The student, in consultation with his/her advisor, should select an African language relevant to the student’s geographical or cultural area of concentration. The language, for African students, may be the student’s first language, though coursework in other African languages is encouraged. Languages are offered in the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures.

Students may demonstrate proficiency in an African language in the following ways:

1. If a student is a native speaker of an African language, he/she must demonstrate proficiency to a faculty member at Howard University who is a speaker of that language. If the student shows proficiency, the faculty member will write a letter to the Director of Graduate Studies in the Department of African Studies that will be placed in the student’s file. The student will consult the Director of Graduate Studies about an appropriate faculty member who speaks the language. If there is not a Howard faculty member who speaks that language, then the student will consult with the Director of Graduate Studies about another appropriate person who can test the student’s proficiency.
   
   

2. Students do not have to take an African language at Howard University to fulfill this requirement. They may take courses at other institutions (either before or while registered for a graduate degree at Howard) and submit transcripts with grades or study through private tutors. In the case of the latter, the tutor will submit an evaluation of the student’s proficiency, but the Department of African Studies maintains the right to certify a student’s proficiency independently.
   
   

3. Students who take the equivalent of two semesters of courses in an African language and maintained a B average will have shown proficiency in that language.
   
   At the Ph.D. level, students are required to demonstrate proficiency in computer literacy (statistics) and an African language or in two languages (besides English), a world language (such as Arabic, Chinese, Spanish, French, Portuguese, or German) and an African language. In the case of the world language, the student may show proficiency through a transcript of coursework in the language or through passing an examination administered by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at Howard University. The Department accepts languages spoken on the African continent, but the students should consult the Director of Graduate Studies about the appropriateness of a language before proceeding with learning a language.
   
   Students may show proficiency in computer literacy by taking courses in computer science and/or statistics. For instance, the course, Computers and Society, offered at Howard University. This requirement may be fulfilled through coursework taken for other degrees. Students should consult with the Director of Graduate Studies about the appropriate documentation for fulfilling this requirement.