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Foreign Language Entrance and Degree Requirements

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 December 2020

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Extract

This is a third revision of statistics first published in the Supplement to the September 1953 number of PMLA. The original listing was based on institutions offering the B.A. degree and listed as accredited in the American Council on Education's American Universities and Colleges, 1952. The present revision includes institutions subsequently accredited and corrections in the original listing. All except those italicized have a foreign language requirement for all candidates for the B.A. degree. Those starred require foreign languages for all candidates for entrance.

Type
Research Article
Information
PMLA , Volume 70 , Issue 4-Part2 , September 1955 , pp. 78 - 94
Copyright
Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1955

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References

1 In 1913, 42 years ago, approximately 11% (62 out of 306 institutions studied) of American colleges and universities had no modern foreign language requirement for entrance. By 1922 the percentage had risen to 30% (153 out of 517 institutions studied). See Harry C. McKown, The Trend of College Entrance Requirements, 1913–1922, Bur. of Educ., Bull. No. 35 (1924), p. 73, and Kenneth Mildenberger, “Foreign Language Entrance Requirements in American Colleges Granting the A.B. Degree,” MLJ, xxxvii (1953), 385–387, a study based on this PMLA article.

2 American International C, Mt. St. Mary's C, Pacific Union C, Princeton U, State C of Washington, St. Martin's C, U of Washington, Washington and Jefferson C, and Whittier C.

3 All freshmen in the following institutions, which have no FL entrance requirement, offered 2 or more units for admission in 1953: Boston U, Goucher C, Johns Hopkins U, Pennsylvania C for Women, Skidmore C, Sweet Briar C, Wheaton C (Mass.), William Smith C. Other outstanding examples of the deceptiveness of categories: Bryn Mawr recommends 6 units of foreign language for admission, in view of its degree requirement of proficiency in 2 foreign languages. Percentages of entering freshmen who offered 6 or more entrance units: 1949, 68.6%; 1950, 67.5%; 1951, 56.1%; 1952, 54.2%. In 1952 only 5 freshmen presented as few as 2 units; the average was 5.67 units. Columbia admits only 2 or 3 freshmen out of 600 without at least 2 years of foreign language study. At Cornell's College of Arts and Sciences only 1 or 2 accepted applicants fail to present at least 2 units, and many present 5 units. Wellesley recommends 5 units, 3 in Latin or Greek, 2 in modern languages; 95% of accepted candidates for admission meet this recommendation.

4 “Bowdoin College is on the semester course, not the semester hour, basis. [Required for the B.A. degree is] completion of seven units of foreign languages (ancient or modern). A language unit is defined as an admission unit (usually one year of study of a language in secondary school), or a semester course taken in college. The requirement may be fulfilled by taking appropriate courses, or by passing a reading examination set by the College, or by attaining a satisfactory rating from the College Entrance Examination Board” (Registrar).

5 Entrance and degree requirements to be restored in 1957.