carreras
/kareɾas/from spelling rules
The English phrase "majors" is translated into Spanish as carreras.
In Spanish, the term for a university major is carrera, which refers to the specific course of study or professional path a student follows. When you want to express the act of "majoring in" a subject, you typically use the phrase estudiar una carrera. While carrera refers to the major itself, the more formal term El Programa de Estudios can be used to describe the overall program or curriculum of a major.
What does it mean word for word?
The word carreras literally translates to "careers" in English.
How does it change in a sentence?
The singular form carrera is used when referring to a single major, whereas carreras is the plural form.
How do you pronounce it?
/kareɾas/
Did you know?
- The word carrera shares a root with the English word 'car', as both derive from the Latin 'carrus', meaning a wheeled vehicle used for transport or racing.
- The term implies a sense of movement, as the word carrera also means a 'race' or a 'sprint' in a physical sense.
- In some Spanish-speaking countries, if you are in the middle of your carrera, you might describe yourself as estoy en la carrera, which sounds to an English speaker like you are currently running a physical race.
Examples in context
- Estudio la carrera de MedicinaI am majoring in Medicine
- Mi especialidad es la PediatríaMy major is Pediatrics
- Obtuve el grado de Licenciatura en Ciencias PolíticasI obtained a Bachelor's degree in Political Science
- El programa de estudios de Ingeniería Civil es muy exigenteThe Civil Engineering program is very demanding
- Estoy estudiando MedicinaI am studying Medicine
- Me especializo en Diseño GráficoI specialize in Graphic Design
- ¿Cuáles son las carreras más populares en esta universidad?What are the most popular majors at this university?
Example conversation
Javier and Sofía are talking about their studies at a university.
- JavierSofía, ¿qué carreras ofrece tu facultad?Sofía, what majors does your faculty offer?
- SofíaOfrece muchas carreras, como medicina y derecho.It offers many majors, like medicine and law.
- JavierLas carreras de medicina son muy difíciles.Medicine majors are very difficult.
- SofíaSí, pero valen la pena.Yes, but they are worth it.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
