Core modules
Important information
We are currently undertaking a curriculum review of our Hispanic Studies and Global Sustainable Development (BASc) degree for 2026 entry. We continually review our curricula to reflect developments in the relevant disciplines to deliver the best educational experience. The core and optional modules will undergo approval through the University's rigorous academic processes. As modules are approved we will update the course information on these webpages. It is therefore very important that you check these pages for the latest information before you apply and prior to accepting an offer. Sign up for updatesLink opens in a new window.
Teaching on this course will be equally split between the GSD Department and the Hispanic Studies Department.
In the first year you will study core GSD modules designed to provide a critical understanding of the ‘three pillars of sustainable development’:
- Economic Principles of Global Sustainable Development
- Environmental Principles of Global Sustainable Development
- Social Principles of Global Sustainable Development
You will also study the core Global Sustainable Development Project module, giving you the chance to see how the principles of GSD apply to a real case affecting a local community. For the Hispanic Studies half of the workload, you will study one of the following core Spanish language modules:
- Modern Spanish Language OR Modern Spanish Language for Beginners
You will also study one of the following core Spanish culture modules:
- Language, Text and Identity in the Hispanic World OR Images and Representations of the Hispanic World
In the second year, in GSD you will have the opportunity to engage with a key issue in sustainability, studying one optional core module from the following:
- Health and Sustainable Development
- Security, Sovereignty and Sustainability in the Global Food System
- Inequalities and Sustainable Development: Inclusion and Dignity for All
You will also choose optional modules with a GSD focus from within GSD or from other departments across the University. For the Hispanic Studies half of the workload, you will develop your language skills by choosing one optional core language module from the following:
- Modern Spanish Language II OR Modern Spanish Language II (Post Beginners)
You will also study one optional Spanish culture module offered by the Hispanic Studies Department.
You may choose to study abroad for part of your second year at Monash University. In Term One at Warwick you will study an optional core GSD module, an optional module with a GSD focus, one core Hispanic Studies module, and one optional culture module offered by the Hispanic Studies Department. The remaining study will consist of pre-approved modules at Monash University.
In the final year, there is one core GSD dissertation module. You will also take modules with a GSD focus from within or outside of the School for Cross-faculty Studies. For the Hispanic Studies half of the workload, you will study one language module, Modern Spanish Language III. You will also choose optional culture modules offered by the Hispanic Studies Department.
Year One
Why and how can economics address issues of global sustainable development? In this module, you will learn about the relationship between economic activity, social inclusion and environmental sustainability, and critically analyse the economic theories that underpin sustainable development policy interventions and how those theories impact upon policy design.
This module focuses on the natural science of the world’s most pressing environmental issues. We will cover well-known topics like climate change and biodiversity loss and less prominent problems like biogeochemical flows. You will receive training in scientific methods and will investigate environmental systems first hand through experimental approaches. You will evaluate existing governance and management efforts and develop innovative responses of your own. You will learn how to write a policy briefing and create a policy briefing paper and policy pitch, aimed at a specific decision-making audience.
This module examines concepts that enable you to analyse and interpret social and political issues related to global sustainable development. You will learn to understand and evaluate pressing social and political dimensions of sustainability at national and international levels.
This is an exciting, innovative, and practical module. It is designed to give you research and analysis skills and to enable you to apply the theories from your other first-year core modules. You will learn how to research sustainability by designing and developing a group project on the topic of sustainable transport, under the guidance of an academic supervisor. Staff from across the GSD Department with expertise in transport policy as well as research methods teach this module.
You will study one of the following core Spanish language modules:
Do you have A Level or an equivalent in Spanish and want to consolidate, extend and refine your skills? This module will equip you with sound grammatical and linguistic foundations, with the aim of increasing your confidence in reading, listening, speaking and writing in Spanish. You'll use authentic resources in a variety of media from around the Hispanic world, including books, articles, newspapers, television, music, and podcasts, as well as taking part in our virtual language exchange with students at the Universidad Javeriana de Bogotá, Colombia, a fantastic way to expand your linguistic and intercultural skills outside the classroom. During the module, you will develop your skills through a combination of classroom sessions, guided learning activities and appropriate self-study resources. Weekly classes will cover reading, language in use, grammar and functional aspects of Spanish such as translation, extended writing and oral expression, which are reinforced through complementary activities on Moodle, our multimedia VLE.
As a beginner in the acquisition of the Spanish language, you’ll gain a keen grammatical awareness, a sound understanding of cultures and societies across the Hispanic world, and most of all, confidence in reading, listening, speaking and writing in Spanish. Using authentic resources, including newspapers, television and radio, you are expected to end your first year able to sustain everyday conversations in Spanish, read authentic texts, follow TV extracts and write at an intermediate level in Spanish. You'll also work on basic translations to and from Spanish as a means of consolidating your knowledge.
