Aren't most people "Basic" in the Spanish language?

[sudo]

Hola.. como estas?

I feel like most people are considered (by amcas' definition) "basic" for proficiency in the Spanish language. Am I wrong? I took Spanish 2 years in high school and still remember quite enough to understand what mexicans are saying when I travel to Mexico...and I still remember how some verb conjugations work.

But...I'm by no means very proficient and can't really speak the language. So, should I list it on amcas and put "Basic". I just don't want to get an interview and have the adcoms mad at me for not really knowing the language and wanting to come across as I do.😕

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[Oxygen206]

Hola.. como estas?

I feel like most people are considered (by amcas' definition) "basic" for proficiency in the Spanish language. Am I wrong? I took Spanish 2 years in high school and still remember quite enough to understand what mexicans are saying when I travel to Mexico...and I still remember how some verb conjugations work.

But...I'm by no means very proficient and can't really speak the language. So, should I list it on amcas and put "Basic". I just don't want to get an interview and have the adcoms mad at me for not really knowing the language and wanting to come across as I do.😕

In my experience, no. Most people who took two years in high school are FAR from even being "basic" speakers. Being able to perform a few common greetings does not equate to basic proficiency. Are you really able to understand conversations in Spanish...really? Or are you just picking up on what you think you hear?

It has taken me 7 years of study and practice to be able to understand a full speed native Spanish speaker, and many times I still have to ask for them to slow down or ask for clarifications.

To answer your other question, its up to you if you want to list it or not.. I would err on the side of no just in case on the off chance you do get a Spanish speaking interviewer.

 

[NeuralNetwork]

Hola.. como estas?

I feel like most people are considered (by amcas' definition) "basic" for proficiency in the Spanish language. Am I wrong? I took Spanish 2 years in high school and still remember quite enough to understand what mexicans are saying when I travel to Mexico...and I still remember how some verb conjugations work.

But...I'm by no means very proficient and can't really speak the language. So, should I list it on amcas and put "Basic". I just don't want to get an interview and have the adcoms mad at me for not really knowing the language and wanting to come across as I do.😕

I would say that knowing some basic things does not qualify as a basic understanding of a language. The fact that you can't speak it probably tells you as much as you need to know. You have to somewhat be able to communicate in it, but with difficulty. I took 3 years of HS Spanish, and I had to speak Spanish when I was volunteering in a clinic for 2 years, but I still didn't list basic proficiency because I was more used to routine than actual conversation. Here's a random page I found detailing what they consider basic:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/skilled/factor-language.asp

Overall, if in doubt, I'd just leave it out. Being honest with yourself and the adcoms will go farther than whatever the benefits are of listing basic proficiency.

 

[BigBlueBear]

Hola.. como estas?

I feel like most people are considered (by amcas' definition) "basic" for proficiency in the Spanish language. Am I wrong? I took Spanish 2 years in high school and still remember quite enough to understand what mexicans are saying when I travel to Mexico...and I still remember how some verb conjugations work.

But...I'm by no means very proficient and can't really speak the language. So, should I list it on amcas and put "Basic". I just don't want to get an interview and have the adcoms mad at me for not really knowing the language and wanting to come across as I do.😕

I put basic because the description seemed to mostly describe me, even though I too only took two years. If I get asked about it I'll be honest and say I'm not great at it, but I can pick up some stuff. I doubt they'll be like 'OMG WHAT A LIAR HE ONLY IS HALF-BASIC AT SPANISH KICK HIM OUT'

 

[neuro nephrons]

not even close....and does your average applicant have any knowledge of medical terminology in spanish? not likely.

 

[Ironmandoc]

No way. In Miami medical Spanish is necessary and completely different than the little bit you remember from high school

 

[BigBlueBear]

Basic: I speak the language imperfectly and only to a limited degree and in limited situations. I have difficulty in or understanding extended conversations.

That's what AMCAS describes as basic. I feel like somebody with 2 years of spanish can speak the language imperfectly to a limited degree, and has difficulty understanding conversations.

 

[kpcrew]

no. you're probably completely outclassed by a student in kindergarten.

 

[BigBlueBear]

I think the point is that you're not going to get banished by med schools if you put Basic and can't speak perfect spanish. There is clearly room for interpretation. (pun intended)

 

[Conflagration]

I wouldn't risk it. Personally, I'm going to take Spanish in college and see if there's Rosetta Stone in the library.

