<p>Hi, I'm going to be a first year and while I was putting together my trial registration I noticed I had more than 16 credits. I'm only planning on taking 4 academic classes, but two of them are 5 credits each. Is this a bad idea, or is it not going to be an issue? My planned schedule (which could completely change at actual registration, obviously):</p>
<p>Elementary Latin (year-long course, 5 credits/semester)
Elementary Greek (year-long course, 5 credits/semester)
Intro to Archaeology (semester course, 4 credits)
Reimagining Shakespeare for Children (semester course, 4 credits)
Yoga (semester course, 1 credit; I'm thinking this is probably a popular course, and I might not get in and will do Get Fit Smith/Fencing Club instead)</p>
<p>I'm hoping to do either an Anthropology/Medieval Studies double major or an Anthro major/Archaeology minor, and I would like to study abroad in Greece. Latin's required at a higher level for the Medieval Studies major, and I've never taken it, so that seems like it's necessary. Greek seemed like it could potentially be good for both my major and for study abroad opportunities, so it's my first choice for a non-dead language (since Latin overlaps with Arabic). </p>
<p>Basically, I want to keep my options open and also not die. Does this schedule look overwhelming at all? Obviously I'll talk to my advisor when I get there, but I'm just worried that 19 credits will be too much work despite only having 4 academic classes.</p>
<p>Are you very gifted at languages? Whether modern or ancient, elementary language classes at Smith tend to be extremely demanding in terms of time and effort. Moreover, unless you already know that you have the type of brain that can immediately process new linguistic constructions, you will find it hard to keep the rules apart. Both Greek and Latin have very complex grammar.
Start with one this year, and then take the other next year.</p>
<p>Latin is required for Medevial studies, but Greek is not. And correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t the Greek class at Smith taught through the Classics department (i.e. it’s Ancient Greek, so it’s not going to help you with study abroad…It’s for students who need the Greek to read Virgil and others in the original)? Elementary Latin and Elementary Greek are both really challenging courses. I’m actually surprised you could even make them fit into your schedule time-wise, since I’m pretty sure they meet every day. I would really consider taking one or the other, because keep in mind that with elementary language classes you need to take both semesters or you don’t get credit for either semester, so there’s no dropping out at the end of Fall semester. </p>
<p>Honestly, I would drop one of those language classes and instead take Intro to Anthropology. You need that as a pre-req if you’re serious about trying to major in Anthro and I’m pretty sure it’s only offered in the Fall. If you really want to keep your options open, that’s the way I would do it. </p>
<p>Re: Yoga, it probably will be full, but go to the class for the first couple of weeks anyway. A lot of upperclasswomen who signed up for it in the spring may be less enthusiastic in the fall, so likely a lot of people will drop out as it goes along. That was certainly the case with most of the ESS classes I was in. Also, if I could make a suggestion, one ESS class that’s really fun for beginners and likely to not be full is Squash. If you like fencing (i.e. playing against a partner, learning footwork and wristwork) you probably would also like squash.</p>
<p>Emphasizing LiT’s and S&P points: it’s Classical Greek, not Modern Greek. No help whatsoever for Study Abroad. (Greek “abroad” programs may be like D’s in Hungary, taught in English; something to investigate.) Anyway, I’m also very dubious about taking both Intro languages at once; I think even would-be Classics majors start with one, usually Latin, and then the other…something else to investigate.</p>
<p>Remember, the languages are a two-semester commitment: you only get the credits if you complete both semesters.</p>
<p>D took Latin before deciding very quickly that she wasn’t going to be a Classics major. But she was already committed by that time and, fortunately, she liked the class. But it was demanding.</p>
<p>Ah, I think I see the disconnect here. The study abroad program in Greece is in classical archaeology it looks like, so you might be somewhat confused about whether you’re required to take Greek in order to be eligible for the program. It’s not a bad idea to check with the JYA office, but according to the regulations, you aren’t required to have prior-language training to do the study abroad program provided that the language of your host country is NOT offered at Smith. With Greek it’s a little complicated, because Smith offers classical, not modern, Greek. So if you want to study in Greece you would either be exempt from the language proficiency requirement, or you would fall under the requirement for programs taught in English: i.e. you have to have one year of the host country language. </p>
