In today's "global village", immediate communication and world travel are commonplace. While we are each citizens of a single country, we are also citizens of the world, and what better way of being world-citizens than by learning its languages. Learning another language not only allows us to communicate with others, but is also the key to understanding their cultures and functioning in their countries, be it for leisure, study or work purposes.

Modern Languages at Drexel University takes a communicative approach to language learning. It is our goal to foster language competence as well as expand students' knowledge of foreign cultures by a multidisciplinary approach. Students from all disciplines at the University enroll in language courses, creating a dynamic learning environment. Language study also gives Drexel students access to a world of opportunities: the Drexel Abroad international study and study-internship programs, independent study-abroad programs, and international cooperative education placements.

Drexel's Modern Languages offer instruction in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Russian and Spanish. Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Russian courses are oral-intensive and use an innovative tutorial or "self-instructional" format, limited to groups of three to six students. French, German, Italian and Spanish classes use a more conventional format, with enrollments of nine to eighteen students.

Our curricula foster internationalization and trans-cultural awareness. Given the sustained effort required to achieve and maintain proficiency in a foreign language and the students' potential need or desire to engage with "new" languages and cultures in the future, we also help students develop strategies to pursue self-managed learning that can be applied to other courses or to their post-college learning experiences.
LANGUAGE STUDY IN THE AGE OF GLOBALIZATION (Modern Language Association)