<p>Hi,
I'm a foreigner and moved to the US about 3 years ago. I started with high school and didn't take any foreign languages because my priority was to learn English. I was wondering if a certain college would reject me if it required 2 years of foreign language taken in high school? I just took a language proficiency test (LTI licensed by ACTFL, Language</a> Testing International - ACTFL Language Test - 60+ languages - Corporate, Government & Academic language proficiency testing) in my language to prove that I speak my native language fluently and will be getting the results shortly. Do you think this is a big issue or not?
My GC told me that colleges usually look at everything in detail and that I should be fine. Is this true?</p>
<p>You need to check with the “certain college” as to its actual requirements and don’t assume your GC is correct, but for many colleges, if you are applying as an international rather than a US citizen or permanent US resident and you are from a country whose primary language is not English, you meet the “foreign language” requirement by taking English.</p>
<p>well, I need financial aid and I can’t apply as an international student. I have a green card and I’m a permanent resident.</p>
<p>sxeYustas,</p>
<p>You should look at the web sites of the colleges you are interested in. Many colleges will waive foreign language requirements for applicants whose first language is not English—regardless of whether they are US citizens, permanent residents of the US, or international students. [And there is a spot on the common application that asks whether English is your first language as well as whether English is the most common language used in your home environment. The applications for colleges that don’t use the common app probably have a similar question somewhere.]</p>
<p>Since you have a green card, you will be treated the same as a US citizen in the application process and for financial aid. You should be able to use the college web sites to find out who to contact in the Admissions Office. A quick email or phone call to the appropriate person in each Admissions Office should reassure you that you don’t need to worry about this particular aspect of your application all that much.</p>
<p>thank you for your response. I e-mailed that college and asked the same question. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find any information about “waiving foreign language requirements” on their website. The other colleges I’m going to apply don’t require foreign languages. But I’m less concerned with those schools since they are more expensive and one is a reach for me. </p>
<p>I’ll post here as soon as I get a response from that college.</p>