<p>I posted on another forum about majoring in a language (Spanish) as an undergrad and eventually receiving my PhD. An insightful poster commented that non-native PhD holders are having a hard time finding jobs as professors. I am not a native speaker. I’m really concerned about this.</p>
<p>Looking into the future, I’m questioning whether it’s worth it to get a PhD in Spanish. BUT I really want to do it; I am not the average Spanish student who has just taken classes in high school. Spanish has become an important part of my life. I have studied extensively and am completely fluent, and recently I lived abroad in Latin America for a short period (twelve weeks), as well. </p>
<p>In the end, however, the reality is that there will always be a large pool of native speakers competing with me for jobs. No matter how great my qualifications are, will the employer overlook or underestimate me for not being a native speaker? </p>
<p>Look at the kinds of jobs that you would like to do and see who are doing them. If you want to be a Spanish professor, look at the Spanish professors in the kinds of schools at which you would like to teach. Are they all or mostly native speakers or educated abroad? If the answer’s yes, and you also talk to your professors and they say the same thing (ask your trusted professors about advice on whether you could break into the field), then it may be a better use of your time to do something else.</p>
<p>I’d actually talk to some Spanish depts at a few universities and get their opinions. All you’re going to get here is conjecture.
That being said, you said you are “completely fluent.” What do you mean by this? There are various degrees of fluency and if you’ve only lived abroad for a few months (and studied “extensively”) I’d have trouble believing you are 100% like-native fluent in Spanish. What do native speakers from (as in currently living in) Spanish-speaking countries say about your speaking and writing skills when you’re not around?</p>
<p>Apumic: I am only a high school senior. I never said I had near-native fluency; I said that I have studied rigorously outside of school. I meant that I am completely fluent in the common use of the term, aka by completely fluent I mean that I can read native texts and converse with natives with no difficulty. By studying extensively I mean that I have been tutored by native speakers for years, usually at least 3 times a week, and I lived for a period of time in one of my tutors’ home country. Accordingly, I feel like I have a great foundation that could lead me to be a Spanish professor.Am I fluent in the scholarly sense? No, not yet. But I’m not applying for graduate school now; I haven’t even started my undergraduate degree yet. I’m just wondering if putting the time and effort into reaching near-native fluency is worth it when some colleges may want only native speakers. </p>
<p>Wait, you’re a high school senior? And you can read and converse fairly fluently in Spanish? I would say, DREAM BIG. At your age, the world is your oyster. Go for it.</p>
<p>The only caveat I would add is, be thinking about a plan B. Even if you are the best Spanish professor out there, you will likely not earn a spectacular income. Be careful of taking on too much debt to finance your education.</p>
<p>Also, spanish is a hugely marketable skill. For undergrad, you may want to think of a minor in business/econ as a fall back position. I live in Cali, and I can tell you with that combination, if you ultimately choose to not pursue a PhD, you will still have plenty of job opportunities outside of academia.</p>
<p>Good luck, and be sure and focus on keeping your grades up through your undergrad!</p>
<p>You’re very welcome. You sound like a really great kid, with a good head on your shoulders. Listen to BOTH your heart and your head throughout your life, mix in a little hard work and you’ll do great!</p>
<p>Aren’t you a bit young to have these kind of stresses in your life? Take the classes you love but I would suggest having some sort of back up plan. It would have been great for my wife, who majored in Art History.</p>
<p>I agree that a back-up plan is a good idea. I think it’s great that you’re so passionate about this, but you may consider using it as a tool in your life instead of the primary and only focus. You’re not even in undergrad yet, so chances are high you’ll find something else you love that you could combine with the language skills, whether it’s business, health, education, or any number of other things. Keep an open mind to other ways you can integrate your love of Spanish language and culture with other marketable life skills.</p>
<p>A Ph.D. in Spanish primarily will focus on specialization in Spanish or Spanish American Literature or Spanish Linguistics. Usually, you’ll have a subspecialty, too, such as a particular period or genre of Spanish Literature. Whether you reach your goal of a professorship depends on the quality of your scholarship in your area of specialization. There is no overriding reason why a non-native speaker could not become a more qualified literary, critical, or linguistic scholar than a native speaker. Like all humanities fields, however, there is keen competition for available academic openings. For a Ph.D. in Spanish, you also would need a reading knowledge of at least 2 other languages of scholarship, generally French, Italian, Portuguese, and/or Latin. There are other specialized areas for which other languages may be important, e.g., research on the Muslim period in Spain, for which Arabic would be an important scholarly language. Since you would have to acquire additional languages anyway, you might also consider an advanced degree in a Comparative Literature Department. Other areas for which you might be well-situated include translation of Spanish books into English, which is your native language. You also could double major in Linguistics (including applied linguistics with areas such as second-language learning). As an additional area, you could combine Literature + Spanish or Latin American History, a field for which your language skills would be a decided advantage. There are many other fields as well which could be combined with Spanish /Language and Literature studies (e.g., Anthropology, Art History,
International Relations, etc.).</p>
<p>A Ph.D. in Spanish primarily will focus on specialization in Spanish or Spanish American Literature or Spanish Linguistics. Usually, you’ll have a subspecialty, too, such as a particular period or genre of Spanish Literature. Whether you reach your goal of a professorship depends on the quality of your scholarship in your area of specialization. There is no overriding reason why a non-native speaker could not become a more qualified literary, critical, or linguistic scholar than a native speaker. Like all humanities fields, however, there is keen competition for available academic openings. For a Ph.D. in Spanish, you also would need a reading knowledge of at least 2 other languages of scholarship, generally French, Italian, Portuguese, and/or Latin. There are other specialized areas for which other languages may be important, e.g., research on the Muslim period in Spain, for which Arabic would be an important scholarly language. Since you would have to acquire additional languages anyway, you might also consider an advanced degree in a Comparative Literature Department. Other areas for which you might be well-situated include translation of Spanish books into English, which is your native language. You also could double major in Linguistics (including applied linguistics with areas such as second-language learning). As an additional area, you could combine Literature + Spanish or Latin American History, a field for which your language skills would be a decided advantage. There are many other fields as well which could be combined with Spanish /Language and Literature studies (e.g., Anthropology, Art History,
International Relations, etc.).</p>