<p>Do Ivies or other selective colleges put much weight on not having four years of a a language? I can't because my school doesn't offer it, but they do at another school. The problem is i would risk getting a b in the class, because Latin IV is insanely hard. Any comments? Thanks</p>
<p>required is usually 2 and reccomended is usually 3, language is not weighted as heavily as english math or other major classes</p>
<p>I think it depends on whatever college you're going to attend. I know at Cal, they give you the opportunity to make up the foreign language requirement if you didn't do it before arriving (prior to arriving, I took a year of French and that was it). I was also told by an advisor that Latin doesn't count because it's considered a "dead" language... (again, this is for Cal, so I'm not sure how it is for the other schools)</p>
<p>I know some LACs pride themselves on having a high percentage of incoming freshies having taken languages up to/past leve four (I've got Wesleyan U in mind). So I'd definately go for the level four; from what I've been hearing, adcoms really love that. Shows commitment to studying one thing to such an in-depth level and the such. </p>
<p>And please. A B is not bad. Better to get a B in a hard class than an A in an easier class-- adcoms do pay attention to that.</p>
<p>I take Spanish, but I am unable to fit a class like AP Spanish into my schedule this year. So you're saying that it would be ok that I've only taken 3 years in high school if my highest level reached was Spanish IV?</p>
<p>No se. That's a really interesting situation... I'd ask.</p>
<p>Spanish IV counts as four years</p>
<p>Colleges look at level not years spent studying in hs.</p>
<p>It is true they do look at level. They like to see that you have reached to maximum level offered by the school district. That being said, it is better to take the Honors/AP advanced level language even if it means getting a lower grade. Colleges would rather see a student of academics than a student of grades. They would like to see maturity in taking on a difficult course and learning for the sake of learning. That is much more honorable than a student who is overly concerned with padding his GPA.</p>
<p>See here is teh thing</p>
<p>If u took spanish 1 in 8th grade, spanish 2 in 9th, and spanish 3 in 10th, it would appear as 3 years of FL study, even though u really actually did 2 years in high school, the adcoms still consider this 3 years.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.</p>
<p>However, if you really want a top selective school, you should be going beyond level III of a language.</p>
<p>Take the class. If it's your senior year, a B in a very hard class (at a different school) shows a lot about your commitment and dedication. And because it's at a different school...well that just shows you have the initiative to make things happen for you.</p>
<p>i think that level 3 of a foreign language is enough for science/math majors. might be questionable for humanities though</p>
<p>Colleges expect you to take the hardest classes that your school offers. The fact that your school doesn't offer the 4th year of your language will appear on your school report that gets sent with your guidance counselor's recommendation. The fact that you may have been able to take it elsewhere (at another school) is irrelevant.</p>
<p>Colleges don't expect you to take courses your school doesn't offer. (That goes for AP classes, too, BTW.)</p>
<p>Also, colleges don't reject you just because you didn't take every recommended course, as long as your high school program was generally rigorous. My S got into an Ivy with only three years of Latin; he did the highest available classes in everything else.</p>
<p>My son took Latin up to Latin III and quit after 10th grade. He had no other language. He got into Penn ED and Chicago EA. I wouldn't worry about it. Yes, it is nice to have more years of a language, but it isn't a fatal flaw in your application.</p>
<p>
[quote]
See here is teh thing</p>
<p>If u took spanish 1 in 8th grade, spanish 2 in 9th, and spanish 3 in 10th, it would appear as 3 years of FL study, even though u really actually did 2 years in high school, the adcoms still consider this 3 years.</p>
<p>Hope this helps.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Is this really true? My GC said this also, but I'm not sure how this works in the context of top colleges. I took Spanish like this, from 7-10th grade (up to Spanish 3), so I hope it doesn't look like I only took two years.</p>
<p>garland, what level of latin did ur S reach?</p>
<p>Third year.</p>