Hello,
I started studying German just last week on Duolingo, and I actually plan to take the AP German Exam this Spring and make a 5 (crazy I know, but I just want to try anyway). To be honest, German is easier to learn than Spanish as I am actually very interested in learning German. What a mistake I have made in taking Spanish, a language that I was not interested in anyway, in my 9th and 10th grade years. However, my transcript will show that I have taken only two years of a foreign language, Spanish. How will the Ivies, Stanford, CalTech, MIT see this? Will this actually hurt my chances in getting admitted to their institutions?
It could, but I wouldn’t worry about it.
Let me be clear — you made a mistake in not following through with Spanish. It’s become something of an expectation that students take 4 years of a foreign language, and more if they started in middle school. I would have strongly recommended against it, even if you didn’t love the language. Keep in mind that — if applying to the Ivies — you are trying to set yourself apart from students who, like you, have great grades and test scores. Anything that can put you ahead of them is an asset.
Andrea Thomas, Hamilton College’s Dean of Admission said, “While most colleges do not require four years of a language or a science for admission, dropping a discipline can be detrimental to a student’s chances of being admitted. Admission Officers are looking for students who have challenged themselves in many areas. At the most competitive colleges in the country, Admission Officers are making distinctions between thousands of overly qualified applicants. In speaking with students about senior year course selection, we encourage students to think carefully before dropping a language.”
With that being said, there are many other ways you can distinguish yourself. Hopefully, you’ve done something with the time freed up by dropping Spanish classes — harder classes, extracurriculars, better grades, etc. While a bad decision, it certainly does not mean you can’t get in to schools like Harvard, Princeton, or Stanford. Best of luck!
Many top schools list a “recommendation”, others a flat-out requirement, of 3 years of a language. Without an extenuating circumstance, not continuing with Spanish may have a detrimental impact on your application to top schools.
Well, I have been thinking about taking online courses of Spanish 3 to fulfill the requirement of 3 years of a foreign language. Taking the Spanish 3 online courses would be painful and stressful for me, however. Then after that, I would stop learning Spanish and finish becoming fluent in German. Then, I will take the AP German Exam. Can this work? Colleges will be able to see that I was determined to learn two foreign languages in high school.