I am in a tough situation right now. I am a sophomore and registration is about to end soon in my high school. I am currently in French 3, and have the option to enroll in French 4 and French 5 (probably not AP French-considered one of the toughest class due to a bad teacher) in my junior and senior year respectively. However, I also have the option to enroll in PSEO (Post Secondary Enrollment Option), a program designed to allow talented high school students to enroll in college level courses.
The only problem is that I’d have to drop french to participate in PSEO. Now, I’ve heard that top-tier universities love to see 4 years of world language but also the most rigorous courses available. I am also taking 4 AP classes next year which I know I can handle pretty easily as I am taking 4 this year too without any trouble. I know I’ll do PSEO in my senior year for sure, but I want to do it next year too. There is course on Algorithms and Data Structures offered at the UMN which I am really interested in and the course also received good feedback from all of my upperclassmen friends who have taken it so far.
I really don’t know how to approach this situation. If I should follow my passion for computer science and drop french completely, or continue French because of universities and regret my decision later. I talked to my counsellor and he is confused too. I really need some quick advice. Thank you
If you are targeting colleges that request/require 4 years on a foreign language, then you should continue French (or look for a community college option to get that 4th year).
If a college puts together a suggested HS curriculum, then they are suggesting that you follow it unless you have a valid reason not to. Disregarding their suggestions because you’d “prefer” Option B is not a valid reason.
If none of your target colleges request/require a 4th year, then the choice is yours.
If you can’t take French via DE, do you have the ability to take French via a summer course or camp? Some high schools will give credit for camps like BYU or Concordia. (BYU’s camp is a fraction of Concordia’s cost.) https://frenchcamp.byu.edu/about If you can afford it and your high school will award credit, you could receive credit for French 4 this summer. That might be a way to accommodate both.
Can you continue French among your PSEO courses?
Be aware that a college French course will typically be faster paced than a high school French course (e.g. a semester-long college course may cover what a year long high school course covers), and you may need to take a French placement test at the college to find the correct level college French course for you.
Could you take French at UMN (I’m assuming you mean University of Minnesota)? My high school’s German III covered most of the grammar in the Intermediate German I and II courses there so it was mostly review with a few new grammatical concepts sprinkled in over the two semesters. I would see if you can get a course syllabus from Intermediate French I and maybe see if you can take a placement test. The College in the Schools course list on their website has sample syllabuses but they’re partially in French for the Intermediate French I and II courses so I’m not really able to help there.
Can you take French at a community college in summer or nights? I don’t know how common it is in your area but several kids we know supplement their schedule that way to get special things they want.
Depending on how the colleges near you work, you might only need one more semester of French at possibly the college French 3 level to cover the equivalent of 4 years of high school French. (Often college FL courses cover the equivalent of the first 2 years of HS FL.) See if you can find a “LOTE” level for the classes. High school French 4 might be LOTE Level 4+.
You mention MIT and CMU in other posts. They are both looking for 2 years of foreign language. Caltech doesn’t specify any years. But, Stanford and other places suggest 4 years. Look up the requirements/recommendations for other colleges that may interest you, including some safeties.
Data Structures is a useful and interesting course whenever you have a chance to take it.
https://langtest.umn.edu/info/placement/french is the French placement guide for University of Minnesota. Since you have third year high school French, it advises you to take the placement test to determine if you are ready for a second year (third or fourth semester) college French course, should you choose to take one as part of your PSEO courses.
If you are talking about the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, I know a number of PSEO kids who got in there but then could not get the classes they wanted or needed. My own junior actually went the community college route because he can get any class he wants or needs there no sweat and there were still certain classes he needed to graduate. He was able to register as soon as he was accepted. The PSEO students register last. I know someone who planned on taking French this year and UMNTC through PSEO and switched languages. If that comp sci class is a mandatory freshman comp sci class, that could be hard to get as well.
If you want to do PSEO at the U of MN, it helps to have some flexibility as to what you are willing to take and what your schedule will look like. If you are interested in competitive colleges, no I would not give up the language. It is also possible to be part time PSEO and do some classes at school and some through a CC or UMN.
^^ seconding the CC idea as well. Normandale in particular is one of the better MN CCs for transferring credits if you’re on the south side of the metro area.