SFS and foreign languages...

<p>I was accepted to sfs...and I believe it would be absolutely AMAZING to attend georgetown, especially under sfs...I am extremely interested in public policy, cultural interactions, etc, and would be thrilled to attend a school right there in the middle of it all...however, i have one concern: i am not exactly fluent in a language, and I know(obviously) that there is a foreign language requirement to graduate from sfs. should I be particularly concerned about this? does anyone know of anyone who has gone into sfs without fluency in a language?</p>

<p>You do NOT have to be fluent in a language prior to entering SFS. A good portion if not a majority of the students that enter are not fluent in a foreign language. It is completely fine. I've taken Spanish for four years, but am not fluent. You just have to pass a proficiency test by the time you graduate Georgetown.</p>

<p>The proficiency exam varies in difficulty from language to language, but it's not that hard. If you can do SFS coursework, you can pass a proficiency exam.</p>

<p>yeah i've had 4 years of spanish and i haven't taken spanish for two years...i am semi oriented with a language from india, but am in no way literate in it...so hopefully georgetown's language program in terms of sfs is conducive to that kind of learning! and if not i'll just go live in anotehr country and pray that i am quick enough to pick up a language</p>

<p>From what I've heard the proficiency exam isn't that big of a problem for most students. As dzleprechaun said, if you can do the SFS course work, you can pass the proficiency test.</p>

<p>Honestly it's not a big deal. I took Spanish for 6 years prior to Georgetown and I'm not even pursuing my proficiency in it. I started Russian first year and will start German next year and hopefully with study abroad in both places should be able to do the proficiency exam in both, I hope. </p>

<p>Especially if you're continuing a language, I'd say 4 semesters and study abroad, max before you're ready. The thing is the language instruction here is so beyond anything you could have imagined in HS so it works out well.</p>

<p>Sorry to intrude, but I had a question, Copley. You mentioned studying abroad in two different places - is that possible? Could I, say, go to Japan for 1 semester and France for another? Or would I be limited to doing one in the summer and the other during the year?</p>

<p>Yes, you can study abroad for two semesters consecutively in two different places if you want to. </p>

<p>A lot of people in the SFS tend to just go for summers, however. I'm studying abroad in Russia this summer, and then will probably again fall of my junior year, and theoretically to Germany the summer before senior year.</p>

<p>We are not allowed to take two languages simultaneously correct? Just wanted to confirm.</p>

<p>You can take two languages simultaneously. They just discourage it unless you're at the advanced level in one of them, or have credits to burn. The only absolute prohibition is that you can't take two intensive languages simultaneously unless you're in the FLL. I actually know someone who is taking three languages next semester.</p>

<p>I am in the FLL and want to take Advanced Russian and Beginning French. I just read on the website where it describes the general ed requirements that you can't take two courses within the same discipline in one semester so I figured foreign languages was one discipline. But you know better than I do Copley :) Thanks for answering my question!</p>