How long will it take me to learn a second language???

Why does it seem to take so long for you to learn a second language?  Let’s start with your brain.  It takes time for your brain to establish new neural networks and connections.  The good news is that less input is required to activate established neuron connections over time.  What does this mean?  For example, when you first hear a set of ‘foreign’ sounds, they have no meaning to you.  But, as you practice and spend time with these sounds, you come to realize that they represent words and have meaning because your brain learns the patterns to distinguish one sound from another.  Therefore, overtime it will take you less input to register what a word means than it did when you first started learning it.  Ok, so how long exactly will it take?  How many hours of instruction do students actually need?   According to CASLS (Center for Applied Second Language Studies) about 15% of high school students reach Intermediate-Mid to Intermediate-High proficiency after approximately 720 hours of study, which is about four years in a typical high school program while the remainder of students generally reach a limited, basic functionality in the language (high novice or Intermediate-Low level).  So, how do four years of high school foreign language study compare to the university?  High school students with three years of study have approximately the same proficiency levels as university students with one year of study.  However, it must be noted that ultimately the number of instructional hours to reach a certain level of proficiency varies from student to student, and as the old adage goes, “you get out of it what you put into it.”