Hispanics, the fastest growing ethnic population in America, are expected to number 42 million and achieve a collective purchasing power of $928 billion by the end of 2007, according to the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies. This explosive growth has left the business world scrambling to find marketing professionals with the expertise to reach this complex and multifaceted market.

To help meet this demand, DePaul University’s College of Commerce has launched an undergraduate major in Multicultural Marketing-Hispanic Marketplace this fall. DePaul joins only three other universities nationwide offering programs in this emerging field and appears to provide the first such program in the Midwest.

“This relevant program will prepare students to do business in a diverse, global marketplace in which Hispanics have significant influence,” said Associate Professor of Marketing J. Steven Kelly, who directs the new program. “It provides a practical, disciplined approach to identifying, segmenting, targeting and reaching these consumers.”

In addition to core marketing classes, students enrolled in the new major take courses in Latin culture and marketing, integrated marketing communication for Hispanic markets, and commercial Spanish language, which requires Spanish proficiency. A Hispanic marketing internship also is required.

Hispanic marketing firms and other businesses that cater to Latino consumers have been extremely supportive of the program, according to Sue Fogel, chair of DePaul’s marketing department. “These organizations are willing to talk about their experiences in classes and offer internships,” she said. “They are very interested in hiring future graduates of the program.” Graduates will be educated for positions in marketing, advertising, sales, communications, management, entrepreneurship or the arts/entertainment fields.

The new program draws strength from DePaul’s diversity, which was recognized this year with a No. 1 ranking in the “diverse student campus” category in the Princeton Review’s annual college rankings, Kelly said. He also noted that 13 percent of DePaul’s undergraduates are Hispanic, and the university’s business school is among the top 50 institutions in the nation to award diplomas to Hispanic students majoring in marketing and management, according to Diverse Issues in Higher Education magazine.

The program’s faculty also is diverse and experienced in the field of Hispanic marketing. It includes Luis Larrea, a DePaul executive-in-residence, who has 25 years of corporate experience as a senior marketing manager focusing on the Latin American market; adjunct professor Loida Rosario, former director of product management and marketing at Colgate-Palmolive and AT&T in the U.S. and Latin American markets; and assistant professor Jaime Noriega, whose research focuses on multicultural marketing.

One important lesson for the program’s students is that the Hispanic market is not homogeneous, said Larrea, who teaches Marketing Across Cultures, a Latin Perspective, a course that explores inter- and cross-cultural marketing issues.

“Latinos from different countries have different approaches to the market,” said Larrea, who has taught at DePaul for 16 years. “The way Argentineans do business differs from Mexicans; Cubans differ from Central Americans. They share a language, but there are distinctions and nuances that students need to understand.”