<p>I'm doing pre-med and my major/minor choices are: Major in Human Biology and double minor in two languages either spanish/french or spanish/german.</p>
<p>Would I be able to become sufficiently fluent in a language just from minoring, especially in two? And would doing a semester abroad help?</p>
<p>Side note: I have basic spanish skills from high school (I can understand quite a bit but I can't speak it well) and absolutely nothing from french and german.
-Thanks for your help</p>
<p>You tend to need two years of study in a language before you can even get to the level of classes admissible for a minor, and on top of that you’ll need a certain number of classes. Sure, you’ll be able to speak the language, and study abroad (from what I’ve heard, I’ve yet to go) is very helpful. Just make sure you have the time.</p>
<p>Oh, and French is awesome.</p>
<p>If you can fit in the classes, sure! Why not! But realize, when you minor, you might be required to take literature courses pertaining to the language also, so it isn’t just composition and grammar courses. </p>
<p>Personally, I just started taking French. I’m just taking the elementary courses, intermediate courses, and 2 composition courses. From there, I plan to spend 2-3 months in France when I graduate. Remember that you need to apply your French. According to my teacher, it is not all about just reading text books and going to language labs at school. You need to watch movies, listen to music, read periodicals, watch television show, travel if you can – all of that to improve and maintain your knowledge of language</p>
<p>German, Spanish, French? Awesome. I want to learn those three languages as well (with possibly Dutch and Italian, but at a basic level – I’m a language whore). Spanish I took 4 years of in high school – can’t remember much now that I stopped taking it in college, haha >.<</p>
<p>Punk, if you’re going to MSU then it’s going to be very difficult. The Spanish minor doesn’t even count credits until you get the 300-level and then you need to take SPN 310 and 320 before you can take upperlevel classes. Then you need to take 15 credits of Spanish after that. </p>
<p>French is even more difficult because you need to take 4 specific classes (after your 101, 102, 201, 202 which don’t count toward the minor) and then an additional 9 credits on top of that.</p>
<p>German is the easiest because GRM 201 and 202 count towards the minor. Then you need 12 credits on top of that. </p>
<p>If you are coming in with nothing, then no it will not be possible (unless you take classes year-round and then take an additional year or two). The only one you could do is German. </p>
<p>Sorry :(.</p>
<p>@MushaboomBlue, yea I forget the majority of spanish i learned in high school too and I actually took spanish through elementary school too! languages can be such a pain some time. >.<</p>
<p>@romanigypsyeyes thanks, I am definitely going to MSU in the fall 
. From what you’re saying, french definitely sounds out of the question 
But German sounds doable as a minor. But for spanish, I since I have background in it, do you think just taking spanish electives be sufficient to learn the language (maybe along with a semester abroad). Or would the electives be almost impossible to fit into my schedule?</p>
<p>I’m not sure what you mean by “Spanish electives”. I am in SPN 202 because I bombed the placement exam, and I can tell you that I do not know enough to get by with the language lol. I am studying abroad this summer in Costa Rica which is by far the best way to learn a language. </p>
<p>If you just want to speak it then your best bet would be taking SPN 330 and SPN 342 concurrently (but you need to take the 100 and 200 levels first, depending on where you place). They are a speaking course and a media and conversation course. I highly suggest meeting with a language advisor (or just sending them an email) and tell them what your language goals are and they will help you meet them :). </p>
<p>What is your primary major? And what else do you plan on majoring/minoring in? My primary major is only around 40-something credits and my second major is not very credit heavy either so it is super easy for me to take a double minor along with my double major. However, if you’re in something like math or journalism, etc then it will be very difficult. </p>
<p>If you have not done so already, check out degnav.msu.edu - you can plan out courses and it will tell you what you need to take to fulfill requirements, etc. It is VERY useful. </p>
<p>Hope that helps :).</p>