Portuguese

Portuguese

While Portuguese has been taught in the department since 1945, the IU Portuguese program was established in the 1960s, making it one of the oldest in the nation. We are one of few programs in the country to offer the B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in Portuguese. We also offer a Ph.D. minor.

Our Portuguese program is distinguished by its transatlantic, interdisciplinary focus, with classes concerning the literature and culture of Portuguese-speaking countries, including Brazil, Portugal, Angola, Mozambique, East Timor, and Guinea-Bissau. We offer courses in Luso-Brazilian culture (such as cinema and other arts) and literature (theater, poetry, and prose). We also encourage students to take classes outside the department, in areas of relevance to Luso-African-Brazilian culture, society, art, and history.

The Portuguese program combines rigorous training in scholarship with close mentorship, delivering a broad and solid preparation for an academic career in Portuguese and Lusophone literatures and cultures. We offer courses in a broad range of areas in the fields of Brazilian, Portuguese, and Lusophone African literatures and cultures, including cinema, theater, gender studies, and modern and contemporary fiction.

Pedagogical + academic training

As teaching assistants, our graduate students in Portuguese teach three courses per year (including both Portuguese and Spanish courses). Advanced Ph.D. students in Portuguese often have the opportunity to teach a third-year undergraduate course (either Advanced Grammar and Composition, or Reading and Conversation in Portuguese), while working closely with a faculty mentor.

Our students receive intensive training in teaching and professional conduct. Our department offers an orientation session for incoming graduate students. It also offers periodical workshops designed to prepare students for the job market, as well as to the research and teaching demands of their future careers.