Our research is broad and complementary and our commitment to our students is well established. For the benefit of our students—as well as for our own personal edification and enjoyment—we ensure that our differing approaches be in conversation with one another. This means we read one another’s work and learn from it, we talk, and we debate. In this sense, we really are a team: four faculty members collectively dedicated to education and scholarship in related fields. We believe our students benefit from this as much as we do.

What we do.

We offer four graduate seminars per academic year in Medieval and Early Modern literatures: two in early modern Peninsular (Golden Age), one in Colonial, and one in Medieval. Because of this, our graduate students receive instruction and attention that we believe is second to none. Our PhD students have the option of selecting a track in Medieval/Early Modern Hispanic Literatures or combining a specific interest—Colonial literature, for example—with more recent literary traditions.

Students choosing the track in Medieval/Early Modern Hispanic Literatures choose one major and three minor areas of specialization from the following subject areas: Medieval Iberian Literature; Early Modern Spanish Literature; Colonial Spanish American Literature; and one other area. Students complete a minimum of nine graduate credit hours in their major area of specialization and six hours of graduate credit hours in each of their minor areas. What this means in practice is simple: our students are able to take 2 to 3 graduate seminars per semester studying what most interests them! By the time students finish their coursework, they have an unrivaled background in Medieval and Early Modern Hispanic Literatures. (If you wish to know more, please consult our graduate manual)

What is more, we make broad curricular decisions to ensure that we provide comprehensive and coherent training. Prof. Baena, for example, alternates seminars on prose, poetry, theater, and Cervantes, to give our students a broad vision of Renaissance and Baroque literary history in Spain.

Because of the complementary nature of the interests of each of the faculty members of the team, we are able to offer a range of courses very different in focus from one another, covering not only a rich spectrum of issues relevant to the period, but also wide variety of critical approaches and intellectual possibilities. Current course descriptions can be found here.

Why Colorado?

Few programs in the nation can match the strength of Colorado’s faculty and course offerings in Medieval and Early Modern literatures. We have a vibrant student body, a supportive environment, and we have had tremendous success in placing our students at both liberal arts colleges and research universities. In addition to the strengths within the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, the University of Colorado offers a number of institutions that support the study of Peninsular and Colonial literatures. These include the Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies, in which scholars from across disciplines exchange ideas; the Center for Asian Studies, an ideal partner for the study of Spanish involvement in Oceania and the Middle East; the Center of the American West, and much more. If all that were not enough, we are located in an area of stunning natural beauty, within a short bike ride from the foothills of the magnificent Rocky Mountains. Our town, Boulder, is well known for its progressive politics, extensive cultural offerings, amenable climate, and excellent quality of life.

PhotoNameContact Information
Julio Baena Photo Julio Baena
Professor Emeritus
Spanish and Portuguese
Andres Prieto Photo Andrés Prieto
Associate Professor
Spanish and Portuguese
303.492.5234
Nuria new pic Núria Silleras-Fernández
Associate Professor
Spanish and Portuguese
303.492.5864