Career Opportunities

What Can I Do With a Major in Spanish?

Graduate School Opportunities

Recent Heidelberg graduates with a Spanish major have gone on to graduate studies in education, Latin American studies and other areas in which they planned to serve Spanish-speaking communities in the United States (e.g., law school and seminary). Our students tailor their studies to their own unique interests: one recent graduate majored in both Spanish and Biology in order to prepare for a career studying botany in Latin America.

Employment Opportunities

Some students of Spanish go on to language-based careers such as teaching, travel and tourism, translating and work in non-governmental organizations. Some choose social service, while others go on to advanced studies in law or seminary. Whichever career you choose, from education to business to law enforcement, you are increasingly likely to have opportunities to interact with Spanish speakers right here in the United States.

Alumna Profile

Cheryl King, ‘05

Since graduating from Heidelberg with a double major in Spanish and International Studies, Cheryl has worked as a migrant outreach worker and legal assistant for Legal Aid of Western Ohio. She also earned her Master of Arts in International Affairs in Latin American Studies, as well as certificates in Women’s Studies and Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL), from Ohio University (OU) in 2007. Through her TEFL coursework, she had the opportunity to complete a practicum at the Centro de Estudios Interamericanos in Cuenca, Ecuador.

Following her graduate work at OU, Cheryl worked in the Office of International Affairs at the Ohio State University. She currently serves as Program Associate for the Earlham College Border Studies Program in Richmond, Indiana. She also co-chaperones Heidelberg’s Service Learning on the U.S./Mexico Border trip with Dr. Cindy Lepeley.

She shared the following about this trip and her experiences at Heidelberg:

I very much value my education at Heidelberg. My academic and professional background is a direct result of the Heidelberg U.S./Mexico border trip. I was a participant in 2002, and since then everything in my life has been somehow connected to what I experienced on the border. That trip was the first time learning made sense to me, and it opened my eyes to many of the ways in which the world works. That trip not only made me a better global citizen, but it also made me a better human being.

At Heidelberg, I was a face and a name to my professors—not a number. The President knew everyone’s name, and I felt like my education and success was just as important and meaningful to my professors as it was to me. Professors were always available, and, because of their support, guidance, and relentlessness at times, I left Heidelberg with a solid understanding of International Studies, a good command of the Spanish language, an unforgettable year abroad and great analytical and writing skills. 

I’m glad I chose Heidelberg because I have an undergraduate education in the liberal arts, I wouldn’t be where I am today without my advisor, Dr. Lepeley (she continues to be a mentor), I had the best year of my life during my junior year abroad in Spain and Mexico, and I had a lot of fun! Heidelberg was, in many ways, the best four years of my life!