Courses taken credit/no credit will not fulfill Language requirements. Two courses are required for all students, with the following exceptions:
- Students with a high school diploma from a school where the primary language of instruction was other than English do not need to take further courses.
- Heritage learners (defined by Valdés, 2001 as “a student of language who is raised in a home where a non-English language is spoken, who speaks or merely understands the heritage language, and who is to some degree bilingual in English and the heritage language”) are required to take only one course.
- Students with AP language exam scores of 4 or 5 or IB higher level language scores of 5, 6, or 7 are required to take only one course.
Transfer students may use transfer credit to fulfill one or both courses. Each approved transfer course must be a minimum of 4 quarter credits or 3 semester credits.
NOTE: The Language Core was updated in 2023-2024. Students on the 2022-2023 Bulletin or earlier should consult that Bulletin's requirements, and may also to take a Language Proficiency Exam. More information can be found here.
Learning Objectives
Courses meeting the language requirement prepare students for a life of global citizenship by engaging students with oral and written skills in a language other than English.
Guidelines
Courses fulfilling the language requirement will
- help students understand how different languages lead to different ways of interpreting the world
- deepen students’ understanding of alternative perspectives, values, behaviors, and traditions through linguistic, historical, and cultural study
- engage students in exploring commonality and difference among multiple languages and cultures to encourage deeper understanding of one’s own language(s) and culture(s).
Non-English language (Chinese, French, German, Greek, Japanese, Latin, Spanish) courses numbered 100-109, 200-209, 300-309 and 400-409 count towards the Language Core but not the Arts & Humanities Division Requirement. Courses numbered 190-199, 290-299, 390-399, or 490-499 satisfy the Arts & Humanities Division Requirement, but not the Language Core. Courses numbered 110-189, 210-289, 310-389, and 410-489 count towards both Division and Language requirements.
In addition, the following courses taught in English have been approved for the requirement: ARTH 371, CONN 330, FREN 391, GERM 350, GERM 355, GERM 392, GLAM 120.
Language core courses may fulfill major/minor/emphasis requirements, KNOW, Experiential Learning, and Divisional requirements.