Program Overview

Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies

The Center for Caribbean, Latin American, and Latinx Studies (CLACX) offers a major and minor in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx studies and minors in Brazilian studies and Caribbean studies. CLACX was named a National Resource Center on Latin America by the U.S. Department of Education and is Vanderbilt's largest and most active interdisciplinary program. CLACX fosters a lively research community on campus through its highly interdisciplinary faculty and by sponsoring various academic events.

Courses

Students are exposed to a wide range of courses across history, language, literature, art history, sociology, anthropology, economics, political science, and more. Students must demonstrate advanced language competence in Spanish or Portuguese, as well as intermediate knowledge of a second Latin American language, including Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, or Kiche Maya.

Honors Program

CLACX offers an Honors Program to highly motivated students, leading to a B.A. with Honors in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies. Students must have a minimum 3.0 overall GPA and a 3.3 GPA in courses that count toward the Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies major to be accepted into the program. Honors students must complete independent study, write an Honors thesis, and pass an oral examination.

Special Opportunities

CLACX sponsors faculty colloquia, conferences, and a speakers series which brings distinguished scholars, government and business leaders, and social activists to campus. Students have many opportunities to enhance their studies through the Honors program, independent study, internships, and study abroad programs in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, and Guatemala.

After Vanderbilt

The study of Latin America and its people has never been more relevant. People identifying as Latinx constitute 18.1% of the U.S. population, and our international connections to Latin America and its economies continue to grow stronger. Now, as in the past, the major in Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx studies provides a strong base for careers in international business, law, health, and management. Our graduates have also established careers in the Foreign Service, education, government, and non-government organizations. Others go on to do graduate work in area studies or related academic disciplines.

• Career paths of recent graduates include:
  • Research Assistant at the Arbab Lab at Harvard Boston Childrens Hospital
  • Analyst at Adobe Systems
  • Harvard Law School
  • Fulbright Scholar in Brazil
  • Research Assistant at MDRC, a social policy research organization, in New York City

Faculty

The center draws upon 125+ renowned Vanderbilt faculty from the Departments of Anthropology, History of Art and Architecture, Economics, English, History, Political Science, Sociology, and Spanish and Portuguese, as well as each of the professional schools. Faculty include award-winning and innovative teachers who are involved in a wide array of projects such as Latin Business Week, Engineers without Borders in Guatemala, Manna Project in Ecuador, Global Health Brigade in Honduras, and outreach to Nashvilles Latinx community. They are also active in national and international conferences, editorial boards, and documentary film and museum projects.

Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, that is a global hub for learning, innovation, and leadership. Its 11 schools and colleges offer students more than 65 undergraduate majors, a full range of graduate and professional degrees, and faculty who are leaders in their fields. The 340-acre campusan accredited arboretum just 1.5 miles from downtownis home to groundbreaking interdisciplinary research, SEC athletics, and a community dedicated to free expression and civil discourse that lives by its motto, Crescere aude , dare to grow.