Majors and Minors

Majors and Minors

Majors

The Department of World Languages and Cultures offers a major in French, Italian, and Spanish, as well as a major in conjunction with the Secondary Education Program in preparation for a career as a world language teacher.

In order to major in a language, students must complete 30 credit hours of course work at the 200 level and above, including 201 (Composition), 210/214 (Conversation), 212 (Civilization), 321-322 (Survey of Literature), and five courses above 300, of which at least two must be in literature at the 400 level. Students who begin at a level lower than the 200 level are welcome to major, as well. The department chairperson is always available to answer questions.

Many students choose to declare a double major, linking their language major with a major in another field, such as art history, biology, global studies, health policy and management, marketing, political science, and others.

Minors

The department offers a minor in French, Italian, and Spanish to complement their major field of study. We also offer a Spanish Minor for the Health Professions. In addition, specially designed programs of language study can be created to suit the needs of individual students.

We also offer several courses in Arabic, German and Chinese.

Language Placement Exam

The Department of World Languages and Cultures requires an online placement test for incoming freshman interested in pursuing the study of French, Italian, or Spanish. The placement test is available on Sakai and it should be completed prior to May 31, of your incoming year. Upper class students who would like to engage in the study of French, Italian, or Spanish can take the placement test at any time.

The test is designed to assess students’ language abilities and to determine which language course students should take. Students can designate a core focus or concentration in language studies and fulfill the requirement by completing 6 credits (2 courses) of one our offered languages: Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, or Spanish at any level of proficiency.