Degree Requirements

Career Opportunities

Degree Requirements

Placement in Language Courses

Students who have studied a foreign language in high school or who have practical knowledge of a foreign language must take a placement examination prior to enrolling for further study of that language. (See below for exceptions in French and Spanish.) Students must enroll in the course in which they place on the examination. Instructors who determine that students are inappropriately enrolled may direct them to move to the appropriate level.

Transfer students with prior college language study are not eligible to take the placement examination in that language, and must enroll in a course at the next appropriate level.

Students with non-college language learning may be able to earn college credit by achieving an appropriate score on an approved national test, such as Advanced Placement (see ``Credit by Examination'' below).

Students who have studied French or Spanish in high school may not need to take the placement examination. The following guidelines apply:

• 0-2 semesters of high school language: May take 101.
• 3-4 semesters of high school language: May take 150 or 102. May \FI not \FS take 101.
• 5 or more semesters of high school language: Must take placement test and may not take 101.

Native speakers are not eligible to take the placement exam, nor are they eligible to enroll in 100- or 200-level courses. The students should talk to an advisor in the Modern Languages Department for proper placement.

"150'' Course

This course is designed for students who have sufficient prior study to make placement in 101 inappropriate. The 150 course includes a review of first semester language (101) and covers the same material as 102. Completion of the course with a grade of C or higher prepares students for 201. The ``150'' course fulfills the general education category CGE/B.

A student working toward any B.A. degree must successfully complete the third-semester course in a foreign language.

Transfer students who wish to major in a foreign language at Grand Valley must take a minimum of 12 credit hours of advanced-level coursework (300 or above) with the Modern Languages Department at Grand Valley to qualify for a major.

For transfer students who wish to minor in a foreign language, a minimum of six credit hours of advanced coursework (300 or above) with the Modern Language Department at Grand Valley is required. This requirement includes those who have graduated from other institutions and now seek teaching certification from Grand Valley.

Students seeking secondary certification in foreign languages must take the foreign language methods seminar, Education (FL) 331, in order to be certified. It is further recommended that students seeking elementary certification audit the seminar.

Students may also choose to enroll in foreign language and literature courses on a credit/no credit basis.

The 380 special-topics courses are available in all foreign languages. The independent study and research courses in French, German, Russian, and Spanish are available to qualified students for independent study in areas not covered by the regular foreign language offerings.

A bachelor of arts degree in a modern foreign language is a true liberal arts degree, with all the breadth of cultural understanding and communication skills that have always characterized liberal arts study. The demand for teachers of foreign languages is increasing both in schools and in business and industry. Combined with a major or minor in another field, the B.A. in foreign languages opens many possibilities in the worlds of international trade, international relations, diplomacy, government, tourism, and service organizations.

Given the increasing diversity of the American population and the presence of large numbers of persons whose native language is not English, foreign language study is also an asset to those who plan to work in a variety of professions within the borders of the United States, both in the public and private spheres. Virtually all large corporations and many smaller ones in Michigan and throughout the country are now or soon will be active in international markets. There have never been more opportunities for college graduates with foreign language skills.

The importance of foreign language study has never been more obvious than in today's global society. Leaders in business, government, and throughout the community are calling for increased awareness of the interrelatedness and interdependence of all nations and societies. One of the traditional barriers to understanding, and to the free flow of communication, has been a lack of informed citizens with competence in at least one foreign language. There is no better way to understand and appreciate cultures other than your own than to communicate with other peoples in their own language. What is more, the mastery of a foreign language inevitably improves your command of your native language. With such a high premium on communication skills in the world today, foreign language study is not a luxury; it is a necessity.