Don't put it on there unless you think you can prove it. If an adcom asked you basic questions("¿Cuanto tiempo hace que hablar español?" or "¿Qué es tus actividad favorita?", maybe even "¿Qué te gusta más, (insert noun) o (insert noun)?"), you better know how to respond.

 

[sudo]

I wouldn't risk it. Personally, I'm going to take Spanish in college and see if there's Rosetta Stone in the library.

Don't put it on there unless you think you can prove it. If an adcom asked you basic questions("¿Cuanto tiempo hace que hablar español?" or "¿Qué es tus actividad favorita?", maybe even "¿Qué te gusta más, (insert noun) o (insert noun)?"), you better know how to respond.

I'm going to guess at all those translations:

How long have you spoken spanish?

What is your favorite activity?

What do you like more, this or that?

Correct? Am I basic?

 

[BigBlueBear]

No me gusta 🙁

 

[Oxygen206]

I'm going to guess at all those translations:

How long have you spoken spanish?

What is your favorite activity?

What do you like more, this or that?

Correct? Am I basic?

Reading is waaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy easier than understanding it when spoken.

 

[Oxygen206]

I wouldn't risk it. Personally, I'm going to take Spanish in college and see if there's Rosetta Stone in the library.

Don't put it on there unless you think you can prove it. If an adcom asked you basic questions("¿Cuanto tiempo hace que hablar español?" or "¿Qué es tus actividad favorita?", maybe even "¿Qué te gusta más, (insert noun) o (insert noun)?"), you better know how to respond.

I can't wait to be on the admissions committee just so I can f*ck with applicants like that... muwahahaha

 

[LessonZero]

I see no problem with putting down "basic" even if you have only taken a couple years of Spanish. The definition AMCAS gives is intentionally quite vague and implies only a very limited and imperfect degree of understanding and a difficulty in understanding extended conversations. "Basic", as defined by AMCAS, does not imply that you can engage easily in full conversions with significant proficiency, communicate in Spanish in a medical setting, or anything of the sort. There should thus be no problem in you putting down "basic" because we are following AMCAS's minimal definition of basic (NOT what other people or organizations view to be "basic") .

In any case, it is highly unlikely that you would ever be tested or questioned about your "limited" and "imperfect" knowledge of Spanish that is assumed under the "basic" classification.

 

[FalconSlice]

it's funny. im not ragging on americans, as i am a naturalized citizen. But they think they can "speak" a language if they took a semester in high school or something. It's surprising how many people delude themselves into thinking they can actually speak another language. I read a statistic like 74 percent of americans say they speak spanish but only 6 percent of actual americans actually speak fluent spanish. weird

 

[Conflagration]

I'm going to guess at all those translations:

How long have you spoken spanish?

What is your favorite activity?

What do you like more, this or that?

Correct? Am I basic?

Yep! ¡Felicidades!

As you may or may not be aware, native speakers can speak at rates that are twice that of English speakers. So, the ability to read is handy, but when actually hearing it being spoken, you may not be accustomed to the speed, and as a result, may cause you to freeze.

Also, they may ask you other things as well, and that requires a vocabulary that you can rely on.

¡Buena suerte, OP! Ya veremos si puedes hacerlo.

 

[BlueLabel]

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[catzzz88]

I put down ... "good" I think. Wasnt that the one that was two up from "basic"? What was between them?

Anyways, here is my definition of "good": I have been taking Spanish since middle school (6th grade). I took it every year all the way through high school. I took three semesters of spanish in college including two Spanish literature courses. I also spoke a little bit of spanish as a young child (up until I was two or three) because we had mexican immigrants living in our basement that didn't speak English and they babysat me a lot. My conversational Spanish is "good," on certain topics. Reading is obviously much easier for me; I can easily read newspaper articles in Spanish with 90-95% clarity or more depending on the topic. I can speak with people my age and have traveled to Colombia, Spain, Costa Rica, and Panama and had no trouble getting what I needed and meeting new people along the way.

However, I do not consider myself "Proficient" and certainly not "fluent." Because there are certain empty spaces in my knowledge of the language simply due to ignorance. I have a little bit of trouble talking about politics (verbally), for example. I also have trouble with certain accents--Catalan is particularly difficult for me. Argentinian is my favorite, since my high school teacher for 4 years was from here but spoken language in Bogota seems great too. I also have trouble with Cubans--holy cow they speak fast!

