Department of Foreign Languages Phone: (812) 488-2165 (or call the university toll-free at 1-800-423-8633) Fax: (812) 488-2430 E-mail: foreignlanguage@evansville.edu

Foreign Language Faculty On-Line Placement Tests Major and Minor Requirements Course Descriptions

The Department of Foreign Languages offers a wide array of degree programs, much in keeping with the global focus of the University of Evansville. Although we are a small university, we offer five modern and three ancient languages. Students may elect a full liberal arts major or minor in French, German, or Spanish, as well as an Education major or minor in these three languages. Further options include a Russian Studies minor, a Japanese Studies minor, and a Latin American Studies minor.      For those interested in ancient languages, UE offers a major or minor in Classical Studies and a Classical Languages minor, with numerous class offerings in Latin and Greek. We also recently added a two-year sequence in ancient Hebrew to our language offerings.      Many students combine their language major with International Studies or Global Business . These complementary degrees provide our graduates with the extra edge they need to succeed in their careers and compete in a global market.

Foreign Language Department Picnic at Audubon State Park

Below are some more in-depth descriptions of the various opportunities our department has to offer.

FL faculty welcoming high school students for Linguapalooza, UE's            annual language day.

                                                                     STUDY ABROAD

Foreign Language majors are required to study abroad to enhance their fluency and cultural knowledge. Outstanding resources are provided by the Office of Study Abroad, which helps students select a suitable UE students in Argentina summer, semester or yearlong program. The Department of Foreign Languages sponsors its own summer programs in South America and Japan. UE students may also enroll in programs run by more than 100 universities in 51 countries around the world while applying their scholarship and financial aid to the program. In addition, all foreign language, archaeology and international studies majors may receive an extra $500 scholarship to use for the study abroad requirement. Many of our students also opt for a semester or summer at UE’s British campus, Harlaxton College.

CLUBS and ORGANIZATIONS Sankt Nikolaus & Knecht Ruprecht Foreign language clubs help to complement classroom activities while providing students with the opportunity for leadership experiences. Typical activities include field trips, viewing films and videos, having parties and dances and inviting guest speakers and performers to campus. French students perform at the Phi Sigma Iota Christmas party For example, every spring the German Club organizes a tour of Amish country around Montgomerie, Indiana, and in December the club hosts a Sankt Nikolaus Fest for area high school and middle school students of German. In addition, a UE chapter of the foreign language honor society Phi Sigma Iota was established in 1999, which sponsors an annual Foreign Language Christmas party, and a chapter of the Alliance Francaise was established in 2000.

                                                                           BABEL

In the fall of 2006 UE started its own foreign language online journal under the direction of Spanish professor Dr. Antonio Grau Sempere. Students can submit any original fiction or non-fiction writing in Spanish, French, German, Russian, or Japanese. For more information, see the Babel website.

                                                                      INTERNSHIPS

International and domestic internships complement the University of Evansville’s commitment to experiential learning. Juniors and seniors with strong foreign language skills and excellent academic records are strongly encouraged to take advantage of this program. Students earn credit, and most UE financial aid is still applicable. For example, in the fall of 2002 a UE student of Russian did a ten-week internship at the US Embassy in Moscow, while another student worked in a Moscow law firm in the spring of 2004. In 2005 a UE Spanish/Business double-major did a summer internship with Papa John Pizza in Mexico, and in the summer of 2006 another Spanish/Business double-major put her bilingual skills to use with Pearson Education in Indianapolis.

                                                    FULBRIGHT TEACHING ASSISTANTS

In addition to regular faculty members, the Department of Foreign Languages brings in young native speaker teaching assitants through a program funded by Fulbright. These Foreign Language Teaching Assistants provide a wide variety of services to assist faculty members, such as tutoring sessions, small-group conversation practice, and cultural programs. They provide an on-going source of up-to-date cultural and linguistic information and truly enhance the opportunities available to language learners at UE. In the 2006-2007 academic year we had two FLTAs: one from Russia and one from Spain, and in the 2007-2008 academic year we will have FLTAs from Russia, Argentina, and France.

                                                                  PROFESSIONAL LIFE

Our graduates have enjoyed career success in a variety of fields. Secondary education is a rapidly expanding profession for foreign language specialists, and our majors have been placed in excellent jobs both in the U.S. and abroad. Others have gone on to graduate school in UE grad Kelli Gladney (far left) with her English class in Vladimir, Russia language, literature, law, psychology, business administration, and public policy. A UE graduate and student of Russian recently studied theater in Moscow on a Fulbright Scholarship, and another spent two years teaching English in Vladimir, Russia. Another UE grad and student of Spanish now works for the U. S. State Department in Lima, Peru. We are proud that our students have prospered in their professional lives on the international level. A Teach-for-America instructor, a specialist with the U.S. Navy, a bilingual export agent, a senior consumer specialist and an international sales representative all studied foreign languages at the University of Evansville.