<p>If they decide to be sticky and claim that since Smith teaches classical greek, you have to take it before you go study in Greece, you can always do so sophomore year and still have your requirement completed well in time for JYA. But I don’t think that’s the case because on the JYA website, they mention that Greek is one of the languages not offered through Smith that you can take at the 5 College language institute if you wish, but that it’s not required that you take a language not taught at Smith for study abroad. </p>
<p>Hope that clears things up. In truth, Greek is very difficult, and if you’ve never studied Latin before, that’s incredibly difficult as well. So again, I’d pick one or the other.</p>
<p>The Smith program “highly encourages” conversational Greek before doing the program, and I’m just worried that I won’t get to a conversational level if I start the language sophomore year. If this course is ancient Greek, how would I go about studying modern Greek in order to get “conversational” in it before junior year? </p>
<p>In addition: I need competency in a foreign language for the Anthropology major. </p>
<p>S&P: I’d love to take Intro to Anthro, but all of the sections offered Fall semester overlap with either the FYS I want to take or Elementary Latin. It seems like most of the courses I’m interested in overlap with Latin!</p>
See if Modern Greek is offered by one of the other schools in the Five College Consortium or find a college/university near home and take it during a summer.</p>
<p>epharisto = thank you
kali ikta = good night</p>
<p>Not responsible for any misspellings in transliteration, it’s all Greek to me. Next thing to learn would be “Where is the bathroom?”</p>
<p>It’s unlikely they’ll stop you from going just because you didn’t take a language that wasn’t offered at Smith. They set the bar like that because they want people to invest some effort in JYA, but I doubt it will make a difference if you study Greek or not (though if you have at least a little exposure, it will probably help when you get there). The Greek JYA program looks like it’s an Americans only program taught in English, so as long as you can do your classes, that’s one of the major things Smith cares about. But again, it’s worth talking to the people in the study abroad office to get an idea of what you could do. </p>
<p>You certainly could take a five college language class in Greek, they may even offer a mentored language class (you’ll see a flyer about this when you get to campus. It’s a program offered through the five colleges) or else take it as a summer class. </p>
<p>But unless you want to be a Classics major, classical Greek is only going to be a big pain for you. Especially if you have no prior exposure to that or Latin.</p>
<p>Does the JYA program offer a Greek language course as part of its offerings? D’s Hungarian program had a crash two-week full-time beginning course followed by a semester-long intermediate course. </p>
<p>Classwork was in English but when out and about in the city, a certain conversational level was helpful. Suspect the same would hold true in Greece when talking to the Grecians.</p>
<p>Another option might be to find a private tutor. I picked up a few dozen Hungarian phrases and 400-600 vocabulary words in about two months with just once-a-week lessons. Still recall making an inadvertent vowel shift while practicing and instead of saying “I like dry red wine” said “I like [excrement-like] red wine.”</p>
<p>I completely forgot about the Five College mentored language program! That makes me feel a lot better, actually. I don’t know if they offer a crash course beforehand, but they do require participants to study Greek while on the program. </p>
<p>Thanks so much for the helpful responses! I’m probably not going to take Greek because that does sound like a pain. Now my task is to find a class that doesn’t overlap with either Latin or my FYS…quite a challenge!</p>
<p>I took Elementary Latin as a senior and loooooved it (Maureen Ryan is one of the best teachers I know). But it was hard. I studied a lot. There were a bunch of flash cards. I would start with one language and add another the second year if at all possible.</p>
<p>I don’t think modern greek is a mentored language this semester but it might be an independent study one through Five Colleges. Check it out. I love that program and highly recommend it</p>
It seems like most of the courses I’m interested in overlap with Latin!</p>