Foreign Language Advice?

Applying to College
1

I am filling out my schedule for next year, and have taken two years of French. Je suis tres bon a parler et ecriver francais, but j’ai une probleme (sorry don’t have accents…). Currently, the only French 3 class my school offers conflicts with a class I really want to take. So, I am thinking about taking two semesters of German in my senior year. Typically, my school teaches languages very quickly compared to other high schools in our area, so I can expect to be fairly decent at it by the end of my senior year.

Here’s where you guys come in. Should I wait until my second semester of senior year to take French 3 and ignore German altogether or take the two semesters of German along with my 2 semesters of French? Which option looks better for the more selective colleges to which I will likely apply? Thanks guys!

2

You should google the recommendations/requirements of colleges you are considering applying to.

When colleges have foreign language requirements they mean that they want you to get to that level of a foreign language. If you are looking towards the very competitive colleges you likely need to reach level 3 or 4 of a foreign language. Taking a year of German won’t help you to get there, it would be viewed as a pure elective. I would try to continue with French next year and strongly consider taking French 4 senior year.

Keep in mind that the top tier colleges have many more qualified applicants who have met all of the school’s recommended/required classes than they can accept.