You will also study one of the following core Spanish culture modules:
How has the Spanish language travelled around the world and what happens when it co-exists with other languages? How do writers use language to explore identity, and what happens when they work between two (or more) languages? What skills do we need as readers to interpret the nuances of texts that travel between languages? This module will equip you with an understanding of the cultural and sociolinguistic diversity of the Hispanic world, and a strong grounding in the literary and cultural analysis of texts that address this diversity.
Have you ever wondered where the familiar stereotypes of Spain and Latin America come from? How have they circulated and been received at different times and in different places? And how have Spaniards and Latin Americans represented themselves to travellers, tourists, artists, and even invaders? The module will introduce you to a wide range of written and visual representations of the Hispanic world, and some of its most influential and iconic cultural figures. We investigate topics which, in different ways, pose important questions about studying other languages and cultures.
Year Two
You will study one optional core module from the following:
Viable and equitable solutions in health and sustainable development require interdisciplinary and critical thinking. The first part of the module will introduce you to fundamental concepts of global health governance and health systems, whilst acquainting you with key global health priorities like drug resistance and mental health from the perspective of global sustainable development. The second part of the module will focus on cross-cutting issues that shape and impact on global health.
Goal 2 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development aims to end hunger, end all forms of malnutrition, and ensure sustainable food production systems. However, the world population will likely increase to nearly 10 billion people by 2050. After decades of positive change, the incidence of malnourishment is again on the rise, global stocks of key food are contracting, and it is currently more expensive to buy food than for most of our planet’s modern history.
This module addresses these significant challenges by encouraging students to adopt a 'food systems approach' in responding to the imperative agendas of food security, sovereignty and sustainability. The module is taught in collaboration with researchers from across various disciplines at Warwick.
This module focuses on how inequalities shape our societies, economies, environments and politics. Starting with the question ‘Does inequality matter?’, you will critically reflect on the United Nations' decision to integrate inequalities into the Sustainable Development Agenda. You will then explore six different dimensions of inequalities (work, politics, environmental justice, societal discrimination, automation and globalisation, empowerment) and gain an understanding of the complexities of these problems. Finally, you will appreciate the challenges faced by today’s policy makers who aim to address issues of inequalities while taking into consideration all three pillars of sustainable development.
You will also study one optional core language module from the following:
On this module, you'll extend your competence in Spanish. You'll deepen your understanding of advanced grammatical and linguistic structures, increase the range and sophistication of your vocabulary, and refine your use of register in authentic spoken and written discourse. You'll use resources from a variety of media from around the Hispanic world, and take part in our virtual language exchange, where you will have the opportunity to work online with students in Spain and Latin America. At the end of the course, you should have sufficient mastery to discuss different topics, report on your independent reading and support your opinions with solid arguments.
This module for students who started as beginners follows the first-year module HP102 and seeks to consolidate the language skills gained in students’ first year of study. The aim of this module is to further extend and refine competence in modern Spanish. It covers the main linguistic skills (oral, aural, reading and writing), and seeks to promote the continued acquisition of grammatical awareness and essential communicative competences. At the end of the course, you will be able to understand discourse on concrete and abstract topics, to give presentations about different subjects, to report on the results of your independent reading and research, and to state your point of view and support it with solid arguments.
Final Year
In this module you will bring together all your learning and experiences on the course – the theoretical concepts and principles and your practical know-how – to address a specific sustainable development problem of your own choosing. This will be a problem that concerns you most and which you would like to tackle.
You will be supported by an academic supervisor to devise a suitable project and to undertake research to explore the issue, taking a transdisciplinary approach to your investigation in order to produce an original research output. This may be a concept paper, a practical project, a film production, a long essay, an advocacy campaign...use your creativity!
You will design a strategy for disseminating your findings (for example at a conference presentation, via online publication or an article in a journal, or at a public meeting that you have arranged). This provides you with an opportunity to have your voice heard in a forum where it matters and could have lasting impact.
This module will consolidate your linguistic skills acquired in the intermediate year and extend them through translation, writing, reading, speaking and listening activities. A range of assessments will be offered for students to track and reflect on their progress through the provision of regular feedback. Students will also be provided with complementary autonomous learning and grammar activities and directed to appropriate activities for self-study in order to develop independent learning strategies.
The aim of this module is to refine fluency in spoken and written Spanish, working towards a C2 standard of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). Emphasis will be placed on sophisticated translation and writing, as well as oral and comprehension skills, using an appropriate range of complex linguistic structures, vocabulary, register and style.
Optional modules
Optional modules can vary from year to year. Example optional modules include:
Read more about our optional GSD modulesLink opens in a new window.
Read more about our Hispanic Studies modulesLink opens in a new window.
Co-curricular Certificates
We offer a range of unique certificates outside of the curriculum as a way of continuing your professional development.
In the first year, you can complete certificates in Climate Literacy and Professional Communication.
Explore our range of certificates.
