<p>I was looking at Berkley's history program online, in particular in western civ/rome, and saw that one needs to be able to speak latin, french(or italian if doing greece), and german. I had a few questions. First, being that I'm in my soph year of college and have yet to take any of these, is it really plausible to do this in 2 years? Also, should I look at trying to get a phd in history right after completing my BA in history, or do most people take some time off? I'd like to get it as soon as possible, but being that I need to know 3 languages this may be near impossible. Any insight/discussion would be appreciated. Thanks :)</p>
<p>Preparation for Ancient History is usually pretty much the same as for Classics: Latin, Greek, French (or Italian), and German. The Berkeley History website has pretty good data on what you need to be admitted:</p>
<p>The good news is that they won't expect you to be proficient in all four languages the day you're admitted. The better news is that for the modern languages you only have to be able to read them. The even better news is that you have a couple years AFTER admission to demonstrate proficiency. There are any number of summer programs that will give you sufficient preparation. </p>
<p>The bad news is that you'll need considerable preparation in one or both of the ancient languages so you don't spend the first 2 years (or more) of grad school studying languages. </p>
<p>So, if I were you, I would first talk to the advisor in History (or possibly Classics if your school doesn't do Ancient History at the graduate level) and plan your attack on admissions.</p>
<p>My guess is that s/he will suggest something like this:</p>
<p>Summer 2007: An intensive Latin (or Greek) course
Fall 2007/Spring 2008: Intermediate Latin (or Greek)
Summer 2008: German for Reading Knowledge
Fall 2008/Spring 2009: Upper level Latin, Elementary Greek</p>
<p>And of course you'll be taking all the basic ancient history survey and topic courses you can squeeze in. So yes, it is possible to do it in two years but you'll be dedicating your summers to catching up on the languages. </p>
<p>Yes, its language intensive. That's just the nature of ancient studies beast. </p>
<p>Here at Penn, it seems to me that the majority of the folks in Ancient History/Archaeology/Classics are a bit older than the 22-28 you'd expect - so for this small sample it seems that people do take some time off. That said, a lot of them seem to have used that time "academically", working in museums, on digs, or getting a masters in a related field. A growing number use one of the many post-bac language programs (we have one at Penn) to improve their language situation. </p>
<p>Finally, be aware that getting a PhD in any field is a HUGE undertaking that will consume at least the next 5 years of your life (and very likely more - hardly anyone actually finishes in the ideal 5 years).</p>
<p>Good Luck!</p>
<p>I'm in medieval, which has similar requirements (Latin, German, French). All my programs essentially require me to have proficiency in these languages before admission. So check the site carefully, and if it doesn't say, call the offices to find out.</p>
<p>You can try to do it in 2 years, but it's tough. I'm working on all three now, but those are the only (academic) things I'm doing right now. I think if you don't feel you have the necessary proficiency before you apply, it's best to take time off to work on your languages (or take extra time in your undergrad - and extra semester/year sometimes works better because of financial aid), because at some programs they expect you to read passages for classes pretty much immediately.</p>
<p>From above-quoted Berkeley website: "Foreign language training is not a general prerequisite for admission; however, it is looked upon favorably, and in fields that require two or more languages for graduation it is strongly recommended that applicants come to the program with significant language preparation."</p>
<p>I'd like to pursue a master in American History. Can I apply even though I'm an econ. major, and french history minor?</p>
<p>hey there -
saw your post. i just got through the long, arduous process that is history grad school admissions. yay! (i do late antique art and archaeology, formerly at a big ten, and now at an ivy league). in regards to the original question - </p>
<p>Yes! It is possible to learn several languages in a couple years!!</p>
<p>I did this very thing, and I will tell you what I can, which is what I did.</p>
<p>But first - you <em>absolutely must</em> learn the languages if you intend to be serious about a career in the field, be it classics or medieval or whatever - at least, know the languages that the research is in, and preferably the original language of the material (akkadian or syriac or russian or whatever for your field). A quick look at departmental requirements for top grad admissions suffices to prove that point. But for classics...to not learn Latin well, coupled with a desire to study roman history, is lunacy. And german definitely, french almost certainly, and italian if you have time. </p>
<p>And btw - I did <em>very</em> poorly my freshman year, and this was one of the ways I wanted to prove myself for good grad schools. </p>
<p>I started undergrad with some french from high school - I took 4 years of it, through the AP level. In undergrad, I tested into 300 level (5th semester french). Summer between my sophomore and junior years, I got serious. I doubled up, taking italian and german simultaneously. I continued through the introductory levels through that fall and spring, and then in the summer jumped up to grad level intensive readings in the language. These are a useful option, and many schools have them; they give you the complete grammar and a reasonable vocabulary of a language in one semester, working very quickly with lots of memorization. The second semester is often a survey of language in translation. Although sometimes listed only for grad students, they usually will accept an eager undergrad. Intensive classes like these really focus on reading well, and often leave verbal practice at attempts for correct pronunciation, rather than conversation or listening.<br>
So, I took the intensives as my third and fourth semester Italian and German in the summer before my senior year. I did flashcards walking to campus, and for at least 30-60 minutes a day at home (I still do, now learning greek). I used the language in my research, and read news media online (googlenews is a wonderful thing) as often as possible to improve my skills. I was lucky enough to go and spend 3 weeks in North Italy - immersion really is the best way. Come to think of it, its another great option, although the perils of rock n roll'ing partying europe have ended the young careers of several aspiring classicists. But the night time in Marseille, marveilleuse!</p>
<p>The fall semester of my senior year I enrolled in an Intensive Survey of Latin, which went through Wheelock in a semester. Second semester was spent reading Virgil, Lucan, Cicero, Catullus, Ovid in translation.</p>
<p>After graduating, I took a year off, which I'm currently enjoying. I worked as a guest lecturer at a local university, trading my time for the ability to sit in on an attic greek class for free. I shall warn you, Greek is a labor, even after working through some other languages - it takes a lot of time. The amount of memorization is absurd; but at this point you're well prepared, having made thousands of flashcards in your life :author swallows hard:. But yes - a year off is good - work on your languages, study for that GRE, and write thoughtful, detailed statements of purpose! Just don't be discouraged - if you want it, you can do it - you just have to make it part of your breath, your sleep, your cycles. Its all worth it when ya get yer letter! </p>
<p>Cheers!</p>
<p>Qui non proficit, deficit!</p>
<p>I'm not sure which branch and further division of history I'm interested in. I'm an incoming second-year. Should I just go over 2 years of German and French for now? My interests are often eclectic and change every 10 minutes or so... I'm going to do German this year and follow-up with a second-year German intensive in the summer with similar trends in my junior year and eventually picking up 3 quarters or more of a language relevant to my future study.</p>
<p>German and/or French is one of the required languages in almost every single history field in almost every school that I've looked at. If you're planning on doing a field outside of Europe, you'll generally be required to learn only one of these languages plus whatever language would be most relevant (Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, etc). Best bet is to start early and look at which programs you're interested in to see what languages you should learn.</p>
<p>And to the OP: You don't have to speak the languages (though that is the fun part, imo) you have to read them. So don't expect your orals to be in spoken latin. =p)</p>