Advising

Our department offers a range of formal and informal mentoring designed to support students on their path to the PhD. 

All students entering the program are advised by the Director of Graduate Studies. Once students constitute their doctoral committee in their third year, the chair of that committee becomes their primary advisor, while other committee members help advise students on the dissertation, professionalization, and career options, etc.

Orientation is held before the start of the academic year, typically in the last week of September. It offers an overview of our program requirements, funding opportunities and resources, and an individual meeting with the Director of Graduate Studies to plan enrollment for the quarter.

The Director of the Language Program also offers an orientation for Teaching Assistants at this time. Every fall, the Director of the Language Program teaches Spanish 495, an in-depth training in core pedagogical principles required of all our students in their first term of teaching.

Both new and continuing students are required to meet with the Director of Graduate Studies at the beginning of each academic year, to discuss their progress and get approval for their course of study for the year.  

The Proseminars, which students take in their first and third years in the program, are designed to provide key information about the PhD, professionalization, and career preparation in a group setting.

The Graduate Student Handbook offers further information designed to support students on their path to the PhD.

The Spanish and Portuguese Graduate Student Association offers opportunities for peer mentoring and organizes frequent workshops on professionalization and other topics of interest to graduate students.

There are many other ways to get involved in the Department and develop additional skills during the program, through collaborative research groups and student-edited journals, and university-wide programs at UCLA’s many specialized centers and institutes. 

For questions about admissions, requirements, or deadlines, please contact our Graduate Student Advisor, Gloria Tovar: gtovar@humnet.ucla.edu