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Global Fluency and Language at Croft

Language study at Croft is serious, sustained, and connected to how students learn, study abroad, and prepare for what comes next.

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Learn the World Through Language

Language is one of the defining parts of the Croft experience. From the beginning, students choose a major language that shapes where they study, how they prepare for study abroad, and how deeply they can engage the regions and questions that interest them. Over time, language becomes a tool for reading, listening, asking better questions, building relationships, and understanding the world with greater depth.

Language Study With Purpose

At Croft, we work closely with our Department of Modern Languages, ensuring that students receive high-quality oral proficiency-oriented language instruction.

Progress Toward Advanced Proficiency

Croft students commit to serious language study across all four years of the program. Through repeated practice and increasingly challenging coursework, they build the ability to communicate, read, and think with greater complexity in their major language. Before graduation, students complete an Oral Proficiency Interview, an independent assessment that measures how well they can use the language in both a personal and professional context.

Learn Language in Real-World Contexts

As Croft students build proficiency, language becomes something they use beyond the textbook. They use it in class discussions, study abroad, local conversations, internships, and research, learning how meaning changes across cultures and settings. That experience helps students communicate with more confidence and understand the regions they study with greater care.

Demonstrate Fluency Before Graduation

By the time Croft students complete the Oral Proficiency Interview, they have spent years studying their major language, used it in increasingly advanced classes, and studied abroad in the region where it is spoken. For many students, the language has become part of how they learn, think, and navigate the world.

Joh Martin Photo

Language as a Lifelong Professional Asset

Croft alumni use their language skills in medicine, public service, business, education, nonprofit work, and international careers, often alongside the research, writing, and cultural understanding they developed through the program. These skills help graduates communicate across difference, build trust, and understand the people and communities their work affects.

 

"The ability to communicate directly with my Spanish-language patients provides both them and me additional reassurance and understanding during times of enormous stress."

 

John Martin, MD

Croft Class of 2009

What Languages Can You Study at Croft?

Croft students choose a major language of study from Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Spanish. That language becomes a central part of the Croft experience, shaping each student’s regional focus, study abroad planning, and progress toward advanced proficiency.

UG

Arabic, B.A.

Acquire superior levels of Arabic and become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

Chinese, B.A.

Acquire superior levels of Chinese language skills and become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

French, B.A.

Acquire superior levels of French and become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

German, B.A.

Become a global professional with superior levels of German skills.

  • Oxford

UG

Japanese, Minor

Become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

Korean, Minor

Become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

Russian, Minor

Become a global professional.

  • Oxford

UG

Spanish, B.A.

Become a global professional with superior levels of Spanish speaking skills.

  • Oxford

FAQs

Language Study at Croft

Students come to Croft with different levels of language experience. Some have studied a language before college, while others start at the beginning. What matters most is a willingness to commit to serious language study because Croft students continue developing their major language throughout the program.

Yes. Croft students may study more than one language, but each student chooses one primary language and studies it every semester. This sustained focus helps students build the depth needed for study abroad, advanced proficiency, and serious international study.

Croft students work toward advanced proficiency in their major language. Before graduation, students complete an Oral Proficiency Interview, an independent assessment that measures how well they can use the language in conversation and helps demonstrate the progress they have built through years of study.