Grad School?

[Glitoris]

Okay, so here is the situation.

Currently, I am a freshman in college. I transferred with twenty-six credit hours, making me a sophomore next semester (I am taking nineteen hours this semester) and a junior by the end of the spring semester (I am taking twenty-two hours next semester). Now, if I keep going as I am, taking maybe one class in the summer semester and/or winter intersession, and about nineteen hours in the fall/spring semester, then I will be able to graduate from college either in fall of 2016 or spring of 2017, which would be nice, as I graduated high school in 2014.

I am a French major, at the moment, and since I will be a sophomore next semester, I will have the option to ask to double major (I'd then officially be a French/Spanish major, if my request were to be granted).

I live in Louisiana, and TOPS is paying my tuition and giving me $200 a semester. This will continue for eight semesters, as long as I am enrolled full-time and keeping my GPA as high as it needs to be. This would include grad school, if I graduated early and chose to go for my Master's. That means that it could pay for one or one and a half years of college.

Now, if I double major in French and Spanish, I will probably graduate in four years/eight full-time semesters. I might still go for my MA, but I'd have to pay full tuition, etc.

I'm also kind of thinking about trying to triple major (I've been told that it is possible), adding German. It'd probably make me graduate in five years, but if that'd mean I had a BA in French, Spanish, and German, I feel like it'd be worth it, but I'm not sure. If I did that, I probably would not go to grad school, but that may not be the case, as sometimes my university (where I would also go for grad school) will sometimes waive fees, etc.

What should I do?

[legnanellaf5]

I dont really see the point? Like school isnt about cramming everything you can into a bach degree, and I havent heard of being able to do 3 majors (I know you can do 2 and a minor..) but that sounds stupid. If it is possible, it would mean that you would not only be having a really huge load, but also that you would not be able to have any free time or any courses you can just do for fun or because it is a bird course. Everything you do will be for your degree and that can easily burn you out. Which is what you want to avoid since you need to keep your gpa up for the money.

It also doesnt sound like you thought through the end game, which is wha you need. If you are going to look for jobs in the language field...shouldnt you know if a masters is needed?

[Glitoris]

legnanellaf5

I already speak French, pretty much. I'm in 300 classes (can't do 400 level until I'm considered a junior), and I already speak some Spanish. I took a college German class during my senior year of high school, and I really loved it.

The classes that I would "want to take" are the language classes. They are interesting. If I were just major in French, Spanish and German would still be my electives. I love my classes. They take up a lot of time, but they are things I'd be doing on my own time (learning languages is like a hobby for me).

I want to translate or interpret. Degrees aren't always necessary, but suggested. If I can't translate, then I'd like to teach, which requires a BA or MA, depending on where you go.

[Inscriven]

What exactly are you planning to do with these BA degrees? Do you even need an MA? What kind of career are you looking into and is moving to the EU something you might be considering to make this worth it?

Some social sciences like psychology are useless without grad/doctorate work, but many have diminishing returns and are only useful in academia. But it does sound like you are trying to bite off more than you can chew and are running face first into a brick wall without much consideration to your goals and your own capabilities.

[Glitoris]

Inscriven

I already speak French, pretty much. I'm in 300 classes (can't do 400 level until I'm considered a junior), and I already speak some Spanish. I took a college German class during my senior year of high school, and I really loved it.

The classes that I would "want to take" are the language classes. They are interesting. If I were just major in French, Spanish and German would still be my electives. I love my classes. They take up a lot of time, but they are things I'd be doing on my own time (learning languages is like a hobby for me).

I want to translate or interpret. Degrees aren't always necessary, but suggested. If I can't translate, then I'd like to teach, which requires a BA or MA, depending on where you go.

[legnanellaf5]

Chromosexual

legnanellaf5

I already speak French, pretty much. I'm in 300 classes (can't do 400 level until I'm considered a junior), and I already speak some Spanish. I took a college German class during my senior year of high school, and I really loved it.

The classes that I would "want to take" are the language classes. They are interesting. If I were just major in French, Spanish and German would still be my electives. I love my classes. They take up a lot of time, but they are things I'd be doing on my own time (learning languages is like a hobby for me).

I want to translate or interpret. Degrees aren't always necessary, but suggested. If I can't translate, then I'd like to teach, which requires a BA or MA, depending on where you go.

