Among all the English, political science, and biology majors swarming UMBC, more and more students are choosing to pursue their undergraduate careers in foreign language. Students generally excuse themselves from a language track because they consider learning a new language hard or not as "academic" as the maths and sciences.

One the contrary, Associate Professor of Chinese and Honors College Director, Anna Shields, argues, "Familiarizing one's self with another language is central…otherwise, one does not get a good sense of the diversity beyond America's borders."

According to the Department of Modern Languages and Linguistics, 442 students are currently enrolled in a language program. Approximately 176 of these are in the minor program, and 266 in the major program.

Mariam Abdelkader, a senior biochemistry major, and French minor, told The Retriever Weekly, "I'm a French minor because I simply love the language. I tried to go a semester without it and it felt weird."

The United States emerges as a melting pot, and even UMBC recently proved itself as the second most diverse university in the nation. However, America still exists as a generally monolingual country. "Language" does not limit itself to articulating the same ideas using strange words and different sounds. It encourages a student to learn and experience another culture. In the end, that is what studying foreign language is all about.

According to Shields, the clash of cultures keeps America away from matching those countries that surface as world powers. She offers China as an example. "Right now, China owns the U.S. national debt," claims Shields. The Chinese economy shows no signs of slowing down.

Studying foreign languages trains undergraduates to keep up with economic and political globalization. Shields described a recent visit to the Honors College of faculty delegates from some of the best universities in the Netherlands. They indicated that students in their Honors programs are required to study abroad and learn another language. Shields says the same holds true for many other nations around the world. America needs to do the same.

Students who choose the languages as their educational track usually try to sustain a language they started in high school, or begin a new language they have never tried before. Students who pursue language demonstrate an "intellectual curiosity and the desire to explore and learn without an end point," remarks Shields.

Junior Christina Briscoe says, "While I took French in high school, I decided to study Spanish when I came to college. As I wanted to work with low income and disadvantaged citizens, I felt the language would help me to connect with a marginalized, monolingual Spanish speaking community. For the last year, I have used the language in HIV education and testing in a local community center, as well as in my travels to Guatemala and Peru."

One challenge, Shields explains, lies with students to justify to employers and graduate schools why they chose to major in a foreign language. Otherwise, the skills students learn can transfer into any professional setting, and open up a wide range of careers. They can study or live abroad, teach, work for the government, or with other international embassies. The opportunities are endless.

"When I was younger, I wanted to practice medicine in France…my plans have changed since then…but I can see its usefulness if I had a patient who only spoke French," explains Abdelkader, who plans to attend medical school.

Shields herself holds a B.A. in French and Comparative Literature, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Chinese literature. She has lived abroad in France, Taiwan, the former U.S.S.R., and Uzbekistan.

It may be difficult to learn to communicate in a new language, but language is also about immersing oneself into the culture. The skills that students master in this educational experience are worth the initial challenges of understanding a language.

Briscoe hopes that, "modern language studies will expand the number of people, perspectives, and places to which [she] can connect."

Shields notes that she wants to see an Asian Studies program at UMBC for the future. She also hopes that more financial support is handed out to students pursuing the languages, especially for those wishing to study abroad. As for the future of America, she says, "Maybe we need to learn some Chinese!"