All students are required to enroll in one Spanish language course, plus CAS LS 241 Cultures of Spain, as well as CAS MA 226 and ENG EK 307. They also choose one additional Engineering elective from the options outlined below. Language course assignments are based on placement test results. Students with prior Spanish Language experience will be placed into a higher-level course, based on their ability. All language courses are taught at the Instituto Internacional.
Required Langauge Courses (one required)
CAS LS 111 First-Semester Spanish
For students who have never studied Spanish, or by placement test results. Introduction to grammatical structures. Emphasis on aural comprehension, speaking, and pronunciation. Introduction to Hispanic culture.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Individual in Community
CAS LS 112 Second-Semester Spanish
Prerequisite: one term of college-level Spanish or the equivalent
Completes study of basic grammatical structures. Emphasis on speaking and aural comprehension with readings on contemporary Hispanic culture and writing assignments.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Individual in Community
CAS LS 211 Third-Semester Spanish
Prerequisite: two terms of college-level Spanish or the equivalent
Completes study of grammatical structures of Spanish. Use of spoken language in conversation. Reading in Hispanic civilization and of contemporary short stories. Writing exercises involving more complex grammatical and syntactical patterns.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Individual in Community
CAS LS 212 Fourth-Semester Spanish
Prerequisite: three terms of college-level Spanish or the equivalent
Review of the structures of Spanish. Intensive practice of spoken language. More advanced readings from Hispanic culture with frequent compositions.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Individual in Community
CAS LS 306 Spanish Through Translation*
Prerequisite: four terms of college-level Spanish or the equivalent
Advanced study of the Spanish language through the translation of written texts. Analysis of the theory and practice of translation as a catalyst of cultural transfer. Taught in Spanish.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Oral and/or Signed Communication
CAS LS 309 Spanish for Heritage and Native Speakers
Undergraduate Prerequisites: First Year Writing Seminar (e.g., WR 100 or WR 120). Not open to students who have completed any 300- level Spanish Language course.
Designed for heritage speakers who have lived part of their lives in Spanish-speaking settings (including Spanish-speaking households in the U.S.), who speak at an advanced level, and who wish to strengthen their reading and writing skills while exploring Hispanic cultures.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Individual in Community
Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Writing-Intensive Course
CAS LS 449 Contemporary Spanish Novel: From “La Movida” to 15-M
An overview of contemporary Spanish novels from the time of Franco’s death in 1975 to the present day. This class explores cultural issues within the literary, political, and social contexts of contemporary Spain.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Research and Information Literacy
Aesthetic Exploration
Other Required Courses
CAS LS 241 Cultures of Spain: Past and Present
An introduction to Spanish civilization with special emphasis on history, art, and literature. Instruction begins in English and shifts gradually into Spanish as students’ fluency increases. Course content is enriched by visits to the Prado Museum, Segovia, Toledo, and others.
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Global Citizenship and Intercultural Literacy
Historical Consciousness
CAS MA 226 Differential Equations
Prerequisite: CAS MA 225 or MA 230, or the equivalent.
First-order linear and separable equations. Second-order equations and first-order systems. Linear equations and linearization. Numerical and qualitative analysis. Laplace transforms. Applications and modeling of real phenomena throughout. (Cannot be taken for credit in addition to CAS MA 231.)
Units: 4
BU Hub areas:
Critical Thinking
ENG EK 307 Electric Circuits
Corequisite: CAS PY 212, or the equivalent.
Introduction to electric circuit analysis and design; voltage, current, and power; element I-V curves, circuit laws, and theorems; energy storage; frequency domain, frequency response, transient response, sinusoidal steady state and transfer functions; and operational amplifiers, design. Includes lab.
Units: 4
Elective Courses
Students choose one of the following 4-unit elective options, taught in English at a local university:
CAS PY 321 Thermal Physics
PY 321 & PY 322 together, fulfills the program and elective requirements of CAS PY 313
Prerequisites: CAS PY 211, CAS PY 212 and CAS MA 124, or the equivalent.
First and second laws of thermodynamics: kinetic theory of gases, heat capacity, heat engines, introduction to entropy, statistical mechanics, and introduction to application of free energy and Boltzmann factor. Calculus approach for majors in engineering, mathematics, physics, and chemistry.
Units: 2
CAS PY 322 Quantum Physics
PY 321 & PY 322 together, fulfills the program and elective requirements of CAS PY 313
Prerequisites: CAS PY 211, CAS PY 212 and CAS MA 124, or the equivalent.
Interference and diffraction, photons and matter waves, the Bohr atom, uncertainty principle, and wave mechanics. Calculus-based course for majors in engineering, mathematics, physics, and chemistry.
Units: 2
ENG BE 209 Principles of Molecular Cell Biology and Biotechnology
Prerequisites: high school biology and at least one semester of college chemistry.
For biomedical engineers. Principles of cell and molecular biology and biochemistry emphasizing biomolecules, the flow of genetic information, cell structure and function, and cell regulation. Three hours lecture, three hours lab.
Units: 4
ENG ME 304 Energy and Thermodynamics
Prerequisites: CAS PY 211.
Macroscopic treatment of the fundamental concepts of thermodynamic systems. Zeroth, first, and second laws; properties of simple compressible substances; entropy; energy availability; ideal gas mixtures and psychometrics; and thermodynamic cycles. Application to engines, refrigeration systems, and energy conversion.
