3

ANTH 4375Mexican American Folklore

3

Creative and Fine Arts

ARTS 3350Pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican Art and Architecture

3

ARTS 4352Latin American Art and Architecture

3

ARTS 4354Modern Mexican Art, 1785-1940

3

ARTS 4355Modern Mexican Art since 1940

3

ARTS 3356Mexican Viceregal Art and Architecture

3

MASC 4357/ARTS 4357Latin@ Art History

3

ARTS 4358Research Methods in Latin American Art and Architectural History

3

DANC 1250Introduction to Folklorico II

2

DANC 1249Introduction to Folklorico I

2

 

DANC 2250Folklorico I

2

Or

DANC 2349Folklorico I

3

 

DANC 3250Folklorico II

2

Or

DANC 3349Folklorico II

3

 

DANC 4250Folklorico III

2

Or

DANC 4349Folklorico III

3

 

MASC 1307/MUSI 1307Mexican Folk Music

3

History

HIST 3300Historiography and Methods

3

HIST 3333Texas History

3

HIST 3361Colonial Latin America

3

HIST 3362Modern Latin America

3

HIST 3336Spanish Borderlands to 1821

3

MASC 4331/HIST 4331Mexican-American Civil Rights

3

MASC 4332/HIST 4332Chicano Movement

3

HIST 4360Mexico's First Century as an Independent Republic

3

HIST 4361Contemporary Mexico

3

HIST 4362History of Mexican Culture

3

HIST 4363/FILM 4363History of Mexican Cinema

3

HIST 4393Special Topics in Latin American History

3

HIST 3300 only required for 4000 history courses. 

Language and Literature and Linguistics

MASC 4317/ENGL 4317Mexican-American Literature

3

ENGL 4318South Texas Literature

3

MASC 4370/ENGL 4370Introduction To Border Language

3

MASC 4385/ENGL 4385Topics In Border Studies

3

SPAN 2317Spanish for Healthcare Professionals I

3

SPAN 2318Spanish for Healthcare Professionals II

3

SPAN 2320Latina/o Culture and Civilization in Spanish

3

SPAN 2321Spanish in the United States

3

SPAN 3300Advanced Spanish Grammar & Composition I

3

SPAN 3301Advanced Spanish Grammar & Composition II

3

MASC 3308/SPAN 3308Introduction to Latina/o Literature

3

SPAN 3348Advanced Spanish for Healthcare Professionals

3

SPAN 4315Acquisition of the Spanish Language

3

SPAN 4318Spanish Language Media Studies

3

SPAN 4320The Mexican Novel

3

SPAN 4321Mexican Literature

3

SPAN 4323Spanish American Novel

3

SPAN 4326Chicano Narrative

3

SPAN 4331The Spanish American Short Story

3

SPAN 4332The Spanish American Essay

3

WRLS 2301Multilingual Writing in Academic and Community Contexts

3

Mexican-American Studies

MASC 4300Learning and Reflective Service (Practicum)

3

MASC 4324Crimmigration and the Militarization of the U.S.-Mexican Border

3

MASC 4330Critical, Liberation, and Indigenous/Chicano Psychologies

3

MASC 4392Special Topics in Mexican American Studies

3

Philosophy

PHIL 1305Introduction to Latin American Philosophy

3

PHIL 1362Race, Sexuality, and Class

3

PHIL 3365Chicana and Latin American Feminisms

3

PHIL 4305Special Topics in Latin American Philosophy

3

PHIL 4345Mexican/Mexican-American Philosophy

3

Political Science

MASC 4316/POLS 4316U.S. Latin@ Politics

3

MASC 4333/POLS 4333U.S. Mexico Border Relations

3

MASC 4354/POLS 4354Immigration, Race, and Citizenship

3

POLS 4320Latin American Politics

3

POLS 4321Central American Politics

3

POLS 4323Mexican Politics

3

Sociology

SOCI 1301Introduction to Sociology

3

SOCI 3313Criminology

3

SOCI 3325Social Psychology

3

SOCI 3333Urban Sociology

3

MASC 3346/SOCI 3346Hispanics in Global Society

3

SOCI 3347Sociology of Immigration

3

SOCI 4313Race and Ethnic Relations

3

MASC 4323/SOCI 4323The Mexican American Experience

3

SOCI 4352Social Stratification

3

Interdisciplinary Studies

COMM 3336Media, Race, and Ethnicity

3

EDFR 2301Intercultural Context of Schooling

3

MASC 3322/EDBE 3322/EDSL 3322Foundations of Bilingual Education and ESL

3

GEOG 3333Latin American Geography

3

MASC 3325/HLTH 3325Latino Health

3

PSYC 2301General Psychology

3

MASC 4328/PSYC 4328Psychological Issues in the Mexican-American Community

3

MASC 4348/SPAN 4348/TRSP 4348Sociolinguistics and Latino Health

3

SOCW 4370Mexican American Mental Health

3

SOCW 3333Special Topics in Social Work Issues

3

PSYC 2301 required in advanced psychology courses.

Free Electives - 42 hours

Free elective credit hours at the advanced level may be needed to achieve the institutional minimum of 42 advanced hours.

Students interested in applying free elective hours towards a double major or minor should see an advisor for more information.

Total Credit Hours: 42

Total Credit Hours: 120