Introduction

Please click here to see Modern Languages department information.

Program Delivery

• This program can be completed entirely online, or it can combine online and on-campus and/or Study Abroad classes approved by the certificate advisor.

Declaring This Certificate

​Students interested in completing this certificate should complete this form: CLAS Undergraduate Certificate Intent to Declare Form, which requests that the certificate be added to your student record. Once added, you will be able to run a certificate degree audit. The certificate degree audit should be used in collaboration with the Certificate Advisor to ensure successful completion of the requirements.

Students should then work with Marisa Fernández Martínez (maria.fernandezmartinez@ucdenver.edu) – the certificate advisor, to ensure completion of all certificate requirements.

• If you have studied Spanish before or speak the language, you must take the Placement Test before enrolling in your first class to determine which Spanish course is best for you to start the program. To take the test in person or online, please contact Niki Mott at  niki.mott@ucdenver.edu. Once you have completed it, send an email including your results to Dr. Fernández Martínez, the program director, at maria.fernandezmartinez@ucdenver.edu
• Students must contact the certificate director to have their electives pre-approved.

Completing This Certificate

Students must also complete the CLAS Undergraduate Certificate Completion Verification Form, before graduation, in order to confirm completion of their certificate. The certificate advisor will confirm that your certificate has been successfully completed, and will work with campus partners to apply the certificate to your transcript.

Students must fill out the Certificate Completion Form before the deadlines below, to ensure the certificate is applied to your transcript correctly. If you are a non-degree seeking student, please fill out this form in the term in which you intend to complete your certificate.

Spring semester – April 1
Summer semester – July 1
Fall semester – November 1

These program requirements are subject to periodic revision by the academic department, and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences reserves the right to make exceptions and substitutions as judged necessary in individual cases. Therefore, the College strongly urges students to consult regularly with their Spanish for the Health Professions advisor to confirm the best plans of study before finalizing them.

General Requirements

Students must satisfy all requirements as outlined below and by the department offering the certificate. 

• Click here for information about Academic Policies

Certificate Requirements

1. Students must complete a minimum of 12 credit hours from approved courses.

2. Students must complete six SPAN upper division (3000-level and above) credit hours.

3. Students must earn a minimum grade of C (2.0) in all courses that apply to the certificate and must achieve a minimum cumulative certificate GPA of 2.0. Courses taken using P+/P/F or S/U grading cannot apply to certificate requirements.

4. Students must complete a minimum of nine credit hours from approved courses with a minimum of six SPAN credit hours, with CU Denver faculty.

Course List

Code	Title	Hours
Complete the following two courses, according to your Spanish proficiency level:		6
SPAN 3740	Spanish for the Healthcare Professions I
or SPAN 5740	Spanish for the Healthcare Professions I
SPAN 3750	Spanish for the Healthcare Professions II
or SPAN 5750	Spanish for the Healthcare Professions II
Complete two courses from the following list of electives: 1		6
ANTH 4300	Immigrant Health
ETST 3002	Ethnicity, Health and Social Justice
ETST 3108	Chicano/a and Latino/a History
ETST 3704	Culture, Racism and Alienation
HDFR 4040	Latino Families in School and Communities
HDFR 4045	Abuelos (Grandparents) Latino Families
PSYC 4485	Psychology of Cultural Diversity
SOCY 4050	Health Disparities
SOCY 4110	Sociology of Health Care
SPAN 2110	Second Year Spanish I (For students with a beginner level of Spanish proficiency)
SPAN 2120	Second Year Spanish II (For students with an intermediate level of Spanish proficiency)
SPAN 3025	Writing for Latinos
Another elective course with a health communication focus may be approved in consultation with the certificate advisor.
Total Hours		12

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Some courses may have prerequisites that apply.

Learning Spanish requires constant practice of the five skills involved in second language acquisition: speaking and listening, writing, reading, and cultural knowledge. All assessments and learning outcomes designed for this class align seamlessly with the steady improvement of these five skills. With this goal in mind, each weekly online module includes a predictable series of consistent and diverse assignments that allow students to practice and develop all five competencies.

At the end of the semester, students will be able to:

• Communicate with their patients in Spanish in a culturally informed way.
• Write in the formal register of Spanish, using the learned medical vocabulary in appropriate contexts. Write questions, directions, prescriptions, diagnoses, etc., in Spanish.
• Read and discuss texts related to Latinx´s health and become acquainted with diverse cultural perspectives and worldviews.
• Express an understanding of essential cultural beliefs that could influence notions of health in some Spanish-speaking patients.