<p>Middlebury College’s programs require the students to be fluent in the language because students take most or all (depending on the country) of their classes in the local universities. My college student did the Middlebury program in Ferrara, Italy, and while the Italian University system is much different than in the US–a lot of memorization, little or no writing, and oral exams at the end–it was an invaluable learning experience. There was no special accommodation for grading, so the students had to take school seriously.</p>