One of the lesser-known departments at GC is World Languages and Cultures. Students at GC who focus their studies on a foreign language often refer to themselves as Spanish majors or French majors for simplicity. However, the degree that these students are earning is a B.A. in World Languages and Cultures. The students will then choose to concentrate in either Spanish or French. The department also offers courses in Italian and German but not enough to complete a degree concentration. Students outside of the department who must take a few courses in a foreign language can fulfill this requirement with any of the four languages, regardless of what foreign language they took in high school.
Knowledge of a second language is an increasingly beneficial skill when searching for a career path. According to the United States Census Bureau, about one in five, or 20%, of Americans speak a language other than English in the home. Of this 20%, two-thirds of them speak Spanish or Spanish Creole. This equates to over 41 million people in the United States who speak Spanish in their homes.
Annabel Hirst is a sophomore majoring in World Languages and Cultures with a concentration in Spanish. She was unsure exactly what she wanted to major in but found that she greatly enjoyed her base-level Spanish classes. She figured that sticking with studying a foreign language would give her skills to apply to whatever career path she chooses in the future.
“I just know that graduating and knowing a second language is going to help me immensely in the workforce, and it just, like, expands my opportunities by double,” Hirst said. “Like, I could work in Latin America, and I could work in Spain and even in the U.S. as well.”
Now that Hirst has surpassed the basic 1000 and 2000-level grammar courses, she finds Spanish even more interesting. She is currently taking an upper-level course focusing on Latin American culture and is in another called Paradigms of Modern Iberian Thought, which she describes as focusing on Spanish literature and how it contributes to colonialism and culture.
One experience that helped to solidify Hirst’s interest in her major was the study abroad trip she took to Spain last summer.
“It was just the best experience ever,” Hirst said. “And while you’re there, you’re, like, taking classes, and so the class I was taking was really difficult, but at the same time, I got to experience all this new stuff and explore the city and go on excursions, and it was just great.”
One professor who really stands out to Hirst as being a source of guidance and help in her department is Spanish Lecturer Dr. Mariana Stoyanova. She led the study abroad trip, and Hirst describes her as being very helpful, both on the trip and in class.
“I know a lot of people get very stressed out about saying the wrong thing if you’re taking another language, and she [Stoyanova] would just tell us to relax and that we’re good,” Hirst said. “She’s so sweet, and she’s awesome.”
When asked what she would recommend to younger students who are considering studying a foreign language, Hirst emphasized the importance of her study abroad trip.
“That changed my perspective completely,” Hirst said.
Getting to experience Spanish culture firsthand was somewhat intimidating at first, but Hirst ended up falling deeper in love with her major. After college, she is considering working to help communities where the primary language is Spanish and loves that she will be well-equipped to travel into many other nations.
Hirst also wants younger students to know that once they make it past the grammar-based lower-level courses, class sizes decrease, and content becomes more culture-specific. Even if someone is not considering majoring in a foreign language, GC offers many courses meant to go along with other majors. For example, business students can take Business Spanish, or students involved in health sciences could take Beginning Spanish Health Science.
Having a basic understanding of a foreign language can help each student in their future endeavors, regardless of major.
