Self-designed concentrations are developed by the students in consultation with a faculty mentor. Proposals must demonstrate the availability of the necessary courses at Georgetown, with support from the Washington Area Consortium of Universities. During the fall of the second year, students will participate in LASP-601, Research Seminar in Latin American Studies. One faculty member will coordinate the seminar, emphasizing research organization and writing skills, and students will also work with a faculty mentor linked to their concentration program. They will write and present to the Seminar group a detailed paper that presents and defends the results of their work.
All students have one elective course, some have two.
The goal is to allow experimentation, diversity, or additional study in fields outside the concentration. For example, a Government concentrator might use the elective to take an additional economics course. Alternatively, electives might be used to strengthen a regional focus by studying outside the concentration, or to take courses in one or more disciplines beyond the concentration and any required corollary course. Students also have the option to write a thesis. Thesis topics must be approved by the Center Director, and a thesis outline must be submitted before any work is initiated.