jhoopster87

I was just wondering what current students think about the different Language programs at ND. which are the best and which need some hel? I was considering taking Italian or Latin in college, I dont really know yet.

irish68178

I don't know from first-hand experience on this as I finished my language requirement in Spanish (department seems alright there) but I have heard that Latin is a killer here. I don't know if someone can confirm this but I have heard it several times.

NDHopefull6

That is kind of scary, because if I get into Notre Dame I was hoping to study latin at some point.

jhoopster87

wait, irish, by "killer" i'm assumsing that you mean good... could you clerify?

irish68178

lol, sure I can clarify. By killer I mean from what I have heard IT WILL KILL YOU, so not good. You will learn your stuff but it is very challenging! That is just what a few people have said though, I don't know first-hand.

nemo2001

I did Latin for my language here...I had had five years of it previously, 7-10 grade and then again in 12th. Didn't start my language requirement until sophomore year here. I found it to be rather straightforward and pretty simple.

I don't know of anyone who found Latin I or II that hard. It ratchets up to fairly difficult when you get to Latin III though. Let me clarify the preceeding sentence by mentioning the high drop rate for Latin I. I think we saw at least 5 from a class of no more than 30 drop before mid-term, with one or two more right before the drop date. Part of the problem is the text used up here...Moreland and Fleisher. It's good for grammar, although structure is a little weird. As far as learning decent vocab though...not the biggest fan. I think the Ecce Romani series is superior from that end.

Basically, Latin is very organized. That appeals to many...other people hate it. You have to do a lot of memorization, no other way to learn it. Course there is NO speaking requirement obviously, so that's always nice.

Does this help?

Adamus

I don't know if anyone still comes to this thread, but if anyone is considering taking Italian: do it! I took Italian on a whim freshman year and loved it. There are so many great professors teaching a complete immersion style course. Also, if you even feel remotely inclined to take an intensive language course, I would advise that you do. It is a lot of work but very worth it.

page47

i was thinking of taking either an intensive chinese or arabic course. does anyone know anything about either of these courses?

maggiejeter

anyone know anything about the irish courses?

kevdude

The Irish courses are supposed to be phenomenal - I'm taking one next semester, and a bunch of my friends have taken it. The professors are some of the best in the field, the classes are tiny, and you learn a lot.

danbrenn

I signed up for Arabic 1, anyone heard anthing about the arabic program?

page47

denbrenn--i also signed up for arabic 1 for next year!! that's so cool. yeah i decided to take it because it's not as crazy intensive as some of the other languages and i think i pick up languages pretty easy. i'm kind of nervous because i'm taking that and spanish, but i can't wait. are you taking any other languages?

danbrenn

No, just Arabic. I am in ROTC, so I felt like it would the most useful for what I will be doing in the future. I hope it is at least moderately intensive, otherwise it will be very difficult to become proficient.

page47

well i'm sure it will be intensive, but i think it's just easier to start with than something like chinese, which was my other choice, because that meets 5 days a week. that just seems like too much. i'm sure this will be definitely be helpful if you're ROTC. does anyone else know anything about arabic?

jvon2432

thank god mendoza has NO language requirements!!! i HATEEEEED spanish