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About Us

Who we are

The Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) at Stanford University is an academic community that supports research and teaching in all fields of study as they relate to Latin America and the Caribbean. CLAS is a U.S. Department of Education Title VI National Resource Center for Latin America committed to outreach to the scholarly community in California and the United States.

CLAS' origins go back to the 1940s when a group of Stanford faculty developed the Hispano-American Studies Program. By fall of 1965, the University established the Center for Latin American Studies and it has been operating since then.

Mission and Vision

CLAS' mission is to foster an academic community that serves as a multidisciplinary platform to enable learning from and engaging with the Americas, understood as the diverse ethnic, linguistic, cultural, biological, and historical geography shared with the United States and Canada.

CLAS is committed to promoting "the public welfare by exercising an influence on behalf of humanity and civilization” (Stanford University founding grant) and advancing scientific knowledge that strengthens social, economic and environmental justice, sustainability, inclusion, and democracy in our hemisphere.

What we do

The Stanford Center for Latin American Studies draws on the strengths of faculty and students in Stanford University’s seven schools to promote scholarship and teaching that contributes to solving the great challenges of our region. The Center's academic programs encourage multidisciplinary approaches and draws on the expertise of active affiliated faculty members representing Stanford's various schools and departments. CLAS offers two degree programs: an Undergraduate Minor and a Master of Arts degree.

CLAS engages with and listens to Latin American and Caribbean voices, studying the natural, cultural, and social environments, the richness of the hemisphere’s past experience, the vitality of its contemporary affairs, and the brilliant imagination of its creative thinkers. Every year the Center hosts a number of Tinker Visiting Professors, as well as other highly distinguished Latin American and Iberian scholars.

CLAS supports research and teaching on Latin America in all fields of study and collaborates with Stanford University Libraries to continue strengthening its substantial Latin American and Iberian collections, which are valuable resources for students, faculty, and visiting researchers alike.

As a Latin America National Resource Center (NRC), supported by the U.S. Department of Education under the auspices of Title VI, Section 602(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, CLAS serves to strengthen access to and training in the major languages of Latin America, and to broaden Latin-America area studies training across all disciplines.

CLAS is part of Stanford Global Studies in the School of Humanities and Sciences. The program offers two academic programs in Latin American Studies: an undergraduate minor and a master of arts degree.

Undergraduate and Graduate Degree Programs in Latin American Studies

Stanford Global Studies offers a minor with a Latin American Studies specialization. Although there is no undergraduate major in Latin American Studies, students may concentrate on Latin America through other departmental and interdisciplinary degree programs, such as Anthropology, History, Political Science, Iberian and Latin American Cultures, or International Relations. Interested students should consult the relevant departmental web sites and sections of this bulletin for further information.

Undergraduates can obtain a coterminal M.A. degree in Latin American Studies while concurrently working on their undergraduate major by applying during the regular admissions cycle no later than their senior year.

The one-year master's program in Latin American Studies is designed for students who have experience working, living, or studying in Latin America or Iberia and little prior Latin American Studies coursework.

Stanford University does not offer a Ph.D. program in Latin American Studies; however, doctoral candidates may concentrate on Latin America through other departmental programs, such as Anthropology, History, Political Science or Iberian and Latin American Cultures. Interested applicants should consult the relevant departmental web sites and sections of this bulletin for admissions information and further details.

The joint degree program in Latin American Studies and Law allows students to pursue the M.A. degree in Latin American Studies concurrently with the Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) degree, with a significant number of courses that may apply to both degrees. It is designed to train students interested in a career in teaching, research, or the practice of law related to Latin American legal affairs. Students must apply separately to the Latin American Studies M.A. program and to the Stanford School of Law and be accepted by both. Completing this combined course of study requires approximately four academic years, depending on the student's background and level of language training. For more information, see the "Joint Degree Programs" section of this bulletin and consult with the program offices for the two programs.

Stanford offers dual degree programs that grant an M.A. degree in Latin American Studies and a Master of Business Administration degree or a Medical Doctor degree. Students must apply separately to and be accepted by both the Latin American Studies M.A. program and the Graduate School of Business or School of Medicine.

Undergraduate Financial Aid

Each summer, CLAS awards grants to a small number of undergraduates to complete internships in Latin America. Applications include a proposal, academic transcript, and letters of recommendation. Students from any department are eligible to apply. See Funding section in the Center for Latin American Studies website.

