<p>I'd really like to become fluent in a foreign language in college, but I do not know how to decide which one is right for me. I took Spanish in high school, and felt like it was not the right fit, although I can't put my finger on why. </p>
<p>I've also taken some Japanese, which was somewhat enjoyable, and Chinese, which (although very interesting) seemed absolutely impossible to master. </p>
<p>Does anybody have any tips on how to choose the right language? I'd love to learn a non-western language that is still valuable. I've been considering Russian but I've heard that it's every bit as difficult as Chinese.</p>
<p>Also, are there any self-guided language learning kits that are less expensive than Rosetta Stone but similarly effective? I'd love to dabble in a language this summer, but don't want to invest a lot of money in something that I may not pursue.</p>
<p>Bahasa Indonesia/Melayu might be a good choice since it's based on English characters (like German or French, abcdefg blabla) but I think it's a bit obscure. </p>
<p>Chinese and Japanese are very similar and require the knowledge of many characters.</p>
<p>Are you someone that picks up languages easily? Was the Chinese pronounciation hard for you? Japanese is one of the easiest languages to pronounce, but hardest to master grammatically (Chinese is somewhat the opposite).</p>
<p>Also, to self-guided learning kits, Pimsleur =)</p>
<p>Check out How-to-learn-any-language.com; I'm part of that wonderful forum, and it's basically full of language enthusiasts. They'd be happy to help you pick out a language to learn, as many of them are polyglots with experience in every branch of the language tree.</p>
<p>Sometimes languages you wouldn't immediately think of as super useful are very handy for graduate schools. Apparently a lot of things are published in French or German and aren't always translated because they would either lose something or it's just effort that isn't worth it. A reading level ability in some languages can be quite useful. German and French are also used in many parts of Europe and French is still important in parts of Africa. Obviously Spanish is very useful in South and Central America, as well as Spain of course, and Arabic is often described as being the new Spanish (as in it's what people are taking because it is extremely useful). If you do well in Arabic, you are likely to be recruited by the government. I'm sure it would also be useful for History or International Relations. That said, I've heard it is very difficult and pronunciation is a problem for some people. You could also consider classical languages. They are fun (you get to read ancient stuff in its original form!) and really useful. Your vocabulary will expand, as will your understanding of grammar. They are also somewhat useful for law and med schools because you can figure out what strange words or terms mean and not look foolish. If the part of Spanish you didn't like was conversation, classics might be a good option for you.</p>
<p>I take Russian and it's difficult, but in a way, the absurdity of the grammar rules makes it enjoyable to learn and master. Plus, it's cool to talk in Russian and is still a pretty sought after language! Take Russian!!!</p>
<p>
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You could also consider classical languages... you get to read ancient stuff in its original form!
[/quote]
Not quite. Latin was written exclusively in upper-case letter and without spaces or punctiation... I am not aware of a textbooks that presents Latin texts in this format.</p>
<p>You should ask yourself what purpose you want to learn another language for. Most of the world speaks English as a first or second language, so you won't need to know another language to go on vacation or work with colleagues in different countries most of the time. Do you want to live or study abroad for some time? Do you want to work intensively with a group of people of a certain nationality? Do you want to become an interpreter? If you consider going to grad school, you could learn one of the languages that graduate schools often require a reading knowledge in: German, French, Russian; Latin and maybe Greek if you are into humanities.</p>
<p>Languages are valuable often because they're difficult; there's a good reason Arabic/Chinese/Russian/etc. are so high in demand. </p>
<p>Chinese might be generally as difficult as Russian, but they're very different languages; you, personally, might find Russian easier to master and understand.</p>
<p>Arabic is also a good choice, I found learning that language was a lot easier than picking up Spanish.</p>
<p>Sometimes languages look more intimidating than they actually are.</p>
<p>Finally, avoid Rosetta Stone like the plague. I found it to be a complete waste of money. Try Pimsleur - and the number of free online language tutorials are enough where you really don't need to purchase anything. (Send me a PM if you'd like a list of helpful online resources)</p>
<p>However, if you feel you need the extra help, purchase textbooks that high schools or colleges use - they're usually very comprehensive and detailed, and come with additional CDROMs and DVDs. I found those, paired with Pimsleur to be the most helpful.</p>
<p>I've been studying Japanese for a while now. Avoid pimsleur and rosetta stone at all costs. Watch a lot of TV (news and regular programming... not anime) and take the classes offered in college. I'm planning on doing my sophomore year over in Japan, so I think immersion is the most efficient way of learning a language. Also check out Language</a> Exchange Online via Skype on the Mixxer . You find a language partner and talk over skype. It's a great way to get into a conversational environment. Good luck!</p>
<p>Arabic is very difficult to learn, not only grammatically but I've noticed that many westerners are unable to pronounce some of the letters/sounds. I'm fluent in Arabic and French, and French was a lot easier to learn. I'm actually starting to learn German and I think, like colormehappy said, it's useful in grad school if you're doing research in science or maths.</p>
<p>I used their tapes for German and it's very good for learning conversational skills. If you plan to study grammar and sentence structure, though, don't rely on FSI.</p>
<p>Haha. Pimsleur is good but way overpriced for the little content it gives you. </p>
<p>I am a native speaker in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. I reviewed FSI Spanish and Portuguese for a company and they were outstanding compared to other courses in the same languages I had to review. </p>
<p>I have also learned Chinese fluently and the FSI course was also pretty great there too.</p>
<p>After using rosetta stone and some pimsleur, I realized those are great programs.. but not sufficient. What you should do is pick up a grammar book, try rosetta stone (if possible) and pick up some penpals. I speak with people on skype and MSN and that is what really helps me learn the foreign language. To become fluent and gain the most knowledge you must do all types of studying and not just one.</p>
<p>Picking a language isn't too bad.. just find a country that you are very interested in the people and culture and really want to visit.. your dream country you could say.</p>
<p>In addition to asking yourself what country/region interests you, ask yourself what you want to do as far as a career is concerned.</p>
<p>Business oriented? Look at Spanish or Chinese because of the size of the markets and trade</p>
<p>Government work? Arabic or Chinese are really useful.</p>
<p>Social work? Again, Spanish, or whatever ethnic minority is dominant in your area. </p>
<p>Adventure? Any of the above, or whatever floats your boat.</p>
<p>I'd stay away from obscure, one country languages, unless you're really interested in the language/country. Learning Bulgarian might be fun, but not very usefull outside of Bulgaria or the occasional Bulgarian restaurant.</p>