<p>So I'm a rising freshman, and up until now, I've been sure that I wanted to take Latin in high school. That is, until I started talking to some older friends who suggested against it. I can take four years of Spanish including AP Spanish. My high school is weird and only offers up to three years of Latin best case scenario, and even that doesn't happen most of the time. Most colleges require at least three years of a foreign language, and I will most likely not be able to fulfill that if I take Latin. Even though I really want to take Latin, I know Spanish we be more practical in the long term. I would appreciate advice from anyone who has experience with either of these languages in hs to weigh the pros and cons. Thanks for your help.</p>
<p>I know Spanish and I took it so it helped my GPA. My school doesn’t offer Latin. Latin is outdated and I don’t think any country uses it. However, if you’re interested in biology, Latin would help A LOT with terminology.</p>
<p>I’ve taken Latin freshman year (rising sophomore now), and it wasn’t too bad to learn, imo. Because most English words (and words in other languages) have Latin roots, Latin is very useful in strengthening vocabulary. This in turn is great for tests involving a vocabulary portion, such as the SATs.
Considering Latin is “dead”, you may not find it useful in the longrun. It is a challenging class though. If you’re up for a challenge, though, go ahead and take the class. :)</p>
<p>Latin won’t help much on SAT. You seem like you would enjoy latin more so thats the ONLY reason i’d advice taking it. Its hard, useless since its a dead language and won’t help you in the real world.
Whereas spanish is spoken ALL OVER the world and is 30x more practical</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice. I’m just mainly worried about the college admissions. I think I will enjoy learning either language. The main concern is that my high school only offers two years of Latin vs four years, including AP, of Spanish.</p>
<p>And no, I have to choose one.</p>
<p>Most colleges recommend taking 3-4 years of a language. Since your school only offers 2 years of Latin, maybe you should take Spanish instead. It’s not your fault your school only offers two years, though. If you really want to take Latin, maybe you should take it freshman year. Sophomore year, try doubling up on both Latin and Spanish. Then, for junior and senior year, you could finish off taking Spanish. That would mean that you’ve taken two years of Latin and three years of Spanish, which could be seen as impressive to some colleges.</p>
<p>@Weeknd: Yes, Latin does help you with the SAT. More than half the English language is based upon Latin or Latin-descended languages, and knowledge of Latin vocabulary will often help you discover the meanings of words on the spot by using Latin-descended words, prefixes and suffixes. That being said, yes, Spanish is much more practical and useful in the real world.</p>
<p>As for college admissions, admission officers have much more important things to do than to wonder “Why did mdsquared pick Spanish and not Latin” or “Why did mdsquared pick Latin and not Spanish?”. Just pick the one you think you’ll enjoy more and go for it. Also remember that self-studying AP Latin is an option if you really want to.</p>
<p>Like I said, I know I’ll enjoy either one. My biggest concern is running up against that 3 years of the same language requirement for college. This issue is less about depth and more breadth, as counter-intuitive as that may seem.</p>
<p>Well, like I said, you can always self-study AP Latin if you really want to take it. Some schools allow you to start going into AP Latin after only two years of the language. However that depends on how well you’ll grasp the language and how willing you’ll be to put in the effort to self-study.</p>
<p>Take Spanish. If you’re going to enjoy taking both, then you may as well take the one that isn’t going to hurt you in admissions.</p>
<p>Some people (yourself included) say that Spanish will be more practical long-term… that’s probably true, but it may not be. Having a strong understanding of Latin will make learning all Romance languages infinitely easier (Spanish included), so if you’re passionate about language it’s a worthwhile endeavor. It also will most definitely improve your vocabulary and grasp of English. If you’re valuing Latin based on how commonly it’s spoken around the world, you’re doing it wrong.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t concern yourself with Latin’s difficulty, though (if it matters to you). Latin really gets difficult once you start reading actual Latin (i.e. historical)-- that doesn’t happen until year three in most curricula. First couple years of Latin aren’t bad… in fact, Latin I was my easiest class freshman year, and I am by no means gifted when it comes to language.</p>
<p>EDIT: I realize I just talked up Latin a ton even though I suggested Spanish, heheh. I just felt inclined to defend my foreign language of choice. In all likelihood, you’ll get more out of Spanish.</p>
<p>Take Spanish. Two years of Latin can hurt you in admissions. If you really like Latin, you could self-study it.</p>
<p>I don’t know about Spanish being useful in the long term though. That really depends on you, but for most people, knowing or not knowing Spanish doesn’t have a huge impact on their lives.</p>
<p>Is it possible for you to pick up Latin (alongside continuing Spanish) in your sophomore or junior years? Since your school only offers two years, you don’t have to start freshmen year anyways.</p>