<p>That’s another story… but actually some areas like French speakers because they pick up various forms of creole very quickly. There’s a sizable number of Haitians or other creole speakers in the US. French is also spoken by a variety of immigrants (as a second language, but spoken better than English). There’s also everything dealing with Canada (where French is required and there’s some “loi 101” business). Ultimately, I think it’ll also serve in distinguishing the candidate from those who speak Spanish only (not that it’d be pointless to learn a little Spanish.) I’d also recommend Somali, Hmong… but these aren’t frequently taught languages.
re: French, it all depends on the school - how broad is the curriculum? how traditional (ie, 1-th century lit, 18th century lit, etc)? how easy is it to access internships? I recommended Dickinson to OP because their curriculum is culture-based, not literature-based (as is the case for a few schools) so it’s more relevant for a potential premed student, and their science department is great.
I don’t think French would be a threat to the GPA. But all in all, most high school students underestimate what a major is, and end up doing exactly what you say, ie, taking a few courses in the subject they like, rather than majoring in it.</p>