What does drug abuse have to do with politics? It’s a national problem. Next you’ll be saying, participation in theater is “far left.”
Yes and no. Unlike, say, Spanish, where the spoken language = the written language, learning Japanese reading and writing took years of schooling for her. Also, although my wife speaks to the kids in Japanese a little, we’re a 90% English-speaking household. It’s not like she’s a native speaker.
Well… that work was done before HS, right? So that may or may not satisfy a college…
Definitely, a safety but Willamette has amazing opportunities in terms of poli sci.
Thanks, @vegetarianstress! We’re actually visiting Willamette on Friday. 
Little update - my D applied to the Windows on Williams (WOW) diversity outreach program. (In case you’re not familiar, the way these programs work is you write a short essay, supply your transcript and test scores, and if they’re interested, they fly you out all expenses paid to visit the campus. People who are invited to campus and eventually apply tend to be accepted at an extremely high rate.) Unfortunately, she didn’t get into the diversity outreach program, but they did offer to have a 1:1 30-minute phone call with her to discuss her application and answer any questions she should have about the application process. They said it’s not a phone interview, and they will not be evaluating her. They also said that they only extend this offer to a small number of the WOW applicants who weren’t being flown out, and that people who have this phone call have historically had a 2x chance of getting in compared to the general admit rate.
I think she’s going to ask about her course schedule for next year - particularly around foreign languages - since there’s still some time to change it. One option is for her to leave things as is. Another option is to remove some of her electives and instead take ASL. A 3rd option is to take the BYU online course. (And if she does that, she may/may not want to drop one of her high school classes.)
Anything else you think she should ask? She’s also going to ask about the theater program, which is supposed to be very good, how non-athletes tend to do socially since it’s got a very sporty culture, etc.
I’m not sure that a single year of ASL is going to help much; many/most colleges stipulate X years of the same foreign language, not mix-and-match. (Not that ASL isn’t interesting and worthwhile to take; I just wouldn’t count on its mitigating the FL-requirement situation.)
Since she’s at a native-speaker-ish level… are there any universities in Japan that offer online classes - say, an intro-level Japanese literature course?
Sending you a PM re WOW questions.
Actually, @LoveTheBard listed some great US-based Japanese language classes, which I think would be more appropriate for my D’s level. She’s not a native speaker, so I think she’d struggle with literature aimed at college-level native Japanese speakers. She can participate in day-to-day conversations, but doesn’t have the vocabulary to talk about economics, politics, etc. at an adult level. (Junior high wouldn’t be a problem.) And she could read a newspaper article with a dictionary.
@TheGreyKing - reading it now. Thank you!
@dia26, It’s great that Williams has shown an interest in your daughter.
I don’t know that she should discuss her lack of formal foreign language study during this call or with anyone in admissions unless they bring it up first. To me, asking about how she could compensate would sound like she’s drawing attention to a potential weakness, which may not actually be the case. The fact that they’re offering a one-on-one conversation is an indication that her academic history is acceptable and implying that the final admissions decision will be based on other intangible factors such as recommendations, essays, supplements and most importantly FIT.
I think this conversation will be a good opportunity for your daughter to showcase how her academic strengths and extracurricular interests are a good fit for Williams, while at the same time asking specific questions about how what Williams can offer in those areas. As I mentioned, Williams has a vibrant theater program. Your daughter should familiarize herself with theater offerings (as outlined on the department’s web page) and talk about her tech experience (which is always a plus).
I would be careful about implying that “sporty” culture is a turn-off. Love it or hate it, Williams kids are generally active, though not necessarily involved in competitive or team sports. If she likes to hike or run or ski or do anything outdoorsy, she might mention that Williams rural environment appeals to her. If not, then I’d just leave it alone.
Aside from theater, your daughter’s major ECs seem to be her ACLU involvement and JSA experience. I think she could expand on these areas by asking about opportunities at Williams and in the surrounding community, especially North Adams. She might take a look at Winter Study course offerings and talk about ones that appeal to her as this shows both a willingness to get involved and an awareness in of what Williams offers.
I understand that all admissions interviews at Williams are meant to be informative rather than evaluative, but I doubt that they would be totally neutral. Considering that your daughter hasn’t had the chance to visit Williams yet, I think it’s important for her to demonstrate what she knows and likes about Williams, what she could contribute to the community and why she and Williams would be a good fit.
Fantastic advice. Thank you! For the FL question, I think my daughter is planning on going over her course selections for next year (4 APs, and 4 1-semester electives) and asking for feedback. If the person asks about taking more Japanese, she can address it then.
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Actually, @LoveTheBard listed some great US-based Japanese language classes, which I think would be more appropriate for my D’s level. She’s not a native speaker, so I think she’d struggle with literature aimed at college-level native Japanese speakers. She can participate in day-to-day conversations, but doesn’t have the vocabulary to talk about economics, politics, etc. at an adult level. (Junior high wouldn’t be a problem.) And she could read a newspaper article with a dictionary."
Not to be critical and pile on but this concerns me - the decision to forgo a world language in high school yet not have enough mastery of the second language to have enough fluency to do the above. I know Japanese is challenging but it’s not uncommon for first year students to place into literature classes in their chosen language when starting college or to be one semester away from doing so.
Maybe colleges won’t care but I would have expected more fluency if the decision was to skip learning a world language.