Well, I hope that my explanation puts things into perspective. Also of note is the fact that I have been out of school for three years now. Although I would have a lot of trouble jumping into a conversation right now or tomorrow, I put down "good" because I know that my Spanish is in my noggin somewhere and it would only take a small amount of practice for me to get right back in the game. But, I think this applies for a lot of things. I stopped doing western blots for about a year once, came back to it and felt lost all over again, but once I got into it, I was an expert once again. 🙂

Anyways, be honest. It is definitely a possibility that someone will prompt you in Spanish during the interview if you select "good" or above, so be aware of this. Something that helps me touch up on Spanish and things I will likely start doing about 1 month before interviews are: (1) reading articles in Spanish (2) watching funny television shows in Spanish (3) litening to and translating fun songs in Spanish. These get my brain back into the spanish tune and I will be confident with my abilities in case something comes up in an interview.

Hope this helps someone! 🙂

Best,
C

 

[IanMcStruthers]

Would schools by the border like New Mexico, Texas, and California test your Spanish during an interview? Does proficiency in Googletranslater usage count as 'competency in writing"!?!

 

[gettheleadout]

How about this: go to BBC Mundo Portal, and watch the boletín (world news in 60 seconds). If you can keep up with that, you're probably alright.

I like this idea haha 👍

 

[BlueLabel]

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[mirimonster]

This question is hilarious. As an actual English-Spanish bilingual I find it nearly offensive that you think two years of learning how to say "taco" and "lapiz" has given you any kind of meaningful proficiency in the language. How about this for a litmus: if you were shadowing and the doc had a Spanish speaking patient, and he turned to you asking you to translate basic medical questions ( e.g. who takes care of his blood pressure, get a quick family history, where are his medical records, etc), could you do it competently and be confident in the information you gave the doctor?

A basic grasp of Spanish is sufficient to carry on that type of conversation. A basic speaker should be able to communicate simple ideas confidently (if imperfectly), not just have a conversation about what's for dinner (enchiladas?).

How about this: go to BBC Mundo Portal, and watch the boletín (world news in 60 seconds). If you can keep up with that, you're probably alright.

No. The definition of basic given by AMCAS is "I speak the language imperfectly and only to a limited degree and in limited situations. I have difficulty in or understanding extended conversations." as a previous poster wrote. I'm sorry that someone trying to learn a language but not speaking it perfectly offends you, luckily AMCAS doesn't view it in the same way. It's not like he claimed fluency. Saying that you have "Basic" Spanish tells med schools that you took a few classes in Spanish, and have some fundamental background in the language. It does not mean that you're qualified to take a history. How schools choose to use that is up to them. You don't know how much he learned in 2 years. After two years of high school Spanish I was able to spend a month in Spain with a Spanish speaking family and I got along just fine.

Calm down people! Basic means basic. No pop quizzes.

 

[jayzwasinledzep]

This question is hilarious. As an actual English-Spanish bilingual I find it nearly offensive that you think two years of learning how to say "taco" and "lapiz" has given you any kind of meaningful proficiency in the language. How about this for a litmus: if you were shadowing and the doc had a Spanish speaking patient, and he turned to you asking you to translate basic medical questions ( e.g. who takes care of his blood pressure, get a quick family history, where are his medical records, etc), could you do it competently and be confident in the information you gave the doctor?

A basic grasp of Spanish is sufficient to carry on that type of conversation. A basic speaker should be able to communicate simple ideas confidently (if imperfectly), not just have a conversation about what's for dinner (enchiladas?).

How about this: go to BBC Mundo Portal, and watch the boletín (world news in 60 seconds). If you can keep up with that, you're probably alright.

Have you applied? It sounds like your definition (and that of many others in this thread) of "basic" is different than the AMCAS one. Someone whose proficiency is basic as defined on the application would not be able to carry on a conversation or watch the news.

 

[mirimonster]

Have you applied? It sounds like your definition (and that of many others in this thread) of "basic" is different than the AMCAS one. Someone whose proficiency is basic as defined on the application would not be able to carry on a conversation or watch the news.

+1

This thread needs to calm down. Everyone's acting like he's trying to claim URM status or something!

 

[BlueLabel]

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[mirimonster]

You're missing the point. Of course I encourage everyone to try learning Spanish. What I find a little shocking is that people actually consider themselves entitled to special consideration because they frequently eat dinner at Mexican restaurants (or whatever equally pitiful exposure they claim to have). I will attack this inflated sense of mastery wherever I see it. In that vein, the notion that "most people have a basic understanding of Spanish" is laughably absurd.

