Why would it matter who I was asking for? I was asking for which schools are doing a good job with it. Even grad students who want to pick up another language have to take undergrad beginner classes if they are new to it.
For clarification, are the definitions of âconversantâ, âfluentâ, etc. that some use here the ones listed in https://csb.uncw.edu/cen/docs/Determining%20Language%20Proficiency.pdf ? Seem like some of the arguments here are about the technicalities of how these terms are defined.
Note that in the linked definition, âfluentâ includes high level reading and writing skills, so that an illiterate person or one with poor reading and/or writing skills can be no more than âconversantâ, even in his/her native language.
This is the parents forum where generally we ask questions for our kids. Your other thread indicated you child was interested in math/physics which is why my earlier responses on this thread were about STEM programâs FL requirements (or how to get out of them). Many here have good memories for other posts so again, I was thinking this was tied to your other post for your child. And yes, for a STEM focused kid, I would give a different answer.
So, are you looking for programs near where you live where adults can register for foreign language courses but not necessarily for an additional degree? Or are you wanting a degreed program tied into a masters? What language?
WellâŠif this is an adult who is interested in learning basic conversational language skills in a more common foreign language (Spanish, French, Italian, even Chinese these days), I would suggest looking into your community continuing education courses. Ours are excellent, and are usually taught by native speakers of the language. Their emphasis is on spoken conversational skills for functional usage.
Several friends have taken these courses in anticipation of trips or moves abroad, and have been very pleased with the info taught.
You could also get Babble, DuoLingo, or Rosetta Stone in whatever language you hope to learn.
Most Us are going to have decent programs for your most common languages. Where you start to have limitations is when you enter already at an advanced level of proficiency or when you have unusually high language goals such as superior or you want to pursue an less commonly offered language. With that latter, schools may offer them as a minor with only limited course offerings.
One thing not mentioned in this thread is maintain ing a language. Learning it is only one part of it.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek I find the quality and intensity can really vary based on what I see and hear reported. I am auditing a first-year course this year and was thinking about doing a summer intensive in the summer because, as you point out, maintaining (and furthering) oneâs skills are really the hard part. I was also asking more generally, too - I have a daughter who is interested in French and she will be able to matriculate in HS at local colleges or high school summer institutes. My information about quality of programs is a thousand years old. Schools that used to be might not be anymore. The school where I am auditing my class used to be known for excelling in multiple languages and now only offers a Spanish major and minor (I think maybe it draws mostly heritage speakers). No one is allowed to even minor in another language, even with independent study. They completely gutted the department. Itâs really a shame.
@momofsenior1 thanks for pointing that out about the parentsâ forum. I was not sure what the best forum would be. I am looking for either a summer institute (like, 4 weeks) which is why I didnât specify geographic area or schools in the Philadelphia area. For Russian.
I sill maintain my answer that basic classes are pretty equivalent. Fwiw, my Dd is majoring in French and Russian. She was already advanced in French (she could watch French movies while multitasking like building puzzles, etc and still understand everything) before she left for college. She was a B1+ in Russian. During her college search, we sat in so many Russian classes on different campuses that I canât remember how many. One thing was clear, they all used the same textbook and the classes were very similar from campus to campus. Depts differed. Number of courses differed. But, for someone entering at a 100 level, definitely similar.
Fwiw, she is attending a college not known for languages and it is working out just fine for her. Definitely not a necessity to attend a foreign language powerhouse unless you want that campus to get you to superior (and there are only 4 of those in the country.) Otherwise, there are plenty of paths both inside and outside of a classroom to build language skills.
@Mom2aphysicsgeek what are those 4?
for summer immersion, Middlebury is probably #1. But note, the acceptances are competitive.
Also check out Indiana Universityâs summer immersion program.
Dartmouth sponsors the Rassias immersion program for ~2 weeks.
@melvin123 https://thelanguageflagship.org/content/russian UGA and Indiana were not Russian flagships when my Dd was a sr in high school, only the 4 hyperlinked schools.So maybe there are now 6? Not sure why those 2 arenât hyperlinked on the flagship website. Maybe they are in the process of becoming one?? The language flagships definitely do have different language goals than your typical U. Unfortunately, when my Dd was looking, they were either were unaffordable or not a good fit in other ways.
@bluebayou do all of those programs offer Russian?
Whatâs your current level?
For Beginners and Intermediate, in PA, the Summer Intensive program at Penn State is probably your best bet.
Bryn Mawr has the language flagship but its recruitment process is specific - not for adults but a 4-year commitment.
Middlebury is the best for upper level proficiency. They also hae a youtube channel if you want some ârefresherâ.
http://www.middlebury.edu/ls/russian
Look into this program at Bryn Mawr: https://www.brynmawr.edu/rli
As mom2 noted, the problem is lots of good colleges have strenuous lang programs. Some have summer programs. If you want a regular college, you do need to look at the course lists and see what fits, see who teaches classes, adjunct or active PhD. Etc.
Google best language institutes usa. Thereâs the Middlebury Inst of International Studies at Monterey (CA.) Various universities.
And this, please. CC reacts predictably when someone bites the hand trying to feed them.
I think the Middlebury summer programs in VT are for teens. Check that.
The OP is going to have research programs for adults bc most other programs are for students. There are adult immersion programs out there. Concordia offers adult programs, but I donât know if they do for Russian or not.
Years ago, my employer sent me twice a week to Berlitz type institutions for 2 hours at a shot. There were definitely people who were there more (who did not have employers expecting them to get other things done.) If you are willing to open your approach to something like that, you could make a lot of progress quickly because you would set the pace. Fwiw, the FL institution that does training for the government (and indeed many colleges) select teachers on factors that differ from those used to hire college professors so a college may not be your best bet. You could probably find a school in Russia if you wanted to really make it an adventure. 
S2 went to SRAS at Moscow State University for a Russian summer program. There were UG and adults. The consensus was that the program wasnât as accelerated as folks expected.
Tufts has a 6 semester language/culture core requirement and for IR majors (2nd most popular major behind CS) it is 8 semesters.