Note: For information specific to each program, please see that program's individual page.
Many programs have slightly different requirements.

There are three options for specialized study of foreign languages at Trinity College: Plan A and Plan B Majors, and a Language Concentration for students who do not wish to major in languages but want to develop their linguistic skills and have an appreciation of foreign cultures. See below, under individual language headings, for full descriptions.

N.B. All three options meet the Integration of Knowledge Requirement.

Plan A Major. Under this plan students major in a single foreign language (French, German, Italian, Russian or Spanish). General requirements are ten courses in language and literature and two cognate courses in a related field or fields. (Cognate courses may be taken abroad with the approval of the advisor.) Credit acquired through the "Language Across the Curriculum" program may be applied to the cognate requirements. Students are also required to complete a project synthesizing aspects of courses taken for the major and its cognates: except under exceptional circumstances this project will be undertaken in the language section's 401: Senior Seminar: Special Topics in the Spring term: it must be done at Trinity College. See full descriptions under individual language headings.

Plan B Major. Under this plan, students may combine any two of the languages taught in the department (except Arabic and Hebrew). A minimum of seven courses in a primary language and five in a secondary language is required, as well as two courses in a cognate field or fields. A paper integrating the three fields of study - primary language field, secondary language field and some aspect of the cognate field(s) - must be completed in one of the primary language upper-level courses: except under exceptional circumstances this project will be undertaken in the language section's 401: Senior Seminar: Special Topics in the Spring term: it must be done at Trinity College. See full descriptions under individual language headings.

Language Concentration. This is an option for students who do not major in Modern Languages and Literature, but wish to develop their linguistic skills and gain an appreciation of foreign cultures. It also provides the opportunity to apply knowledge of a foreign language to other fields of the curriculum. Under this plan students take a sequence of six courses in foreign language and literature/culture. In addition, students complete a half a credit unit of "Language Across the Curriculum" in a course outside the department, preferably in one of the courses of their major. In cases where "Language Across the Curriculum" is not possible, students will write an integrating paper in one of their six courses for an extra half credit. See full descriptions under individual language headings.

Note: In all three options students must demonstrate oral and written proficiency in the language(s) of their choice.

In addition to these three options, there is the opportunity to apply language skills to a wide array of courses across the entire college curriculum through the "Language Across the Curriculum" program. See also the French, German, Italian, Spanish and Russian Studies minors earlier in this Bulletin.

Language Across the Curriculum: This option is generally open to all students who have completed the Intermediate level (fourth semester, or equivalent) in any foreign language currently taught at Trinity, and who are enrolled in any course in which the instructor, in collaboration with a member of the Modern Languages faculty, approves a supplementary reading list in the foreign language. For example, those studying European history, the economy of Latin America, or Freud, could do supplementary readings in French, Spanish or German; those studying Art History or the Modern Theater might do further readings in Italian or Russian respectively; there are many other possibilities. Subject to satisfactory completion of the assigned work, such students will then be awarded an extra half credit. For further information, see any member of the department.

Upper-level courses are conducted in the foreign language unless otherwise indicated.

Permission to major under plan A or B or to opt for the Language Concentration must be obtained from the Chair.

Departmental Honors are awarded to seniors who have maintained an A- average in all courses to be counted toward their major (including cognate courses).

Majors and other serious students of modern languages and literature are urged to spend a semester of their junior year abroad, or to enroll either in a program of summer study abroad or in a recognized summer language institute in the United States.

Special attention is called to the Trinity College/Rome Campus program, described in the Special Curricular Opportunities section of the Bulletin. For a listing of courses offered, students should consult Professor Del Puppo. Trinity's Program of Hispanic Studies in Córdoba, in affiliation with five other U.S. colleges, is briefly described under the offerings of the Spanish section, where a listing of courses for the current academic year is given. For further information about the program, students should consult Professor Kerson. Separate brochures describing both programs in detail, and general information on programs abroad emphasizing foreign language study, are available through the Department and the Office of International Programs and Educational Services.

Note: Any student wishing to enroll for credit in a lower level language sequence after having been
granted credit for a course in the same language at a higher level must first obtain the written permission of the Department Chair.

Please Note: All language skill courses may require extra lab or drill sessions at the discretion of the instructor.

Self-instructional Programs in Modern Languages:
Provision exists at the College for strongly motivated students to undertake self-instructional courses of study in some languages not available among our regular offerings. Such courses are set up on an individual basis, by prior arrangement with the chair of the SILP Co-ordinating Committee, and require the prior approval of the Curriculum Committee. Students contemplating such courses must therefore begin their planning as early as possible. Enrollment is in all cases subject to the College's ability to locate native speakers and professionally qualified persons capable of both monitoring and evaluating the students' work. Credit in such courses may range from to 2 course credits: students will enroll for a given amount of credit, but the actual
quantity of credit earned will be subject to review by the Co-ordinating Committee (whose chair will serve as the instructor of record) and the external examiner, at the time of final grading. To help defray the cost of tutors and examiners, students enrolled in SILP courses pay a surcharge of $200 a semester. They must also purchase their own course materials, which are to be selected in consultation with the SILP Co-ordinating Committee. The committee's members are Prof. K. Lloyd-Jones (chair), Prof. Ellison Findly and Dean J. R. Spencer.