Don't confuse "linguist" with "translator" or "interpreter." In reality, a "linguist" is a person who knows a lot about how languages work, how they are put together, what their history is, how they are related, and so on. A "linguist" may, in fact, speak only her own language well. (An example of the goofy things that linguists study is the fact that the word "do" has five uses in English. You probably never thought about it, but it is true. This information, however, does not help you translate anything or prepare you to deal with people better.) A translator/interpreter knows several languages well. She may work at the United Nations (ability in five languages is required there), with the military, in private business helping with international trade, and the like. If that is what you are interested in, you need to study foreign languages specifically, and to put yourself in the best position to get hired, you need to study the difficult ones which others are avoiding. Lots of people are bilingual in English and Spanish. The need is in Korean, Arabic, Farsi (the language of Iran), Chinese, and so on. If, on the other hand, you are seriously interested in how language itself works, how it reflects the mind, and how people learn and use it, then you need to study "linguistics" proper. Check college catalogs to find out which schools offer the courses, or, as others have told you, talk to the guidance counselor.