The Department of Languages and Cultures
In keeping with the mission of West Chester University, the primary mission of the Department of Languages and Cultures is to provide high quality undergraduate education for majors and minors in languages, future teachers of languages, as well as to provide basic language and culture cluster courses to students at West Chester University and members of the local communities. A secondary mission is to provide graduate courses, mainly, but not exclusively, to present and future teachers of languages. The department continually explores new ways to provide opportunities to improve global education at West Chester University and in the communities that surround the University.
At the Undergraduate level, the Department offers:
- Bachelor of Arts in Languages and Cultures (with elective Teaching Certification as an option) with tracks in French, German, Russian, and Spanish.
- An Interdisciplinary BA in Linguistics.
- Minors in Arabic, American Sign Language (ASL), Chinese, Deaf Studies, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Russian, and Spanish; as well as Interdisciplinary minor in Linguistics (with the Department of English).
- Certificate in Spanish in Healthcare.
- Accelerated BA to MA programs in French, German, Spanish, and TESOL.
The program in languages intended to provide advanced education program for the student interested in the most human aspect of the humanities: language. It provides a flexible basis for a wide variety of vocations involving bilingual skills and cross-cultural social services. It also serves as a preparation for graduate studies leading to advanced degrees. A student majoring in the program should plan with the help of the faculty advisor, and include study abroad.
The department encourages students to consider intra-departmental or inter-departmental majors or minors, not only because the studies are valuable in and of themselves, but also because students with more experience in languages are usually competitive employment candidates in a variety of fields.
The department is in a unique position to serve the West Chester University and local communities, as well as the international community. Members of the department are involved in a variety of governance bodies, serve as resource people in local and state government, and act as volunteers and consultants in schools both near West Chester, within the United States, and throughout the world.
The Department of Languages and Cultures is well staffed, productive in scholarly and grant-assisted programs and, at the same time, devoted to teaching (including individualized educational opportunities) - all with the aim to promote the broadest offerings possible with the most efficient use of staff.