As far as the admissions process goes, I thought it was best to err on the side of caution and tread carefully around issues that people could have strong feelings about. I KNOW I am not alone among native speakers of Spanish in being a little put out by monolingual English speakers' endless claims of proficiency.

You're missing the point of the thread. Your personal annoyances about English speakers claiming proficiency in a language that they do not speak is irrelevant. The fact is AMCAS has clear definitions of how to classify your language abilities. It's not a special consideration any more than honestly listing an EC you only participated in for a short period of time. Obviously don't make it more than it is, but if you did it, then you're entitled to put it on the application. If someone grossly over-exaggerates their abilities, I hope they get called out on it, but that is not what OP is doing.

I agree with you that in most areas of the country most people do NOT have a basic understanding of Spanish and it is absurd to think so. I was going to comment on the thread title being stupid, but then I got caught up in the rest of the wild accusations.

 

[BlueLabel]

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[mirimonster]

Fair enough. I really don't disagree, when you put it that way. I guess the title of this thread (and the apparent attitude of the OP) just touched a nerve.

Agreed, and totally understandable. I've run into those kinds of people and they're completely obnoxious, even to those of us who aren't bilingual.

 

[dsoz]

This question is hilarious. As an actual English-Spanish bilingual I find it nearly offensive that you think two years of learning how to say "taco" and "lapiz" has given you any kind of meaningful proficiency in the language. How about this for a litmus: if you were shadowing and the doc had a Spanish speaking patient, and he turned to you asking you to translate basic medical questions ( e.g. who takes care of his blood pressure, get a quick family history, where are his medical records, etc), could you do it competently and be confident in the information you gave the doctor?

That very thing happened to me the last time I was job shadowing. The patient had very limited English. I had 1 year of college Spanish. The Doc asked the Pt. if she wanted an interpreter and she declined. We got through it together, but it was not fun.

I guess I can put down "basic" and feel comfortable.

dsoz

 

[tn4596]

you can put it however you wan really...
but best case scenario..basic spanish aint gonna turn a decision around
and worst case: you look like a fool and liar

your choice...

 

[Frazier]

Hola.. como estas?

I feel like most people are considered (by amcas' definition) "basic" for proficiency in the Spanish language. Am I wrong? I took Spanish 2 years in high school and still remember quite enough to understand what mexicans are saying when I travel to Mexico...and I still remember how some verb conjugations work.

But...I'm by no means very proficient and can't really speak the language. So, should I list it on amcas and put "Basic". I just don't want to get an interview and have the adcoms mad at me for not really knowing the language and wanting to come across as I do.😕

Yes, according to AMCAS' definition of "basic", most pre-med that took spanish likely qualify.

AND IT IS FOR THAT REASON THAT IT WON'T MEAN CRAP ON YOUR APPLICATION.

Uno) everyone y su madre will qualify. "limited situations"? Gee, that could be interpreted as Greetings, Directions, Likes/Dislikes, and singing Happy Birthday... CHECK!

Dos) it's not like we're talking native speaker/fluent designation. jajajaja

Tres) tu don't need to be able to understand que people are hablaring to tu. As "basic" tu are expected to be slightly more proficient than el rock, and slightly less than a Chihuahua.

 

[Doctor Strange]

I've taken Spanish for twelve years, and all I really do with it is watch telenovelas occasionally (they're really quite addicting). Anyway, even after over a decade, I barely consider myself "good." Simply taking it in school means nothing. You have to be constantly using it in real situations to be at any useful level of proficiency.

 

[lobo.solo]

Yes, according to AMCAS' definition of "basic", most pre-med that took spanish likely qualify.

AND IT IS FOR THAT REASON THAT IT WON'T MEAN CRAP ON YOUR APPLICATION.

Uno) everyone y su madre will qualify. "limited situations"? Gee, that could be interpreted as Greetings, Directions, Likes/Dislikes, and singing Happy Birthday... CHECK!

Dos) it's not like we're talking native speaker/fluent designation. jajajaja

Tres) tu don't need to be able to understand que people are hablaring to tu. As "basic" tu are expected to be slightly more proficient than el rock, and slightly less than a Chihuahua.

Funny.

OP, since the AMCAS definition gives space for interpretation I guess you could it in your application. Given this, Adcoms may have a different interpretation of "basic" and if they decide to check your Spanish skills during an interview and you suck, that could hurt you.

