Enrollments in foreign-language courses tumbled nearly 17 percent between the fall of 2016 and the fall of 2021, the largest decline in the six decades the Modern Language Association has been conducting its census of American colleges.
All but three of the 15 most commonly studied languages experienced enrollment decreases. In addition, the total number of foreign-language programs reporting enrollments fell by 961, an 8-percent dip.
Since peaking in 2009, foreign-language enrollments have deteriorated by almost 30 percent, the MLA found. This is a stunning reversal: Over the previous 30 years, the number of students studying languages had been on a steady upward trajectory.
“These drops are no longer a fluke,” said Christian Rubio, chair of modern languages at Bentley University, in Massachusetts. “I am alarmed.”
The data are confirmation of the bleak climate for foreign-language programs. This summer, administrators at West Virginia University proposed eliminating its department of world languages, literatures, and linguistics, replacing in-person language instruction with an online app. (The eventual cuts were deep but not as drastic — the university did away with all foreign-language majors but retained seven faculty members.)
Paula M. Krebs, the MLA’s executive director, called foreign languages the “canary in the coal mine” for cuts to other humanities programs, tracing the drops to budgetary retrenchment following the 2008 recession that often prioritized STEM disciplines. But she said the MLA’s research also suggests that language learning can grow at institutions where there is support — 38 percent of foreign-language programs reported stable or increasing enrollment.
“Where languages are declining, the resources invested in them are declining,” Krebs said. “It’s simple: If you feed something, it grows. If you don’t, it starves.”
Enrollments in language courses slid from 1,418,584 in the fall of 2016 to 1,182,562 in the fall of 2021, comparable to 1998 levels.
The number of foreign-language programs also went down, although in its report on the new data, the MLA noted that lower numbers do not necessarily represent closed departments. The organization defines a language program loosely as language instruction offered by an institution, not necessarily as a degree-granting department or formal unit. A college may offer a language program one year but not the next.
The analysis is based on a survey of 2,455 colleges.
The enrollment losses may be attributable, in part, to fewer Americans attending college since the pandemic. Still, the decline in foreign-language enrollments far outpaced the 8 percent decrease in college attendance over the same period. (Undergraduate enrollment rose this fall, the first time since the pandemic.)
The falloff was especially steep at community colleges: Foreign-language enrollments slumped by 24 percent at two-year institutions. By contrast, they dipped by 15 percent at four-year colleges.
“Language-learning declines in community colleges are a terrible red flag,” Krebs said. Because community colleges disproportionately enroll underserved students — including low-income students, students of color, and working parents — the decreases have implications for access and equity in language study. And if students don’t begin learning a language while in community college, they have little hope of achieving proficiency after they transfer to a four-year institution, Krebs said.
Where languages are declining, the resources invested in them are declining. It’s simple: If you feed something, it grows. If you don’t, it starves.
Community colleges and smaller institutions may have a single professor or adjunct instructors teaching a language, especially one that is less popular, which can make instruction more vulnerable to disruption.
The MLA also found that enrollments in introductory courses, typically those taken in the first or second year of language study, were shakier than in more-advanced ones. Half of all programs for advanced undergraduate study and 57 percent of those for graduate study reported stable or increasing enrollments, while just 40 percent of introductory undergraduate programs did.
But the continued health of advanced language courses requires a steady pipeline of beginners. The Survey of Earned Doctorates, compiled by the National Science Foundation, found that the number of Ph.D.s granted in language fields declined 37 percent between 2016 and 2021.
In its report on the census, the MLA noted a “staggering loss” in enrollments across different foreign languages. Seven of the most commonly taught languages had enrollment declines of 20 percent or more, with the biggest, 34 percent, in German.
Enrollments in the two most-studied languages, Spanish and French, declined by 18 percent and 23 percent, respectively. American Sign Language, the third most popular language, had a small increase in enrollments, of less than one percent.
Korean, however, bucked the trend, with enrollments increasing by more than 38 percent. Still, fewer than 20,000 students took Korean courses in 2021.
When Danielle O. Pyun, an associate professor of Korean language and culture, first came to Ohio State University 20 years ago, intermediate courses in Korean were routinely canceled because of low enrollments. Today, the university offers five levels of Korean, and courses often have waitlists. This semester more than 230 students are studying Korean.
Pyun said students typically are drawn to Korean for one of two reasons: They think knowing the language could help them in their careers as Korean companies, like Samsung and Kia, have become global brand names. Or they are interested in Korean popular culture, like K-pop or the hit Netflix show Squid Games.
“As their interest deepens, it leads to a desire to understand the language and connect with Korean culture,” Pyun said.
Pyun has tried to leverage that interest in her course design, such as using Korean songs or video clips to help students understand cultural nuances as well as vocabulary. She has also developed a study-abroad program that takes students from different disciplines to South Korea for a month where they can learn about topics like smart cities in addition to culture and history.
While much of the growth in Korean enrollments seems driven by students, colleges can do more to support and encourage language study. As part of its report, the MLA examined 10 colleges where language programs remained strong. Yes, funding matters, the group found, but so do other strategies, among them: forming partnerships with other academic departments or offices on campus; offering certificates, minors, and double majors to give students more options; and conducting regular assessment and evaluation to determine students’ needs, guide curricular improvements, and make a stronger case for investment.
For example, Emory & Henry College, a small liberal-arts institution in southwestern Virginia, offers a two-semester introductory course in medical Spanish. The course is popular with pre-med and prehealth students who want the basics in order to better care for Spanish-speaking patients, and many students go on to take additional language courses. There’s interest on campus in offering a similar course for business students and those studying human services.
The modern-languages department at the University of Wisconsin at Green Bay worked with the career office to survey employers participating in the university’s career and internship fair about their international activities, and created a list of companies, about half of those surveyed, interested in hiring students with language skills or intercultural experience.
Araceli Hernández-Laroche, founding director of the South Carolina Centro Latino, an institute for the study of Hispanic and Latino culture at the University of South Carolina-Upstate, said colleges can strengthen foreign-language programming through closer ties with their increasingly diverse local communities.
On campus, Hernández-Laroche, a professor of modern languages, has worked with other academic departments, such as with the School of Nursing to create more Spanish programming. She is talking with residence-life administrators about creating a language-focused living and learning community.
“We really should be embedding this across the university,” Hernández-Laroche said. “Multilingualism should not just be parked in the language department.”
At Bentley, Rubio started a new major, language, culture, and business, that emphasizes the practical application of foreign languages — the program is offered in Chinese, French, Italian, and Spanish — in a professional context as well as writing and translation skills. While Rubio’s own background is in 19th-century Spanish literature, he said the marriage of foreign languages and business makes sense at his business-focused institution.
“You have to know your campus,” he said. “You have to know your students.”
