<p>Hi, im a 10th grader in Canada looking to apply for Harvard in 2 years. I have a question though, they say that they are looking for "4 years in one secondary language" Last year i did french 9 which was ok but i switched to Mandarin 12 this year, next year im planning to do AP Mandarin 12 next year(i will be in grade 11) and that is as far as it goes. Would this affect my application? as i only have 3 years studying a secondary language(i didnt take one in grade 8), and 2 years studying the same language.
BTW what should i do for my grade 12 year?should i: A. take another language e.g. spanish 12 intro B. be a student tutor in mandarin 12 C. no need to take a secondary language as i have already finished the most advanced class in Mandarin</p>
<p>Off all the requirements -or recommendations- the foreign language requirement tends to be the most flexible. IF you physically can’t complete the requirement don’t worry unduly about it. </p>
<p>AP level is considered level 4 or higher in terms of high school foreign language.</p>
<p>Is French 9 in your Canadian school a beginner’s course, or is it a relatively advanced course that you took after several years of French in elementary and middle school?</p>
<p>Can you take the SAT Subject or AP exam in Chinese and French? That would definitely be impressive considering the caliber of schools you’re talking about.</p>
<p>Jumping into mandarin 12 as a sophomore suggests you either had many years of additional study outside school or speak it in your home. If you’ve studied at Chinese school outside school hours you could explain those years. Similarly, French instruction in Canada may be far advanced of USA if you’re from Montreal - so perhaps by US standards you are proficient at French 9. Either mandarin or French, if you are proficient you should take the SAT II and offer that proof. </p>
<p>thanks for all the responses, im not good at french, french 9 is mostly a beginners course but for mandarin would it work if i took the AP instead of the sat II test? thank you</p>
<p>If you feel confident you can take the CLASS, then yes, but otherwise taking the SAT Subject would provide you with a score in November (as you can only take the AP test in May).
However, HYP specify that your foreign language cannot be a native language. If you’re a heritage speaker, they still prefer your taking another language, but they’re a bit more accomodating if you were born in the US and learned from your parents and Chinese School.
How much French have you had? Because the SAT Subject test isn’t very hard (//2-3 years of French) and if you did well, you’d be good to go.</p>
<p>My french is not good. I was born in China but went back and forth from a very young age, as a result im considered a native speaker in both languages, would that effect their view?
My main strengths are CS, leadership, and athletics, so i just wanted to know how much it will affect my application if i choose to take a native language(mandarin) in school.</p>
<p>Taking it will be better than no language (since if you don’t have a foreign language you won’t even be considered) but if you have AP Chinese you better “make it up” with something exceptional (international-level recognition) because typically a native language is considered “lazy” (as is any “avoidance of a subject” indication) and HYP are quite specific about the way they treat an applicant who takes a native language for a subject test, but you can take it as a class, and in any case it’s better than being cut before reading for not meeting the basic requirements.</p>
<p>Ok thanks everyone for the advice, so how does this sound compared to doing mandarin 12ap next year: i take both french 10 and 11(online) and then in my senior year i will take french 12. but i probably wont do a subject test or ap on it. If i do mandarin i will do a subject test and ap, which would be better?</p>
<p>or perhaps i can take french all the way and then take a mandarin sat subject test?</p>
<p>Taking French to 11 or 12 (level 3 or 4 if French 9 is the level 1 beginner course) plus taking the Chinese SAT subject test and/or AP test (with or without taking the Chinese 12 course, depending on your skill relative to that course) to show your existing proficiency in Chinese is probably the best showing for highly selective college admissions.</p>
<p>But note that if you take the Chinese SAT subject test as a native or heritage speaker, use it as an additional SAT subject test beyond any that colleges require or recommend. I.e. if a college wants two SAT subject tests, submit the Chinese one as your third one.</p>
<p>^This would definitely be the best for Harvard and such caliber schools.
If you’re good at Chinese, you don’t need to take the course, just take the SAT Subject in November (it’s not offered each session) and/or the AP Chinese test in May.
Then taking French to the highest possible level. However, how would you take both 10 and 11 online on time to take French 12 senior year? Taking the French SAT test would be best, since while Chinese SAT/AP would demonstrate mastery of the language, in order for things to be impressive you’d need to demonstrate knowledge in both French and Chinese, which SAT in Languages does. Plus, if you took all that French, it’d be too bad not to use it for a test, and the SAT in Chinese would only work if combined with French, otherwise it wouldn’t “count” (ie., as a native/heritage language, Harvard wouldn’t “count” it as part of your two required subject tests, but added to other subjects it’d work).</p>
<p>MYO my other extracurriculars and academics are already very impressive I just dont want my languages to be the weak link. I can take both french 10 and 11 in my grade 11 year because I will be taking it online.</p>