Students in undergraduate programs who enroll in Portuguese, Quechua, Nahuatl, or Haitian Creole language during the academic year may be eligible for SummerForeign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships. Recipients of FLAS fellowships must be American citizens or permanent residents. For detailed program information and eligibility, see the Center for Latin American Studies website.

Graduate Financial Aid

The Center for Latin American Studies provides several graduate fellowships as well as limited course assistantships with the Tinker Visiting Professors. US and international M.A. applicants who wish to be considered for financial aid during the admissions review process can simply indicate this when prompted on the online application.

M.A. in Latin American Studies applicants who plan to enroll in Portuguese, Quechua, Nahuatl, or Haitian Creole language and area or international studies courses may be eligible for Academic Year and Summer Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships, sponsored by the US Department of Education. Recipients of FLAS fellowships must be American citizens or permanent residents. Applicants to the M.A. program who can demonstrate financial need have priority in the FLAS fellowship competition; in recent years CLAS has also awarded FLAS fellowships to students enrolled in the Professional Schools. For detailed program information and eligibility, see the FLAS Fellowship section in the Center for Latin American Studies website.

CLAS awards Working Group grants to graduate students across the University who wish to organize events such as lectures, speaker series, symposia, exchange of working papers, and collaborative research efforts. For detailed program information and eligibility, see the Working Group Grants section in the Center for Latin American Studies website.

CLAS has a limited number of travel awards for graduate students to conduct field research work in Latin America or to present their Latin American related research in a conference. Please see the Graduate Funding section in the Center for Latin American Studies website

The Knight-Hennessy Scholars program awards full funding to pursue a graduate education at Stanford to students from all disciplines, with additional opportunities for leadership training and collaboration across fields. Apply to Knight Hennessy by October 9, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time, and to the Latin American Studies MA Program by December 2, 2024 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time. Applicants from graduate programs that are designed to be completed in less than two years may have lower priority. Please consult with the KHS program about eligibility. 

Admission

The application deadline for the 2025-2026 academic year is December 2, 2024. Applicants submit an online application, including a 500-word double-spaced statement of purpose, resumé or CV, 2,500 - 3,750 words double-spaced academic writing sample in English, and three letters of recommendation. In addition, all applicants must submit official transcripts. The GRE general test scores are optional, and no longer a requirement. TOEFL scores are required of applicants whose first language is not English or who did not earn a degree from an undergraduate institution where English is the primary language of instruction. For information on University graduate admissions and to access the online application, visit the Office of Graduate Admissions website.

Applicants must meet the University admission requirements, have a working knowledge of Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, or an indigenous language of Latin America (e.g., Quechua or Nahuatl) at the university third-year level or higher, and have experience working, living, or studying in Latin America or Iberia prior to admission.

CLAS takes a broad approach to evaluating applications for admission. As important as grades are the applicant's essay, letters of recommendation, academic writing sample, and the experiences and goals conveyed through the personal statement and resume/CV.

Students interested in pursuing the joint degree program in Latin American Studies and Law (J.D.) or a dual degree in Latin American Studies and Business (M.B.A.) or Medicine (M.D.) must apply to each program separately and be accepted by both.

Coterminal Master's Degrees in Latin American Studies

Undergraduates at Stanford may apply for admission to the coterminal master's program in Latin American Studies when they have earned a minimum of 120 units toward graduation, including advanced placement and transfer credit, and no later than the quarter prior to the expected completion of their undergraduate degree.

The application deadline for the 2025-2026 academic year is December 2, 2024. Prospective graduate students who are applying to the Knight-Hennessy Scholars (KHS) program must apply to the scholars program by October 9, 2024 Applicants from graduate programs that are designed to be completed in less than two years may have lower priority. Please consult with the KHS program about eligibility. 

Coterminal applicants must submit:

  • the Coterminal Online Application

  • a 500-word double-spaced statement of purpose

  • a resumé or CV

  • a 2,500 - 3,750-word double-spaced academic writing sample in English

  • three letters of recommendation

  • a Stanford transcript

  • GRE general test scores (optional)

Coterminal applicants must have a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 and a working knowledge of Spanish, Portuguese or any other indigenous language spoken in Latin America, at a university third-year level or higher.

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Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS)
Bolívar House
582 Alvarado Row
Mail Code: 8545
Stanford, CA 94305

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