Concentration Prerequisite

Same as those for concentrations in the individual languages:
• FRENCH 235 for students of French
• ITALIAN 232 or 233 for students of Italian
• SPANISH 275 and 276 for students of Spanish

In addition, upper-level courses have the following prerequisites:
• Two French courses: FRENCH 250-99 for most French courses 300 and above
• ITALIAN 235 for other concentration-level Italian courses
• Three 300-level Spanish courses for 400-level Spanish courses

Concentration Requirements

A minimum of 42 credits consisting of the following:

I. A minimum of 33 credits of coursework in 2 languages (from French, Italian, or Spanish) that meet the following qualifications:

• only courses that would count towards the individual language concentrations may be used to satisfy this requirement
• courses must be listed in the LSA Bulletin as taught in the target language
• a minimum of 12 credits in each language
• a minimum of 21 credits from upper-level courses (at least six credits in each language) N.b. "upper-level" means:
300 or above in French and Italian
400 or above in Spanish

II. A minimum of 9 additional credits, including:
1. one course in Romance philology or linguistics
2. one elective:
a. a ROMLANG/ROMLING number; or
b. another concentration-level course in French, Spanish, or Italian (in English or the target language)
3. ROMLANG 498, the Senior Seminar in RLL

Part I of the requirements gives students the choice between treating the languages more or less equally and having "primary" and "secondary" languages.

Part II of the requirements fosters "bridges" between the two languages that are of both a practical/linguistic nature and an intellectual one.

Requirement II.1 grounds the concentration in Romance Languages and Literatures in an understanding of the linguistic "kinship" between Romance languages. Requirement II.2 encourages students to explore the intellectual connections between the fields of French and Francophone studies, Hispanic studies, and Italian studies as well as fosters both a comparative and interdisciplinary understanding of Romance studies. All RLL concentrators will be enrolled in the senior seminar (Requirement II.3) during the fall semester of their senior year. This seminar relies on students' prior course work as a basis for reinforcing connections between courses in French, Italian, and Spanish as well as offers an introduction to the methods of Romance Studies and an exploration of potential topics for which crossing boundaries between languages might provide productive avenues of inquiry. A major component of the senior seminar involves individual research projects tailored to each student's linguistic competences.

Residence requirement: A minimum of 21 of the required 42 credits must be taken either in residence or through a study abroad program affiliated with the University of Michigan.

RLL Concentration Worksheet (PDF)

By taking a number of courses in each language beyond the requirements for the concentration in Romance Languages and Literatures, students may qualify for teaching certification in both a major and a minor language. The exact requirements for certification are available at the School of Education website. Candidates for a secondary school teaching certificate should study the general information about teaching certificate requirements,which appears under the Teacher Certification Program in this Bulletin, and contact the School of Education.