Hello! I have a freshman who asked me to post a question on their behalf. They have not taken LOTE and are considering ASL or Japanese. There is a Japanese class at our junior college that is equivalent to 2 years of high school Japanese. They want to major in STEM, probably astronomy/astrophysics/physics or possibly some kind of engineering. The Kid wants to know if it would be a substantial disadvantage for admissions purposes to only have 2 years of LOTE, instead of 3 years. If they only take 2 years of LOTE, it is more likely that they will be able to finish the engineering track at their high school, which is Intro to Engineering, Principles of Engineering, and Aerospace Engineering.
UC says 2 years (or level 2 equivalent like first semester Japanese at the local junior college) is required for frosh admission, but 3 years (or level 3 equivalent, presumably second semester Japanese at the local junior college) is recommended. This suggests that there is some admission advantage to having 3 or higher, but it is not necessarily obvious how much in the context of holistic reading.
Be aware that there is likely a foreign language requirement to graduate from UCs in a non-engineering major. These requirements are unlikely to be satisfied by high school year 2 or college semester 1 of a foreign language (typically, they need college semester 2 or equivalency by placement testing; high school year 3 is accepted at some campuses).
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Due to the competitive nature of the UC’s, I would suggest that recommended is more perceived as required especially for the top UC’s. That said, an applicant with 2 years of a Foreign language will not be automatically denied during the UC’s comprehensive admission review. In the end, each applicant should present their best possible application.
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Wow, I didn’t realize that such coursework was available at a high school. When our children were in high school, they couldn’t stretch their schedules to fit these kinds of courses. They were focused on meeting the minimum requirements for a high school diploma, as well as the UC’s “A-G” requirements. Most students took 4 years of LOTE, and the math series, plus English, history, sciences and famous F requirements.
We are fortunate in that the Kid has these opportunities. They attend a large, public, newly-built school with great facilities, including a huge engineering workshop. I’ve never seen anything like it in a high school.