 

[BlueLabel]

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[catzzz88]

I've taken Spanish for twelve years, and all I really do with it is watch telenovelas occasionally (they're really quite addicting). Anyway, even after over a decade, I barely consider myself "good." Simply taking it in school means nothing. You have to be constantly using it in real situations to be at any useful level of proficiency.

I definitely agree with this sentiment.

For example, I took danish for 1 semester and I put that down as "basic." Compare that to the 10 years that I have studied Spanish and I still barely consider myself "good." Jeg kan tale dansk. Jeg kan godt lide at drikke ol o slapper af. Hvor kommer du fra? Weee!

I think what they are getting at is whether or not your language skills could be of potential use in the clinic. If we are talking about anything below "good" or maybe even higher than "good," the answer is no.

I am just assuming here, but medical schools are not going to care if you know a few phrases in Sanskrit or if you can speak a few broken words of Malagasy. Can you understand and respond to a patient in an emergency situation? Could you perform a physical in the language? Or maybe... could you understand the basics and get a person comforted and under control until a native speaker can be found? If not, your language "skills" will be useless.

This isn't an extra-curricular... it isn't something to list on your resume. Its about utility.

Best,
C

 

[azide10]

!me duele! !me duele!

Working with a spanish population you pick up some things. I will personally be working on my spanish until I matriculate as I would like to take medical spanish as an elective and I hope to be somewhat decent otherwise that won't happen. I can help out and understand basic things and get points across with my hands and very basic vocab but I still wouldn't call myself at the level of basic. My sentences are probably very broken and barely understandable.

conversacion acabada (also know some ways to insult myself )

 

[deleted393595]

This question is hilarious. As an actual English-Spanish bilingual I find it nearly offensive that you think two years of learning how to say "taco" and "lapiz" has given you any kind of meaningful proficiency in the language. How about this for a litmus: if you were shadowing and the doc had a Spanish speaking patient, and he turned to you asking you to translate basic medical questions ( e.g. who takes care of his blood pressure, get a quick family history, where are his medical records, etc), could you do it competently and be confident in the information you gave the doctor?

A basic grasp of Spanish is sufficient to carry on that type of conversation. A basic speaker should be able to communicate simple ideas confidently (if imperfectly), not just have a conversation about what's for dinner (enchiladas?).

How about this: go to BBC Mundo Portal, and watch the boletín (world news in 60 seconds). If you can keep up with that, you're probably alright.

Thanks for the boletín link. I've always been looking for up-to-date online spanish news media. On the other hand, I feel that based on my experience as someone who learned Spanish in high school, and as someone who has to do the aforementioned things with patients in low-income areas who don't speak Spanish, the transition from talking about dinner to taking CCs and PMHs isn't that hard. If you can hold a basic conversation about what's being eaten, it means that you've already won most of the battle because some of the hardest things to conquer in Spanish are the grammar and basic vocabulary. Once you have that down, the rest becomes exponentially easier. So 2 years of Spanish is more than enough for establishing that base. However, I do agree with you that there is a difficulty barrier in performing those medical tasks since that requires acquaintance with a vast variety of other vocabulary, which is typically not taught in the classroom. But this is merely a matter of vocabulary comprehension and perhaps even a lack of practice that high schools seem to constantly fail to address. At the same time, I too am in the learning process. I'm regularly tripped up once a week by a condition or a colloquial vocab word, but it's happening less frequently because I'm constantly going over them in my head throughout the week. So I don't feel that your litmus test is necessarily that hard, but I do feel that it does present a barrier that separates those that have only the high school experience of Spanish, and that have a tiny bit more familiarity with the language along with their HS education.

But I may not necessarily be the most representative of most applicants at large since I can write and fluently speak 4 other languages (not including Spanish). I can resort to using intermediate Spanish just as well as I can English, my first language, and there have been times where I've even responded back to people in Spanish instead of English. If I'm working with patients long enough in a session, I may sometimes even end up thinking in Spanish at the end of the session.

 

[KnuxNole]

I took 3 years of Spanish in high school plus one semester of Spanish in college and my Spanish words I can say are:

Como estas?
Dolor en la cabeza?
lave los Manos?
Sangra!
Respire!

...that's about it

 

[Bacchus]

Do not list it. I took 4 years of Spanish in high school and was told by my teacher I could easily take a 200 level as a freshman or struggle a little in a 300 level course in college. I didn't pursue any Spanish courses and now feel like an idiot enfrente de mis "patients" who speak Spanish.