French & Italian Advising Guide

Courses appropriate for prospective majors

Advanced Placement scores: 

A student who has received a grade of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement test will be granted credit for college work and will receive placement in the appropriate French course as determined by their scores on the on-line placement test.   

On-line placement test 

The placement test for French is available at http://orientation.dickinson.edu.  If a student has studied French and there is any chance that he/she might wish to continue with French, he/she needs to take the placement test, even if the student has AP credit.  After the student has taken the test, he/she will receive email notification of the placement.  Students who cannot take the test on-line by July 1 will need to contact Professor Nancy Mellerski (mellersk@dickinson.edu) before Thursday, August 25, 2011. 

Students who wish to take a course in the French Department and who have completed their course of study prior to Dickinson in a francophone educational setting must register for courses at the 300 level. If you have any questions about this policy, please contact Professor Nancy Mellerski. 

Introductory courses that fulfill distribution requirements 

Language requirement:       

Completion at the intermediate level, FREN 116 

Division IB:     

Courses in French or francophone literature at the 200 or 300 level. 

Writing Intensive:       

FREN 230, Communication in French and Francophone Contexts 

FREN 236, Introduction to Cultural Analysis 

Comparative Civilizations:      

FREN 246, Introduction to Francophone Cultures 

Course descriptions, requirements for the major refer to the College Bulletin: French  Italian. 

Co-curricular activities 

Opportunities for off-campus study 

All students intending to major in French are strongly urged to plan their program of studies in such a way as to allow for study abroad during the junior year at Dickinson's Study Center in Toulouse or in Yaoundé, Cameroon.  The department considers the experience of living and studying abroad a most important part of a satisfactorily completed major. 

1.    All students who apply for the junior year program in Toulouse must have completed FREN 236, Introduction to French Cultural Analysis, as a prerequisite to participation in the program.  This course should be taken as early as possible.  Note that FREN 230, Communication in Context is a prerequisite for FREN 236.  

2.   Experience has shown that performance in FREN 236 is an important indicator of how well a student will perform in the Toulouse program.  Therefore, final decisions on applications of students who have not completed FREN 236 will not be made until the semester in which it is taken, when sufficient evidence of the student's progress in that course is available. 

3.   We recommend that students planning to study in Cameroon complete FREN 246, Introduction to Francophone Cultures, before departure.  

Additional remarks 

Careers:  Recent graduates who have majored or minored in French are attending graduate school in diverse disciplines or are engaged in teaching, law studies, publishing and editing, and a wide variety of international business or banking concerns, as well as NGOs. 

Flowchart for Placement Information
Flowchart for Those Retaking Placement Exam

Italian

Introduction

Italian Studies majors should seek information from the Coordinator of Italian Studies about the Italian studies track at the Dickinson Center for European Studies in Bologna. Professor Tullio Pagano serves as the Coordinator of Italian Studies for 2011-2012. 

Students whose primary interest is the study of European politics, history, economics, and international affairs and who consider spending their junior year at the Dickinson Center for European Studies in Bologna, Italy, may want to fulfill their language requirement in Italian. This option would give them a solid linguistic and cultural background before going abroad. They could also take courses at the University of Bologna and consider a major in Italian studies as a second major.    

Test scores and credits that may affect course selection 

Advanced Placement scores: 

A student who has received a grade of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Test will be granted credit for college work and will receive placement in the appropriate Italian course as determined by their scores on the on-line placement test.   

On-line placement test 

The Italian placement test is available through the Dickinson Gateway.  The test will determine the student’s level of proficiency in Italian and the student will be informed of the appropriate course to select.  If you wish to use the placement test ONLY to waive your language requirement, you will have to take it on campus, under supervision.Students who cannot take the test on-line by July 1 will need to contact Prof. Pagano before Friday, August 26, 2011.  The placement exam will be offered as well on campus during the Orientation period. 

Courses appropriate for prospective majors

Courses that meet distribution requirements 

Language requirement:        

 Completion at the intermediate level, ITAL 116 

Division IB:     

ITAL 251 or 252, Literature and Society 

Co-curricular activities 

The co-curricular activities in Italian include the Italian Club, open to all interested students, which sponsors various cultural activities, films, field trips, etc., and the weekly Italian Table, held in a private dining area of the Holland Union Building.  There is also a small Italian House for qualified students.  A foreign student from Italy is brought by the department every year to Dickinson to work as a classroom assistant and to cooperate generally in co-curricular activities. 

Major in Italian Studies 

The Italian Studies major is interdisciplinary, combining a series of courses taken in the Italian section and additional courses related to Italian civilization and culture taken in at least two other departments.  The major is designed to permit students to pursue the aspects of Italian civilization of most interest to them, while requiring a diversity of disciplinary approaches to ensure appropriate breadth.  The selection of electives according to specific areas of concentration adds depth to the major.  

Course descriptions, requirements for the major refer to the College Bulletin: Italian Studies.  

Additional remarks