Wednesday, August 6, 2014

Taking a Foreign Language

Did you know that foreign language is a requirement to graduate from the College of Arts and Sciences and the Commerce School?

Most transfers we meet with are surprised to hear this.  And unfortunately, this means that they are already behind in their pre-requisite course requirements

When putting the final touches on your fall course schedule this year, make sure to sign up for those foreign language courses.  The McIntire School of Commerce requires coursework or exemptions (through the SAT II/AP) through the 202 level of a language.  If you are a Virginia community college student interested in the Guaranteed Admission Agreement (GAA), these courses are also required to be completed by the end of the spring semester prior to the fall in which you want to enter.

If you are not applying under the GAA, you are strongly, strongly encouraged to get started on this coursework before you apply.  The more core courses you have while transferring, the more competitive you'll be in the admissions process. 

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

If I am exempt from taking a foreign language in my current school would that transfer to UVA if I am accepted?

Anonymous said...

Does that mean I will have to take a foreign language in order to transfer? Is it a requirement?

HopeLee said...

HopeLee

Hey Transformer! I hope you have had a great summer. In my next attempt to transfer to UVA, I was looking at the transfer requirements and I had a question about the math requirement.

I have already taken statistics so I have gotten that out of the way but I needed one more math credit and was debating whether on taking "Math and Politics" or "Mathematical Ideas".

Which one of the two courses do you think will be viewed in higher regards than the other and will count towards the requirement?

As always, your insight will be greatly appreciated!

Transfermer said...

Anon on Aug 18,
Please make an alias next time. No, you would not be exempt here at U.Va. You'll need to provide testing to be exempt or take a course to provide evidence of completion.

Anon on Aug 22,
Please make an alias next time. I'm glad I made this a post. It's a requirement for the Guaranteed Admission Agreement. It is a pre-requisite for the College of Arts and Sciences and Commerce. If you haven't started on your foreign language this semester, you should begin it next semester.

HopeLee,
Good to see you. Unfortunately neither of these courses seem transferable. They are likely unique to your school and without seeing the course descriptions, I don't believe we have anything like that here at U.Va. Calculus would more closely align with our requirements.

Prospective Transfer said...

Hi Transformer,


I am not even sure if I will get accepted. I am trying to transfer for the spring since it will be my last chance to be eligible. However my course load currently would not let me add another foreign language class. Would it be wise to just wait until I get my acceptance letter from UVA and worry about it when we cross that road?

Alina said...

I have some questions about the GAA requirements. Would a score of 5 for the AP Language & Composition exam be acceptable in place of taking English 111 and 112? Furthermore, if a class is listed under the transfer credit analyzer as both historical and non-western perspective, could that one class satisfy both requirements?

Anonymous said...

Hi Transfermer,

If a history course comes in two parts, would you have to take the full sequence in order to fulfill the history requirement, or would only one semester suffice? For example, my vccs school offers History of Russia I and History of Russia II. Can I only take one of them, or do I need both?

Thanks

Transfermer said...

Hi Alina,
Yes, that score will satisfy the english composition requirement. For others who may not have seen it yet, check out the AP table here - http://college.artsandsciences.virginia.edu/ap-credit Yes, a course can be counted for two requirements, but not three.

Anonymous,
Please make an alias next time. No, you will only need to take one course in a historical series in order to fulfill the historical requirement.

Anonymous said...

Would three High School Spanish classes and one from a Community College meet the foreign language requirement for a transfer student?

Or would this only go to the 1020 level?

The community college is not requiring me to take any SPA classes.

- Thanks

LM said...

I am not sure if I understand this, but even if I was a Biology BS I would have to take a foreign language?

Transfermer said...

Anon,
No, this wouldn't meet the requirement. If you took the first language course, you would complete the 1010 course. Requirements are different from school to school.

LM,
Yes, actually. We believe in a liberal arts foundation for all of our arts and sciences students. Each year, more than 2500 students graduate have taken or shown proficiency in foreign language. This is a requirement that has been around for at least 40 years, but it never seems to sink in for our prospective transfers. For more information, please see the degree requirements on this page - http://college.artsandsciences.virginia.edu/requirements

LM said...

Okay I see, roughly how many semesters of language are required? I know at my school I do not really have any extra credits for language. I am wondering how it will all fit in.

Anonymous said...

Hi, I was wonder will the intermediate foreign language course be exempted given that I was a non-native English speaker ?

Unknown said...

Hi, I was wonder will the intermediate foreign language course be exempted given that I was a non-native English speaker ?