| I double-majored in English and Russian at Carleton, and both majors were absolutely great - attentive professors, fun departments, interesting classes, lots of options. From what I can tell, the foreign language dept. at Carleton is really well-developed. My sister is a French major at Williams, and while their program is also great, I think that there are some things that are preferable about Carleton's. For one thing, most introductory-level language classes meet 5 days a week instead of 2 or 3, which means that you're immersed in the language every day. Also, upper-level language classes are almost always entirely taught in the foreign language, never in English. Even though this is all a pain in the neck at the time, it really helps you to learn the language inside and out. The Carleton-sponsored study abroad programs are also a huge plus. Instead of having to suss out the various benefits of different independent study abroad programs, Carleton students can just apply for them (which is usually really easy) and then you just pay your tuition, buy a plane ticket, and you're done! You don't have to figure out which program is best, don't have to struggle to find a program that aligns with the school schedule time-wise, don't have to figure out how the credits will transfer/count toward your major, and don't have to deal with the emotional stress of going on a trip with a bunch of strangers. I did the Carleton Moscow program, and it was super easy - I went with people I knew, the trip was supervised by a professor that I was already comfortable with, and the whole program was designed to be a holistic part of the Russian major, so all of my credits transferred and there weren't any holes or repeats in the curriculum. I highly recommend Carleton language programs. |