I’m a sophomore in hs and I finished my second year of French. Now, I LOVE french, languages, linguistics, grammar, cultures etc., they’re my absolute favorite things to study. I’m taking a lot of dual enrollment courses jr and sr year because I took all the APs at my school (and honestly I just really hate my hs) so I’ll have early release after lunch everyday. My plan is to stop taking French in school and self study, obviously taking the ap exam jr/sr year. In addition, I’d like to study other languages with the extra time I’d get with early release. My goal would be to become almost/completely fluent in French, Spanish, and another language, with an large knowledge of a few others. Any thoughts? Would colleges absolutely go nuts if I study on my own? Also there’s a question on the common app that asks what langauges I could speak, so multiple would be impressive, no? Isn’t this something colleges eat up? (I’m not doing it for colleges, but hey I’ll take any advantage hahaha)
P.S. the language classes at my school are pretty crappy, so that’s another reason why I don’t want to continue in school
No
No
They prefer you take a class.
Even if I won’t benefit from it? Ugh… if I do it anyways will I be at a disadvantage? I mean isn’t the only thing that matters at the end of the if I’m fluent? Also, is that bad to do things in hs that YOU think will benefit you even if colleges don’t? :(
It depends, in part, upon the colleges you are targeting. In general, however, a college is not looking for specialists in HS. If the college suggests a HS course of study, they are expecting it to be followed.
There is always a benefit to learning another language, but impressing anyone else is not in the cards.
“if I do it anyways will I be at a disadvantage? I mean isn’t the only thing that matters at the end of the if I’m fluent?”
You will be at a disadvantage compared to candidates who followed the college’s instructions to take 3-4 years of a language. Fluency is great, but skipping over classes and self-studying classes that are indeed offered at your high school might make you appear impulsive and impatient. Schools with big spirit or particularly strong alumni bonds tend to like applicants who can “play well with others”; too much self-studying reveals a part of your character that is somewhat at odds with that.
“Also, is that bad to do things in hs that YOU think will benefit you even if colleges don’t?”
I think it is great for you to explore your interests and prepare yourself for your future. It is possible to do this without cutting corners academically, though.
Also, I would say it would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to become fluent through self-study. Every school my HS junior daughter has visited says they want three to four years of language study in the classroom (though this of course depends on the schools you are considering).
One option to consider… my D20 wanted to study Chinese, but her HS doesn’t offer it. But they do have an online consortium (we had to pay extra), and she is studying it online and still getting HS credit. It counts as an in-school course, though she is learning it on her own online. Maybe that would be an option at your school, or you can find one online that your school would accept.
A good SAT II score will not not compensate for missing classes. Take the class.
Perhaps you can arrange to take French at the CC if that would allow you to move along at a faster pace.
Someone I know had a similar experience of being way ahead of her high school class in Spanish. She became essentially fluent in Spanish while taking Spanish in middle and high schools.
This did involve a lot of self study. I am under the impression that this included watching Spanish TV shows or movies (probably on Netflix). It led to spending a semester of high school abroad in a Spanish speaking high school in a Spanish speaking country.
Thus self-study was important. However, she also had the Spanish classes in school. For one thing the language classes in school get you talking, which is essential. Also, it provides some solid evidence of your commitment to the subject and your ability to deal with a class situation. Having those A’s and A+'s in language courses on your high school transcript shows something to the universities that you apply to.
We had quite a difficult time finding a school that would let her take the Spanish AP class without having taken AP Spanish. We did eventually find somewhere that she could take it, but it was not easy. Of course if you complete dual enrollment classes at a community college, then you might not need to take the AP exam.
I am wondering whether you should either take French and/or Spanish as dual enrollment classes, or take language classes over the summer. I am familiar with very good French immersion courses in Canada, but I am pretty sure that there are also French immersion courses in France, as well as Spanish immersion courses in Spain and in other Spanish speaking countries. There are probably also summer classes at your local community college, but you would probably have to take these as dual enrollment to avoid having universities think of you as a transfer student.
This student has only had two years of French.
Can you take French through dual enrollment? College French 2+3 junior year, summer immersion in Quebec, then more advanced classes while you take college Spanish 1+2 (= equivalent to covering 3 years of HS Spanish in one year).
^^^ Exactly. If you have had two years of HS French, you might place into second year college French in dual enrollment.
In case it’s a typo = HS French1+2 would lead to a placement in 2nd semester College French, not second year.
@MYOS1634 - Please note the word “might”. I placed into second year French in college after two years of HS French, but that was back in the stone age. 
At the end of four years of high school French I had approximately the equivalent of one year of college French. I took a gap year with French immersion and went to college being able to take any French lit course I felt like taking.
But with regards to the AP, self studying languages is not something I would recommend. But there’s a good chance that if you could take a language in a local college you would move at a faster pace than your high school classes. If you could spend a summer in an immersion course you could probably skip a couple of levels ahead. I don’t know what’s available to you, or what your family can afford, but that is what I would look into if possible.
Completion of second year high school French may place into first, second, or third semester college French, depending on the high school and college.