<p>My son has known for some time that he wants to major in a physical science (chemistry/physics/materials) with at least a minor, if not a double major, in a foreign language, particularly Chinese or Spanish, maybe both.</p>
<p>I'm sure that many large universities could offer such a program. Are there any lesser-known or non-obvious schools you all could recommend that would offer a strong science/language combination? (Asian studies could stand in for Chinese.)</p>
<p>One that comes to mind is Macalester, because of its international flair. Is that a good one? Any others you all could recommend? Thanks!</p>
<p>My alma mater, Reed College, has both a Chinese major and extremely strong departments of physics, chemistry, biology, and math. It also has a nuclear reactor.</p>
<p>If the Northwest is possible, consider Whitman, which just scored some great NSF grants for amazing equipment that undergrads use…and strong study abroad programs. It is definitely possible in many LACs to have a Science/Language double major.</p>
<p>I second Kalamazoo College. My S is majoring in a foreign language there and the program is wonderful. The majority of students major in science programs.</p>
<p>I do not think that is a difficult combo to find at good small schools. If you have a geographic preference, that will narow the suggestions to a managable level.</p>
<p>Thanks for your suggestions, everyone. I will check them all out.</p>
<p>yabeyabe2, my son prefers a school in a large metropolitan area, preferably in the northeastern quarter of the US (Great Lakes states, Northeast, Atlantic coast, New England). That’s another reason I asked about Macalester. It seems that not many good LACs are in metro areas; they mostly seem to be in small towns or rural areas.</p>
<p>Daughter is a freshman at Pitt. She’s majoring (for now) in chemistry and taking Japanese. She will probably start another language next fall. G-20 is in Pittsburgh this month and the kids have some opportunities to volunteer–of course, that won’t happen again. It appears that her idea is to take the strong science that doesn’t have extensive requirements outside the major and then take the languages she wants until she reaches the level of proficiency she wants.</p>
<p>As a parent, I like the size of the city of Pittsburgh better than some of the other cities where she looked at studying. The city also accommodates students a number of ways to help them get to know what it offers. Best wishes with the search.</p>
<p>Lawrence University, city of Appleton, Wi, it’s a small city and school is right downtown. Mac would be a great look see for a large urban area.</p>
<p>I think Rose-Hulman has a Japanese program geared towards the needs of physical science majors. Your son might also want to look at Swarthmore or Haverford.</p>
<p>Lots of physical science courses require prerequisites, and students generally work in labs to get credentials for grad school or employment, for instance, so it is not always easy to take lots of time abroad to perfect skills. Languages such as Chinese or Japanese also generally require lots of class hours, and it can be difficult to schedule these if a student is taking a couple of lab courses, especially if either class is only offered once, so be sure to ask about this as well at any school your son looks at. </p>
<p>One big advantage of a large research university is the number of foreign students, especially foreign grad students. Not hard at all to hear Mandarin being spoken on campus, at least. It should be pretty easy to get in practice outside of class, especially if your son is a physical science or materials major - many grad students are looking for help in editing their English and might be amenable to exchanging language lessons.</p>
<p>Too bad he won’t consider west coast. Caltech has an exchange program in Japan. One of the CC mom’s sons studied Japanese and attended this program.</p>
<p>Take a look at Dickinson. It is known for its foreign languages/international focus and its science programs are very strong, with wonderful brand new facilities. Beautiful campus, very involved students, and a lot of merit money available</p>
<p>St. Olaf. It’s not in a city, but relatively close to Minneapolis-St. Paul. St. Olaf opened a beautiful new science facility last year. Merit $$</p>