Nothing enhances the study of a language better than living in a country where that language is spoken. For that reason, the Spanish Program encourages all students to study abroad. Students must be aware, however, that there is a wide variety of international experiences available to students, not all of them sanctioned by the university. Coursework taken at an institution that has an official relationship with SFSU will transfer automatically. Coursework taken at an unsanctioned program may not transfer at all.
 

CSU International Programs
The CSU has programs in Spain, Chile and Mexico. The Spain and Chile programs require you to have at least two years of college-level Spanish prior to applying for the program. However, the Mexico program is open to beginners. For information on these programs, please see the website for the Office of International Programs.  For more information, go here.

What Credits Will Transfer
Coursework taken through officially-sanctioned international programs will transfer automatically. However, this does not mean that all classes taken abroad can be used to fulfill the requirements of the Spanish major. All classes taken in an official CSU International Program will transfer to the university, but only 15 units may be applied toward the major. Students hoping to apply Study Abroad credits toward completion of a major or minor in Spanish must consult with an advisor prior to departure.

Non-sanctioned Programs
The Spanish Program does not recommend that students participate in programs that do not have a formal relationship with San Francisco State University. You need to be aware that if you enroll in a foreign university or privately-owned language school abroad that does not have a formal relationship with SFSU, the classes you take will not transfer automatically, and may not even transfer at all. Students who enroll in such programs do so at their own risk.

Students who wish to enroll in foreign universities or language schools must be aware that:

  1. Spanish Program faculty will not pre-approve coursework taken through non-sanctioned programs;
  2. The Spanish Program is not responsible for seeing that you get credit for those classes;
  3. It is the student’s responsibility to present a transcript to the SFSU Admissions Office, which has the sole responsibility to evaluate coursework taken abroad and decide whether it will transfer;
  4. If such coursework is accepted by the Admissions office, whether or not to allow that coursework to be applied toward completion of a major or minor in Spanish is at the discretion of the Spanish Program.
  
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