Many schools now require their students to meet a basic foreign language requirement, which usually involves having passed two semesters of a foreign language. Even though it causes some students headaches, this requirement is actually one of the easiest ones to fulfill as you earn credits towards your bachelor’s degree. Of course, the simplest way to earn the credit is to just take your chances in the classes and do the work to pass.
However, if you feel confident in your language abilities, you can also try to place out of this requirement by passing a translation test during freshmen orientation. Many universities will offer this translation test as a way of helping students determine their foreign language proficiency as a reader and writer of the language. The nature of this test often means, however, that students can pass it and sometimes place out of their foreign language requirement if they’re adept translators. If you have a basic familiarity with a foreign language, it might be worth your time to study up on that language as a reader and writer and see if you can get by the test with minimal effort. Doing so could save you two semesters worth of credits.
Another thing students do in order to meet this requirement is they wait until later in their college career and take the foreign language class at a community college over the summer. By doing this, they can leave available a few extra slots in their course schedule to take courses they’re actually interested in during the year. Taking the foreign language courses at another institution allows them to focus at their chosen school on working with faculty within the field they’re majoring in. It helps them to avoid distractions. Sometimes this option can also be cheaper.
Finally, a more exotic method to help you get the language requirement out of the way is to take a semester to study abroad in the country whose language you’d most like to pass in order to meet the requirement. This might be more trouble than it’s worth, but it would appeal to those who have a specific interest in getting a lot out of the study abroad experience. Of course, understand that full immersion in a culture that speaks a foreign language won’t help you learn the language completely, and it could be frustrating, but it might be enough to spark your interest and get your through college. Many schools will offer language credit for semesters abroad, so you should look into that option as well.
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