<p>One major reason why I want to study in the U.S. is because I want to learn Russian. With that said, what colleges offer strong courses in russian (study abroad, internship, etc)?</p>
<p>Currently, I am looking at the Unis under the National Resource Centres for Russian/Eastern Europe. However, I want a strong liberal arts program that dabble in all fields so are there any other LACs that have comparable programs? </p>
<p>One major problem is that my GPA sucks that I would probably will transfer to a college that has a strong program. With that in mind, could you also recommend some less selective colleges with an acceptable russian department?</p>
<p>I am also interested in the middle east, politics, econs, math, history and philosophy, so it would be great if the colleges also have a strong program in these departments. I would love a college with a strong writing program too, since I need to drastically improve.</p>
<p>Thanks and sorry for being such a troublesome poster!</p>
<p>number of bachelors grads last year in Russian Language and Literature</p>
<p>Brigham Young University 22
Ohio State University-Main Campus 11
University of Utah 11
University of California-Davis 10
Georgetown University 10
Michigan State University 7
University of Oklahoma Norman Campus 7
Florida State University 6
University of Oregon 6
University of Wisconsin-Madison 6
Arizona State University at the Tempe Campus 5
University of Florida 5
Grinnell College 5
University of Iowa 5
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor 5
University of Missouri-Columbia 5
University of New Mexico-Main Campus 5
Vassar College 5
Bryn Mawr College 5
Beloit College 5</p>
<p>My daughter is currently studying Russian at Pomona and is very happy with it. She may well chime in with more details, but my impression is that it's a small, close-knit department with lots of hands-on learning and attention. I do know she went to a Russian karaoke at one of her profs' houses!</p>
<p>I'm a current Vassar student with a friend who is a Russian Studies major. From what she's said about the department, I would definitely recommend it. At Vassar, the Russian Studies Department is small and intimate with four professors. My friend has taken classes with each of the professors and liked them all a lot. Even though the department is small, there are courses in Russian language, literature (which can be taken both in Russian and in translation), and culture. In addition, the history department offers several courses on the history of Russia... I haven't taken any of those courses yet, but have heard fantastic things about the professor who specializes in Russian history.</p>
<p>Lastly, another great thing about Vassar's Russian Studies department is that it has it's own study abroad program in St. Petersburg which offers classes in language, culture, and art history (using pieces at the Hermitage). </p>
<p>My daughter looked closely at Vassar too, so I'm confident that's another good choice. Just to clarify, Pomona has study abroad opportunities in Russia as well.</p>
<p>You are far more like to find the combination of things you are looking for at a good state university. Beware schools with only 3 or 4 faculty. One goes on leave, another on sabbatical, and course offerings, especially upper-level electives, shrivel, and you can't get recommendations for grad school, jobs, etc. And the number of extracurricular offerings - language tables or living halls, film series, discussion groups, etc. - becomes exceeding small to non-existent. </p>
<p>Also, having a good graduate program in the case of languages is often a big plus, as advanced undergraduates can often take graduate level courses. There are a few LACs that also have graduate programs (Smith for Italian, for example) but they are very few and far between.</p>
<p>Yes, if a small LAC runs its department so ineptly as to allow it to fall into rack and ruin, that could happen. Unlikely at a good LAC, but if all you can see are state universities, you will imagine the most odd scenarios.</p>
No need to be snippy. Mini is a Williams alum, and his daughter is a Smith alum; he's pretty familiar with top LACs. It's very possible such a scenario could happen. I've seen similar cases in quite a few Classics departments. </p>
<p>nelle, you might want to consult the Less Common Taught Languages database. It will give you a list of colleges that offer Russian as well as the level of courses available.</p>
<p>Russian programs withe fewer than 5 bachelors grads last year from IPEDS Peer Analysis System</p>
<p>Wesleyan University 4
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 4
Bowdoin College 4
University of Maryland-College Park 4
Smith College 4
Carleton College 4
St. Olaf College 4
Dartmouth College 4
CUNY Hunter College 4
SUNY at Albany 4
Middlebury College 4
University of Washington-Seattle Campus 4
University of Denver 3
Connecticut College 3
Tulane University of Louisiana 3
Amherst College 3
Wellesley College 3
Macalester College 3
University of Minnesota-Twin Cities 3
The University of Montana 3
Columbia University in the City of New York 3
Miami University-Oxford 3
Oklahoma State University-Main Campus 3
Portland State University 3
Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus 3
University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus 3
Texas A & M University 3
The University of Texas at Austin 3
Ferrum College 3
University of Arizona 2
Pomona College 2
San Francisco State University 2
George Washington University 2
University of South Florida 2
Emory University 2
University of Illinois at Chicago 2
College of the Holy Cross 2
Williams College 2
University of Nebraska-Lincoln 2
Barnard College 2
CUNY Queens College 2
Bowling Green State University-Main Campus 2
Reed College 2
Dickinson College 2
University of Pennsylvania 2
The University of Texas at Arlington 2
