<p>I took Spanish 1 (for 2 years) in middle school and then Spanish 2 in high school, so would that count as the 2 credits I need for language for college apps? Because the teacher was awful during Spanish 2 , I dropped Spanish 3 the day it started, and took another language from BYU High school study. They had russian 1 but it was 1 semester, not 2, and I finished that and then took 2 semesters of Russian 2 (thats what was offered, the whole program) so I finished 2 years of russian, even though its 1.5 "credits". How does that count up?</p>
<p>What really counts is the level of the language that you reach by the time you apply to college. What selective colleges are looking for is 4 years of one language. That’s not to say that you can’t have two languages, but that one of them should be equivalent to 4-years of high school study or better. Some students achieve this by taking the sequence L1, L2 through L4. Some achieve it by placing into a level higher than L1 when they start high school, and continuing through L4. Some achieve it (because of immersion programs in elementary and middle schools) and placing into AP or higher in high school.</p>
<p>Even if you are fluent in the language taking a high school language course that focuses on the literature of the language in the language gives you extra credit in your applications.</p>
<p>So it’s difficult to count up your language experience. My sense is that your 2 years of middle school Spanish won’t count at all. Your 2 years of Russian might. You would want to find some way to increase that to 3 or 4 years.</p>
<p>What you have will meet the requirement of having two years of a single language at colleges that require two years. That requirement goes to level of completion (second high school year level of a language) and not that you must actually take two years during high school. For any colleges that require or recommend three or more years, you have not reached that level because that requirement or recomendation applies to a single language.</p>
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<p>If your Spanish grades show up on your transcript, they may count, though middle school grades are not always factored into your high school GPA. Moreover, if the maximum Russian offering at your school ends at level 2, colleges will not penalize you for not going further. Taking Russian at community college or online will give you a boost in admissions; it shows that you go beyond the standard course offerings.</p>