Are you sure you dont need a degree to translate? Where I live you for sure do, either you need a degree in languages, or you need to be really good in languages on your own then a degree in a specialized field that commonly works internationally. But degree seems to be the thing, but I live in canada soo yeah.

And then if there isnt really a reason to do a 3rd major...then why? If you can just take german classes...go take them instead of making it a major for no reason. Unless it gets you a real advantage it is a waste of time.

[Glitoris]

legnanellaf5

It depends. Sometimes, you don't - such as when you are a native speaker. However, if you are like me with English as a first language, it is preferable to have a degree. I'm only a few French classes (and a history) away from completing the requirements for a French major, but I still need to take certain other classes (some sciences, a math, etc.). That's going to make things take longer, so I figure I may as well do Spanish, too, because it is useful. And I really, really adore German. I would love to work with it, even if I need a degree to prove that I know it.

I guess what I'm asking is this:
Would having a BA in three languages make me more employable as a translator/interpreter? Or would it be better to play a "safe card" and just get out in two and a half years with my one French major/Spanish minor, and then go for the MA in French? Because I honestly do not know if it would be useful to just know French, other than for teaching. But, again, I'd be content with that if it is all I could get. Anything with languages.

I feel like I need to make up my mind soon, because if I want to get my MA, then I need to decide to put more time and effort on taking my required math, science, etc. so that I can get out. If I'm only doing one major, then, like, I said, I can take five or six semester, and that would leave three or two semesters of grad school that would be paid for.

[legnanellaf5]

Chromosexual

legnanellaf5

It depends. Sometimes, you don't - such as when you are a native speaker. However, if you are like me with English as a first language, it is preferable to have a degree. I'm only a few French classes (and a history) away from completing the requirements for a French major, but I still need to take certain other classes (some sciences, a math, etc.). That's going to make things take longer, so I figure I may as well do Spanish, too, because it is useful. And I really, really adore German. I would love to work with it, even if I need a degree to prove that I know it.

I guess what I'm asking is this:
Would having a BA in three languages make me more employable as a translator/interpreter? Or would it be better to play a "safe card" and just get out in two and a half years with my one French major/Spanish minor, and then go for the MA in French? Because I honestly do not know if it would be useful to just know French, other than for teaching. But, again, I'd be content with that if it is all I could get. Anything with languages.

I feel like I need to make up my mind soon, because if I want to get my MA, then I need to decide to put more time and effort on taking my required math, science, etc. so that I can get out. If I'm only doing one major, then, like, I said, I can take five or six semester, and that would leave three or two semesters of grad school that would be paid for.

Well, this is where the bias of where i live comes in, because for canada, being fluent in french is super good and I would even say that the best language after that is Chinese because of how often companies work with people there. But if you were in canada I would also suggest going for a government job. I dont know how often spanish and german is needed for translating stuff, but while I know its a common thing to teach in school, I also feel like that is not reflective of the environment of the workplace.

I dont really think that having a ba in more language is going to be any more useful, although if you can say you are fluent in that 3rd language it would be.

[Glitoris]

legnanellaf5

I am lucky enough to live in one of the few states where French is kind of a thing. Emphasis on kind of. Spanish is really a thing. German is not really a thing. However, I am not opposed to moving somewhere else (I'd love to work internationally). German is important, I feel. I feel like if I can translate between four languages, I'm in okay shape. But I'm not sure if it's better to have an MA in one language or a BA in two or three. I feel like, since I am not a native speaker of any language other than English, I need validation.

[legnanellaf5]

Chromosexual

legnanellaf5

I am lucky enough to live in one of the few states where French is kind of a thing. Emphasis on kind of. Spanish is really a thing. German is not really a thing. However, I am not opposed to moving somewhere else (I'd love to work internationally). German is important, I feel. I feel like if I can translate between four languages, I'm in okay shape. But I'm not sure if it's better to have an MA in one language or a BA in two or three. I feel like, since I am not a native speaker of any language other than English, I need validation.

Well if you say german is not a thing, then it seems less and less useful to get a degree in. Getting the spanish/french BA sounds useful, and then getting a MA in one of those languages would be great..if you wanted to go that far. But german looks like more of a hobby thing than a career path.