I have always wanted to study abroad. Just the prospect sounds very exciting to me. The problem is that I don’t speak a second language. In highschool I took three years of Latin and ever since then have hated foreign language. I think mostly it was the language of Latin itself since it is more complex and isn’t a spoken language so was harder for me to understand. I have to take 3 years of language for my English major (or it might just be 3 full credit classes? I am not sure). I plan to study abroad before those are entirely up though and doubt I will be fluent at that time. Can someone study abroad without being able to speak the language at all?
Yes there are programs where you don’t need to speak a foreign language and of course you could pick an English speaking country. You’ll need to check the requirements of the programs you’re interested in. Also, while a program may not require you to speak the local language, they might require to take a class while attending.
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Latin is the most complex? How about Mandarin, Urdu, Finnish? At least with Latin no one will complain that you speak it with an accent.
Most study abroad programs in non-English speaking countries will require some study in that language otherwise it is just a semester’s vacation abroad.
Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, England, South Africa are some common spots and I know students who studied abroad at all of them. Additionally, I know students who have studied abroad in english in Denmark and Hungary as well.
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Add Germany and the Netherlands as well. As others have said, for the non-English countries, you would still most likely need to study the language as well.
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Yeah, English is actually one of the official languages of Denmark. My sis studied over there and loved it, she did psych and is in a PhD program now. I think Norway would be in that same category, Both those countries are super expensive, though.
Also, don’t forget Canada!
Not true. There are schools abroad that teach in English even in non-English speaking countries. D spent a semester at the American College of Greece and it certainly wasn’t a vacation. ACG is even accredited by NEASC. Demonstrated English proficiency is a requirement for admission, and the school draws students from all over the world.
There were other similar options offered by D’s school for study abroad, as well as many that required fluency in the native language and also immersion programs where students lived with host families to further improve their foreign language skills.
Schools with strong study abroad programs will offer many options, including options that do not require a foreign language.
It’s widely spoken, but it not an official language.
Hence, why I said “most.” There are almost always exceptions. Glad it worked out for your daughter.
Yes, the post said “most”, but it went on to say
I did not want there to be misconceptions that schools teaching in English in non-English speaking countries are not worth attending. That is not the case. There are many that offer rigorous workloads without requiring a foreign language.
Another example is NYU’s partner institutions across the world, many of which are taught in English even in locations such as Shanghai and Hong Kong.
The Katholieke Universiteit at Leuven Belgium offers instruction in English and at D’s school they’ll even accept credits in STEM courses - which can often be difficult to find in study abroad programs.
There are many, many more out there.
There seem to be many study-abroad programs at the University of St. Andrews, Scotland.
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Can someone study abroad without being able to speak the language at all?
Yes.
Absolutely, yes. (It’s a no brainer.)
And if you study French, Italian, Spanish, or Portuguese your knowledge of Latin will help you more than you think.
You´ll like it a lot more than you think, too!
If you don’t speak any language other than English, then I would study at a university where you can take courses in English. This might or might not be in a country where people on the street have English as their first language.
I have heard that there are multiple universities in Europe where you can take at least one semester in English as an exchange student. In Scandinavia in my experience nearly everyone can speak English, and I don’t think that Swedish universities expect to get many exchange students who can speak Swedish.
However, you might also consider the UK, Australia, New Zealand, or Canada. If your second language is French (or even if it isn’t) you might want to seriously consider a semester at an English language university in Quebec. The English universities in Quebec are: Concordia and McGill (both large and in Montreal), and Bishops (small and in or near Sherbrooke). Note that McGill is very academically very challenging.
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