<p>So languages have never been my strong suit. I took Spanish I in 8th grade, Honors Spanish II freshman year, and Honors Spanish III junior year. I am not currently (as a senior) enrolled in Spanish. I was operating on the assumption that colleges that require three years of a language (such as Brown and Williams, both of which I am applying to) would count 8th grade as one of my three years. Apparently they will not, according to my guidance counselor who admittedly is not the best.
Are my chances ruined? Where do I go from here?</p>
<p>Yeah, most Ivy Leagues do want four years of a language; however, that doesn’t render you ineligible to be accepted at a particular university. It is just what they like to see. Try finding a way to enroll in an online Spanish class to further your knowledge and show that you have a desire to continue your studies. Use all of your resources! Good luck!</p>
<p>Also, yes 8th grade counts if it counts as a high school credit. Well, it should anyway. However, it doesn’t look as good as taking it in high school because it’s not as recent…</p>
<p>I guess an online course is my only option. Where would I find one?</p>
<p>You should ask the specific school. In my school district, if an 8th grader took any World Language I and got 70% or above, it will be counted as high school credit (although it may not show on the transcript). That would allow them to take level 2 in HS freshmen. The level 2 is equivalent to 2 years of foreign language for HS graduation requirement and most college application requirement. Most of the cases, it is not the actual number of years that matter. Nevertheless, the year requirement for core subject may be different. Even if you take AP Calculus BC in sophomore, you may still need to have the 3 or 4 year of math on your transcript at least in some cases. You should definitely call the admission office of each school you are going to apply to find out before spending worthless effort.</p>
<p>If you’ve got a strong application other than the foreign language, you’ve still got a good chance. It might all depend on what you did with your course time not spent on a foreign language. If you dropped foreign language so you could take AP Bio, AP Chem, AP Physics-Mechanics and AP Physics-E&M, you’re probably okay. If you dropped it to take Intro to Pottery 1 & 2, not so much.</p>
<p>My course load this year is AP Lang, AP Human Geo, Honors Calculus, Honors Physics, European History, and AP Comparative Government.
Last year I took AP Lit, Honors Spanish III, AP Bio, Anatomy/Physiology, AP Stats, and APUSH.</p>
<p>I dropped Spanish because the only option for me was AP Spanish and I knew it would kill my GPA.</p>
<p>There is no doubt about your course rigorous. The only question is whether the schools you are applying require certain level of foreign language or actual number of year.</p>
<p>The current game plan according to my counselor is to enroll in an online Spanish class through a community college. How does this sound?</p>
<p>I honestly don’t think it’s going to be a dealbreaker. You’ve got a strong course load, although how strong depends on your school. There’s no fluff, and not taking an AP language when there’s no other alternative is not uncommon.</p>
<p>If you get in, you get in. If you don’t, you’ll never know why. But I don’t think the reason for denial will be missing one year of foreign language. Good luck.</p>
<p>I still encourage you to find out from the admission offices. You are not out of work in senior year. If you don’t need to take additional foreign language class, don’t. It is not even an AP class that may get you credit. I often found those GC to be not really reliable.
If it is indeed a requirement (not just recommended), it may be a dealbreaker.</p>
<p>Completing Spanish III means that you have achieved the third level, which is usually what matters. However, achieving the fourth level would generally look better.</p>
<p>^ I agree if it is in a regular class registration. Taking AP would even be better as many schools give a lot of credits for that. If one needs extra effort to sign up online or take it in a community college, the small benefit may not be justified unless it is required.</p>
<p>So what I’m gathering from this is if it’s required for schools I should definitely take the online course? (Thanks so much for all your help, by the way. Please forgive my confusion.)</p>
<p>And I should interpret any school that refers to it as a “strong recommendation” as requiring it?</p>
<p>^ Yes, but still call to find out if they mean levels or years in the requirement.</p>
<p>All right, game plan: call my schools. Ask about the requirement. If it’s 3 levels, I’m good, no need to take more classes. If it’s 3 years, I need that community college class. Sounds good.
Thank you guys SO much for your assistance!</p>
<p>That is a good plan.</p>
<p>most schools will considered you reached the minimum 3 years requirement (it’s a “level” thing for languages and math, for example), BUT the minimum is rarely sufficient to get into top schools, so I’d recommend you take that 4th year online indeed.</p>