I maxed out my college’s Japanese language offerings in college back in the day. Toward the end I set up private 1:1 classes with a professor to focus on the areas I wanted to learn more about. My daughter’s abilities are about where I was in about my 3rd year. @aquapt was asking about “any universities in Japan that offer online classes - say, an intro-level Japanese literature course.” In other words classes geared toward native speakers in Japan. In a 3rd and 4th year Japanese language literature courses for non-native speakers in college, generally you would read and analyze excerpts from famous Japanese literature. These excerpts are chosen to highlight the use of certain vocabulary, grammatical nuances that might be new to non-native speakers, and cultural differences. In Japan, where there’s a reasonable expectation that they know that vocabulary and have a native intuition about quirky ways of phrasing things for artistic effect, the literature classes would be very different. (I never studied literature in Japan, but I did get my masters degree at a Japanese university and wrote my thesis in Japanese, so I’m extrapolating based on my experiences.) The focus there would be on analyzing the word choice, imagery, allusion to other Japanese literature, etc. It’s a different level of expectations, and I would go so far as to say there isn’t a single non-native speaking undergraduate in the United States who would be able to do well in a college-level Japanese literature class held in Japan for native Japanese speakers.
Not to go too far down a rathole here, but I’ll just give one example off the top of my head. One of the most famous books in modern (early 20th century) Japanese literature is I Am a Cat by Natume Soseki. To be sure, the English translation of the title is accurate: it is I am a cat. But in Japanese, it’s 吾輩は猫である (read: wagahai wa neko de aru). The word 吾輩 is one of many forms of the first person singular, and it’s probably the most obscure. In fact, the only place I’ve ever heard it is in the context of this book. 私 (watashi) is much more common. The “de aru” part, meaning am/is/be, is also interesting. There are many forms of the verb to be. The word desu is the most common in spoken language, so the use of de aru implies a level of formality (but not too formal, since there are more formal forms of that verb) and with the combination of wagahai, it gives a feeling of an old and wise person from an older - or maybe detached - era. All of this is intuitively understood by native Japanese speakers, but in a US classroom, you could spend a whole class period just talking about the title.
@dia26, If you’ve already mention this, I missed it: Does your daughter’s school offer 4 (or even 3) years of Japanese? In other words, had she wanted to study Japanese for 3 or 4 years would she have been able to? Or would she have had to choose another language?
They actually offer 5. Japanese 1-4 and then AP Japanese. It’s possible to take Japanese 1 at the middle school - in fact, it’s the same teacher. AP Japanese is the highest level offered at the school, and that’s what she took as a freshman.
Then I think that’s the most rational explanation for not taking an FL sophomore, junior and senior years. She’d already maxed out on what your school offered and her preference was toward taking other academic subjects instead of starting another FL, and her intensive commitment to her EC precluded exploring Japanese at a higher academic level outside of high school, though she did continue her Saturday classes.
I believe another poster mentioned this earlier: I would think that your daughter’s counselor could best explain the situation. If you don’t think the counselor’s up to it, your daughter could enclose her own comment. My experience has been that LACs don’t mind extra material.
PS, when perusing Williams’ Winter Study course catalog I came across this class. I’m ready to sign up myself.
JAPN 25 Kyoto Artisans: Exploring 1200 years of cultural history of Kyoto thorough modern craftsmanship
Scroll down under Asian Studies for full description.
https://winterstudy.williams.edu/course-information/course-offerings/
In regards with the FL issue: Japanese school on Saturdays- 10 years. AP Japanese as freshman with a 5 on exam. One would hope that the schools your daughter is interested in would think outside the box and the formal 1 yr of Japanese with a 5 on the AP would be sufficient along with a holistic review of the total application. BUT, you really don’t know if the schools hold fast to an institutional belief in the value of 3-4 years of FL study. All things being equal with the thousands of applications that are received, will the lack of 3-4 years of FL be a reason to deny your daughter admission? I think it is too risky a chance to ignore. I would suggest that you contact schools directly with this question.
I think that’s the argument she’s going to make (and I agree that doing so through her guidance counselor might be the best way to do this), but one major clarification - she did not continue the Saturday classes in high school. She actually stopped after 6th grade. Probably a pretty significant difference.
We actually asked 2 schools. My daughter wrote to Bowdoin to ask, and I asked Oberlin (since I’m an alum and I was able to reach out through alumni relations), and here were their responses:
Bowdoin: "We read all of our applications with context in all ways -especially regarding academics. The typical profile is largely just a general guideline. We believe it is important for incoming students to have studied a foreign language during high school. How that shakes out for each student can vary widely. Where students may depart from the typical profile we look to see what rigor they are taking in place of the standard core courses we typically expect to see in a student’s curriculum. Largely what is important to us is if you are engaged in meaningful, rigorous coursework that you find interesting. "
Oberlin: "For Oberlin College specifically, demonstrating a competency in a foreign language and displaying the ability to study a new language is equally important. In our review process we look for students to demonstrate proficiency equivalent to three years of the same foreign language.
Although your daughter has only completed 1 year of foreign language study in high school she has completed a level beyond three years of study. Within our holistic review this would be considered academically qualified. I would encourage your daughter to take the classes that will highlight her interests and talents."
So Oberlin was pretty clear that she shouldn’t worry about it. Bowdoin was a little more wishy-washy.
She has a phone call with a Williams AO on Thursday, so she’s going to raise the question indirectly by asking for feedback on her senior year course selection. (Long story short - she applied to Williams’s diversity fly-in program but didn’t get in. As a consolation, they offered her a 30-minute 1:1 phone call with an AO to answer any questions she had about the application process, about Williams, etc. It’s allegedly not for them to evaluate her - just to give her feedback and advice.
Many of the top students at our high school are applying early decision. My son was waitlisted at many schools. Admissions is very difficult if she can find a school she will be happy at and the net price calculator works for you I would consider it. All of the Ivy acceptances at our high school were early and they were not all athletes.