<p>Wow!! So what do they look at to decide?? @dragonflymusic @skieurope </p>
<p>Maturity, grades, reasons for wanting to study abroad, reasons for studying a particular language, course rigor… But the head volunteer in my city theorized that the most important factor is the probablity of return on their investment.</p>
<p>@dragonflymusic ahhh that makes sense! So would it make more sense for me to continue to take Chinese, when I have taken a few years of it, or to start new with Korean?</p>
<p>The program is to introduce you to different cultures-- I also speak Chinese, but chose to study Arabic in order to delve into the language and culture. I would recommend you step away from what you’re familiar from, and look into the other languages that NSLIY offers.</p>
<p>@dragonflymusic ok! Thanks again!!!</p>
<p>Anybody have anymore ideas?</p>
<p>@dragonflymusic Okay, so I’ve taken two years of Spanish, and am about to take my second year of Latin. However, I want to learn Arabic because I’m an Indian-American Muslim with no understanding of Arabic other than to read the phonetics of the writing. Would that look weird because of the language classes I’ve taken, or seem as if my reasons for wanting to learn the language are too religious? I’m going to be honest, having an understanding in Arabic would be a life changer for me, and Arabic culture isn’t something that I’ve been introduced to other than through mutual religion. </p>
<p>Good questions! I took Spanish throughout my high school career, and it never affected my application. Your reason for learning Arabic is a perfectly viable one, just convey that passion in your essays!</p>
<p>bump</p>
<p>I only ever took Spanish lessons (and studied abroad in Spain for a semester) and was accepted into Arabic summer this year! What American Councils looks for (from everything I’ve seen and read, which is a lot) is not prior experience, but real passion and interest and EXCITEMENT about learning a new language and about a different culture.</p>
<p>Also, AC said publicly that their acceptance rate this year was 17%.</p>
<p>I had the most amazing, eye-opening summer in Oman. Go for it!!</p>