Trinity University 2
Stanford University 2
Cornell University 1
University of California-Los Angeles 1
University of Southern California 1
Trinity College 1
Yale University 1
University of Hawaii at Manoa 1
University of Notre Dame 1
University of Kentucky 1
Bates College 1
Brandeis University 1
Tufts University 1
Truman State University 1
University of New Hampshire-Main Campus 1
Rutgers University-New Brunswick 1
Colgate University 1
New York University 1
Duke University 1
Oberlin College 1
Willamette University 1
Haverford College 1
West Chester University of Pennsylvania 1
University of South Carolina-Columbia 1
Sewanee: The University of the South 1
The University of Tennessee 1
Baylor University 1
Central Washington University 1
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 1
University of Wyoming 1</p>
<p>Classics departments are a special case. I say this with sadness, but it's a dying field. I maintain that whether or not mini and his daughter are LAC alums, his broad brush is a gross overgeneralization. Sure, do some due diligence and be sure you are applying to a school with a track record and a commitment to the department, but come on.</p>
<p>"Yes, if a small LAC runs its department so ineptly as to allow it to fall into rack and ruin, that could happen."</p>
<p>It is not at all the fault of the college. It is just the way colleges are run. Assistant professors have to take sabbaticals to write books to gain tenure. Tenured professors take time off. Good LACs will find visiting assistant professors or lecturers to take their place. But the replacements can't provide the longer term mentoring, nor can the the colleges provide the upper level electives that a good state university can. Nor can they provide the level of support services for language learning. </p>
<p>That's why students are attracted to Middlebury and Smith, which are the two LACs with the highest percentage of language/area studies majors. But even there, if the language isn't one with a big department, the same thing happens. The OP has very wide interests which are simply better served elsewhere. This isn't a slam at LACs (I LIKE LACs), but a matter of fit.</p>
<p>The OP also says her GPA sucks. That makes Middlebury, Smith, Williams, Pomona, Vassar out of the question. So let's look for second tier LACs with strong, large Russian departments, which also have strong departments in middle east studies,politics, econs, math, history and philosophy.</p>
<p>Gah! Smith and St. Olaf are among the colleges that I want to go to!</p>
<p>Regarding my GPA, it sucks. On a more positive note, I am definitely among the top 25% of the cohort in my school. My teacher cannot be bothered/don't know how to find my exact ranking :/ I submitted my commonapp in Nov, but the confirmation of my rankings came in Dec. Since the commonapp cannot be changed, is it possible for me to get a new account?</p>
<p>It seems to me that a couple of things need to be taken into account when looking at the number of dept grads: 1) The ratio of grads in the dept to # of total grads; for example, 4 from Smith represents a very large percentage in comparison to 7 from Michigan State. 2) You might also want to look at the size of the faculty and the number of courses offered, as well as the number of students taking those courses. It is quite possible that some schools have vibrant undergrad depts due to participation from those who are majoring in something else.</p>
<p>I'm a potential Russian lit major at a small LAC and have had a very positive experience so far. Our department is very small, but as a result, I have recieved a lot of very personalize attention from the start. I'm only a second semester freshman, but came into the department with some outside experience and immediately, the professors within the department have been very helpful about offering individualized attention for my particular needs. My Russian professor last semester was always pulling me aside or sending me e-mails if she thought of an opportunity that would help me improve my language skills. It is very easy in my department to organize independent study and work one on one with a professor (no TAs at small LACs). Advising is also very helpful. I get a lot of attention in my small department and that has meant a lot for my academic experience so far.</p>
<p>On another note, not all LACs are lacking in extracurriculars for languages. My LAC has foreign language halls, daily conversation tables at lunch, cultural events both on and off campus, native-speaker foreign language residents, who teach conversation classes, film screenings, etc. I've found many ways to participate already.</p>
<p>The nice thing about Russian is that probably the department will be fairly tight-knit where ever you go. Russian, though it's a really useful and important language, is suffering low enrollment and prospective undergrad majors will probably be pretty popular. I am sure you'd get a good Russian education at a big state school, but if you do want the LAC, then I think that you will be able to find equally rich opportunities that may be suited to your learning style. I attend Pomona, but I think many of the well rated LACs that have russian will give you a good experience. I've heard especially good things about Amherst, Middlebury, Smith, Wellesley, Oberlin, and Swarthmore's departments from a family friend who works in the field.</p>
<p>Here's the rankings for colleges with Russian according to the Gourman Report:
Columbia
Yale
UChicago
Penn
UMich
Harvard
Indiana
Washington
Stanford
Wisconsin
Brown
Cornell
NYU
UNC-Chapel Hill
Texas
UIUC
UCLA
Michigan State
Northwestern
Syracuse</p>
<p>Since you said your grades aren't the best, you should definitely look at Michigan State and Indiana, as it looks like they have good Russian departments and neither one is that hard to get into. Good Luck.</p>