Academic Program

Courses

Students take daily language classes at the Instituto Cultural Oaxaca. They experience a unique immersion program of seven hours of daily instruction.

Monday through Friday, students participate in three-hour Spanish Language classes in which they broaden their language skills and are introduced to various aspects of Mexican Culture.Immediately following class instruction, students participate in a more informal one hour conversation class.

As an added benefit, students may choose to do an language exchange know as "intercambio," with a local Oaxacan college student. These happen between the conversation course and cultural workshops listed below.

In the late afternoon, following the large meal of the day with the family and siesta time, students return to the school to participate in cultural workshops such as regional Oaxacan Cooking, Ceramics, Weaving, Salsa dancing, the History of Mexico, History of Mexico through Music and the History of Oaxacan Painting. These workshops and classes help students achieve a better understanding of Mexican Culture and History through interaction with local artisans and teachers.

Students earn 12-16 PCC credits in Spanish language, conversation and culture on this program. Exact course placements depend on the level of the participant, at the time of application for the program.

Beginning Fall 2008, PCC will have standard prerequisites of reading, writing and mathematics for general education courses. The standard prerequisites are:

  • Successful completion (grade “C” or higher) of WR 115, or placement into WR 121, and
  • Successful completion (grade “C” or higher) of RD 115, or equivalent test scores, and
  • Successful completion (grade “C” or higher) of MTH 20 or placement into MTH 60

PCC strongly recommends taking care of any missing prerequisites right away, especially to avoid an issues with study abroad registration. Students can meet with an academic advisor at any academic advising office for help in planning classes and getting questions answered about classes taken at another school. For more information go to the Prerequisites Begin Fall 2008 web page.

Course Offerings:

A sample of the courses of study include:

Second Year Spanish SPA 202

Second Year Spanish SPA 203

Spanish culture SPA 260A

Spanish culture SPA 260C

**If you have already taken all levels of Spanish at PCC please speak with our office about possibilites for study on this program. We cannot offer students Spanish in the third year (can only be taken at university). If you wish to study at the same level again for your own progression, this is a possibilty, but it will not count for additional credit toward a PCC degree.