Planning Your High School Spanish Courses for Competitive College Applications

As a current high school sophomore, you're already on the right track by tackling Spanish 1. Now, the question is whether to continue with Spanish 2 and 3 during your junior or senior year. This decision is crucial, especially if you're eyeing highly selective universities such as MIT, Stanford, Ivy League schools, and Duke. Understanding the progression and credit system of language classes in high school is essential for your future academic success.

Language Class Progression

Typically, high school language programs, including Spanish 1, 2, and 3, follow a structured progression. You cannot take multiple classes in a single academic year sequentially. Spanish 2 builds upon the foundational knowledge acquired in Spanish 1, and to succeed in Spanish 3, you need to have mastered the material in Spanish 2. As the language department chair, I would not permit you to advance directly from Spanish 1 to Spanish 3 without completing Spanish 2. If you wish to accelerate your studies, it might be possible to complete Spanish 2 during summer school and then proceed to Spanish 3 during the regular school year.

Credits and College Applications

Regarding the credits you might earn, it's important to consult with your guidance counselor or academic advisor. They can provide detailed information on the credit policies of your specific school. However, it's crucial to understand that the universities you're targeting, such as MIT, Stanford, the Ivy League, and Duke, do not award credits for previously taken high school courses. They view these as preparation rather than credits.

For example, MIT encourages prospective students to complete at least two years of foreign language study in high school. However, they do not grant credits for these courses—they only waive the introductory course requirement if you pass a special examination before your freshman year. This means that even if you successfully complete Spanish 3 during your senior year, it won't be counted as college credits but will be listed as a completed course on your high school transcript.

University Recommendations

The colleges you're applying to have specific recommendations for high school courses to help you prepare for their rigorous academic environments. These recommendations are posted on their admissions websites. You can search for university name recommended high school courses to find the relevant information. For instance:

MIT recommends at least two years of foreign language study. Ivy League schools typically recommend four years of one language or two years of two languages.

These are recommendations, not requirements. Your overall application, including your grades, extracurricular activities, and personal essays, will be evaluated by admissions officers. My son, for example, completed three years of Spanish and didn't continue, opting instead for more math and science coursework. He was still accepted to MIT, Princeton, and Duke.

Conclusion

No matter how you plan to take your Spanish courses—whether it's in a traditional high school setting, as part of a dual enrollment program, or through online acceleration—it's important to understand that the courses you take senior year will be counted toward your high school transcript. Keeping this in mind, you can make an informed decision about when to take Spanish 2 and 3 to best meet your academic and college application goals.

If you're considering Spanish 3 during your senior year, both in the fall or spring, you will still be able to complete all three language courses and list them on your college applications as current courses. This will be counted in the recommendations made by universities for the completion of foreign language courses.