It is important for ninth-graders to be aware that they must start their high school career with a World Language class, and take that language each year until graduation. Other variables being equal, the student with four years will be admitted over the student with three.
Sara Harberson is the author of Soundbite, a book about the college application process, and the founder of Application Nation, a community for people navigating the admissions process. She has also worked as an admissions officer at several colleges and universities. When advising future applicants, she writes:
The most asked question I get from students is if they really need to take language through senior year — especially if they took it starting in middle school. My answer never changes, though. It's always "yes." Because almost every college has a language requirement, admissions officers are looking for the student to have the most exposure to one single language. Language proficiency will help students when they get to college. Before that, it will help them stay competitive in the admissions process.
It’s worth noting that AP and DP test scores play little or no role in the admissions process, while enrollment in the AP or DP class can be a significant factor. So it’s important to take those classes, even if you don’t take the test. The test results often are published so late that most admissions departments have made all their decisions by then.
Allen Grove has over 20 years of experience as a professor and an admissions officer. He writes:
When a college recommends "two or more" years of a language, they are clearly signaling that language study beyond two years would strengthen your application. Indeed, no matter where you apply for college, a demonstrated proficiency in a second language will improve your chances of being admitted. Life during college and afterward is becoming increasingly globalized, so strength in a second language carries a lot of weight with admissions counselors.
“Highly selective schools such as the Ivies,” adds Grove, are clearly looking for “four years of a language.” Students sometimes receive rejection letters indicating that they were not admitted because they did not have four consecutive years of a World Language on their transcripts.
The default World Language for many high school students is Spanish. If a high school offers another language — e.g., German, Latin, Russian, Greek, etc. — then a student has an opportunity to assemble a transcript which will stand out.
Of the students who enroll in a foreign language program during their four years of high school, roughly 70% take Spanish. Admissions officers who skim through hundreds and even thousands of transcripts, a language like German or Latin will catch the eye.
The popular website Ingenius Prep is a source of guidance for the college application process and states:
Many schools recommend that you actually commit to the component for all four years of high school.
To compile a transcript which has a good chance of succeeding, a student should avoid taking a default language and find a more interesting language, take it all four years, and if possible, take a AP or DP class during the fourth and final year.
