Vanderbilt University
Availability / Marketing of Content
The content on the site offered by Vanderbilt University is one of the most complete resources of all Latino/a Studies related sites. It offers clear navigation on the left side which remains static on all pages so as to offer familiarity on every page. It offers a great deal of information about the academic programs they offer and about the faculty which teaches it. Many of the links, such as for "Travel & Research Awards" and "Campus Resources", exemplify how the site reaches further than just providing information regarding academics. They offer insights into the Latino community through "News & Events" and the resources that are linked show Vanderbilt's strong effort to reach out to student taking this program.
Courses Offered
The courses offered at Vanderbilt University for their Latin American Studies program span 9 departments: Latin American Studies, Spanish, Portuguese, Art and Art History, Anthropology, History, Economics, Political Science, and Sociology. In total there are 144 courses offered that relate to their Center for Latin American and Iberian Studies.
Program Structure
Vanderbilt University offers both a major and minor program in its Latin American Studies program. The major requires that a student take a total of 36 major course hours and a foreign language requirement that mandates a student be able to demonstrate proficiency in both Spanish and Portuguese. Of those 36 hours, 6 must be out of core classes which are the same for all students, 12 must be in a core concentration of History, Language, Literature, and Fine Arts, or Social Sciences, and the rest ore elective courses. The minor program consists of one thematic focus, 15 hours of course work, and the ability to demonstrate language competency. The 15 hours are made up of an introductory course, 3 hours of Latin American history, 3 hours of relevant work in social sciences, and 3 hours of relevant work in language, literature, and fine arts. An honors program is also available where the student must maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 and a 3.3 GPA in Latin American Studies courses.
City Demographics
Vanderbilt University resides in Nashville, Tennessee which has a high percentage of African Americans in comparison to the U.S. average (26.8% compared to 12.3%) taken in the 2000 Census. In contrast, the percentage of the Hispanic/Latino population lags behind the national average at 4.7% (compared to the U.S. average of 12.5%). In total, there is a 34.1 non-White population in Nashville, Tennessee.
University Demographics
Vanderbilt University's minority numbers have been growing, culminating in the fact that "The Class of 2005 has the largest number of minorities -- regardless of citizenship -- ever. The freshman class represents the largest number of African-American students (105) and Hispanic students (68) in the University's history". In total, the student population is 8.3% African American, 7.0% Asian American, and 6.3% Hispanic/Latino.