Foreign Language Requirements

Colleges and Universities A-Z Harvard University
1

<p>I am facing quite a conundrum...</p>

<p>I am going to be applying to Dartmouth, Stanford, Princeton, Harvard, etc. I am currently a second semester sophomore. Now, this summer, I plan to take some classes at the Harvard Summer School if I am accepted. I am unsure about the foreign language requirements. My school (a small, private Christian academy in SoCal) only offers Spanish I-IV and American Sign Language I & II. Disregard the ASL. I am currently taking Spanish II. </p>

<p>For Harvard's Summer Program, should I be accepted God willing, I would take Statistics and Chinese I (I really want to learn Chinese... my mom is, after all, Chinese). </p>

<p>I would then skip Spanish III in the Junior year (since I would have a schedule crammed with AP/Honors Classes, as well as Honors Journalism and Honors Choir Accompaniment). Then, I would take Spanish III Senior Year. </p>

<p>But, will colleges like Dartmouth, Harvard, or Stanford be OK with me taking 3 years of Spanish and one year of Chinese, or do they want four years of Spanish? The requirements only call for four years of a foreign language. There is no indication that you have to stay with one language. </p>

<p>I believe three years of Spanish is enough to get by, and my mom and friends can help me with my Chinese once I have built a sturdy basis in Chinese I. But, I need your help.</p>

<p>Thanks so much!</p>

<p>PS: I am not concerned with academic or EC's as of now. I would appreciate answers focused on foreign language.</p>

2

<p>Harvard recommends that an applicant have taken 4 consecutive years of one language. For the admissions committee, it’s not a question of how many years of a language is “enough to get by” or be fluent. It is a matter of having a strong foundation in a language. Couldn’t you learn Chinese through self-study, a non-high-school term-time course, or a summer course or camp? That is what I would recommend.</p>