Ok, so I know that there’s a thread similar to this but I’d like to get someone’s opinion on my personal circumstances. Sorry, this is going to be a really long post, I hope that’s alright. I’m starting university starting in September and I’ve already decided on computer science as my major so I was looking through the list of minor to see if anything seemed interesting. One in particular really stood out to me, the international minor. Basically, you take four semesters of a language and then study abroad for six weeks. I love traveling and I’ve always been interested in learning a language so I’ve decided to take that minor. The only problem is I’m not sure what language or country to pick. I’ve narrowed it down to Korean Japanese, French, or Mandarin and I’ve compiled a list of pros and cons so I’d like someone’s opinion. Preferably someone who has traveled abroad or visited one of these places. Keep in mind that I’m learning a language for fun so the usefulness isn’t that important to me.
Korean:
Pros
-I’m really interested in Korean pop culture
-I’m familiar with the Korean alphabet and a bit of vocabulary
Cons
-Not that useful
-I’ve heard foreigners are treated poorly there
-Difficult to pronounce
Japanese:
Pros
-I also enjoy a lot of Japanese pop culture
-I’m familiar with one of the Japanese alphabets and a bit of vocabulary
-Useful
-Easier to pronounce
Cons
-In the US there’s a strong social stigma against people who enjoy Japanese culture and learn Japanese because of that
French:
Pros
-No social stigma
-Similar to English so it would be the easiest to learn
-Useful
Cons
-I’m not that interested in France or French culture
-I’ve lived there so going there wouldn’t really feel like experiencing a new culture for me
Mandarin:
Pros
-I am absolutely fascinated by Chinese history
-I enjoy a lot of Chinese pop culture
-Extremely useful
Cons
-It’s VERY difficult
-Difficult to pronounce
Honestly out of all the languages the one that interests me most is Mandarin then Korean, Japanese, and least of all French but I’m not sure about picking Mandarin because of its difficulty level I’ve heard that people can study it for years and still be completely lost. I think I’m mostly between Korean or Japanese. I’m more interested in Korean but I’m hesitant to pick it because of certain social stigmas surrounding koreaboos and how poorly and differently foreigners are treated there. Since I have very long hair, even for a girl, my appearance tends to stick out even here in the US so I feel in Asian countries I may get a lot of uncomfortable stares. Hence, I considered French but I feel like going to France would just be something regular and within my comfort zone and I took this minor to explore new things. I’m not sure but at this point, I’m leaning towards Japanese but I’d really appreciate some advice. Sorry again for the long post.
I have been to all four countries (or all 5 if you include Canada).
South Korea is very pro-US. If you visit the war museum in Seoul, it is clear that they remember very well that the US saved them from being overrun by the North and China. I had no trouble getting around speaking absolutely no Korean at all. This plus the fact that as far as I know no one else speaks Korean outside of Korea, makes me agree that this does not seem like a very useful language to learn. I had no trouble at with how I was treated there, but I was only there for a few short trips (I think that each was about one week). I would be quite surprised if an American were treated badly in South Korea.
I also am not aware of any stigma against people who know Japanese culture or speak Japanese. I have worked with a few Japanese people for many years and been there five or six times. I once again had no trouble getting around with just English. To me it appears that there is more to see in Japan than in Korea, but then I have only been to one place in Korea. The peace museum in Hiroshima is very much worth seeing. The temples in Kyoto are also worth seeing, as is the castle there. Tokyo is a very big city and crowded. The bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka is cool, and really fast.
There is a lot to see in France. You could spend several days just driving on small country roads, stopping every time you see a sign saying “degustation”. French of course is also useful in some parts of Canada (mostly Quebec but also there is some French in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia and a bit elsewhere). One advantage of French is that it uses the same alphabet as English. Another advantage is that if you fall behind in learning it, you could take a short (3 to 5 week) immersion course in Canada or in France to help you catch up. The courses in Canada are very reasonably priced. I have also been watching French movies on Netflix and there is at least one great French comedy show available on Netflix (but it is only one show). I think that you might find videos and movies easier to find in French, which will make it easier to learn. There are also some other countries around the world where French is spoken. At least from where we live in the US, Montreal is a reasonable “short day” drive.
Mandarin does seem difficult to me. China is of course fascinating. China is very polluted, which would probably bother me if I were to stay there for more than a few days. The Great Wall and the Forbidden City are both very much worth seeing. The food in China was really great.
The character sets are of course very different for these four languages, and would be a challenge by themselves for three of them.
Another way to think about it is which can you get successfully make it through?
CS majors take alot of time…withe writing code and debugging and what not.
Starting a non-roman alphabet language that you are not familiar with will take up quite a bit of your time.
I would not worry about stigmas etc. but worry: What can I get successfully through? (i think that would eliminate mandarin). What am interested in? (that would eliminate French). So choose between Japanese and Korean.
OP, you haven’t started college yet, never took a language course? But you’re already picking a minor, a language track, based on travel interests and concerns?
Doesn’t make sense. You can learn languages “for fun” by borrowing cds from the library.
My son is a math major (with CS focus) and he’s been studying Japanese since high school. He will be studying in Tokyo next spring. Japanese culture has been a lifelong interest of his and I have seen no widespread stigma. One or two people making lame jokes about cultures they don’t understand does not constitute a widespread stigma.
At any rate, the International minor sounds like a good fit for your interests and it seems like your heart is in East Asia rather than France. A CS / international studies combination is a good thing. Engineers at my company work with and travel to east Asia all the time. None of them speak Chinese or Korean and that’s not been an issue. What they have struggled with is understanding where people are coming from culturally in their interactions. Your minor will give you the opportunity to learn about those issues. You are not going to get fluent or even conversational in any east asian language in 4 semesters so instead go with whichever culture interests you the most BUT make sure the latter semesters of these language courses are not killers. Ask the department at your college about these concerns.