• ABOUT
• COURSES
• GRADUATE
  • { MA & PhD in RSTC }
  • { M.S. in S&TC }
  • { Tech Comm Certificate }
  • { Assistantships & Aid }
  • { Graduate Minors }
  • { Handbook }
  • { Diversity Statement }
• UNDERGRADUATE
• NEWS & EVENTS
• PEOPLE
• MAKE A GIFT

Department Intranet

{Home > Graduate : Graduate Handbook : RSTC : Second Language Requirement }

Second Language Requirement

M.A. and Ph.D. students must demonstrate reading proficiency in a second language.

You can fulfill this requirement in one of four ways:

1. By taking (or having taken previously) one 3-credit college-level second language course
2. By successfully completing non-credit courses generally offered in the Summer Session, such as “German 222: Reading German” or “French 1: Reading in the Arts and Sciences”
3. By arranging to take and passing a test offered by one of the University‘s second language departments
4. By satisfying your advisor and the DGS that you have reading knowledge of a language

A different “Foreign Language Certification” form is required, depending on which department (a foreign language department or Writing Studies) certifies that you have reading proficiency. This form must be filed before you take your final oral examination.

Foreign Language Certification Form - By Language Department. (GS 82)
http://www.grad.umn.edu/Current_Students/forms/gs82.pdf

or

Foreign Language Certification Form - By Graduate Department.(GS 82a)
http://www.grad.umn.edu/Current_Students/forms/gs82a.pdf

Note: If you plan to study Classical rhetoric, you should be proficient in Latin or Greek (or both).  If you plan to study rhetoric or technical communication in an international setting, you should be proficient in the relevant language or languages.