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College of Arts and Science Pre-major Academic Advising Resource Center

College of Arts and Science Pre-major Academic Advising Resource Center
  2. Academics
  3. Foreign Language Proficiency & Placement

Foreign Language Proficiency & Placement

FOREIGN LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY:

Students who wish to demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language, but who have not taken a class at Vanderbilt and do not have an appropriate AP or IB test score, must do so via testing through the Tennessee Language Center (TLC).

To demonstrate proficiency for AXLE, students must score 4 or higher on both the spoken and written ALTA tests administered by TLC. (Latin and classical Greek are exceptions; proficiency tests for those two languages are administered through the Department of Classical Studies.) Students who demonstrate proficiency in a foreign language to the level of a second-semester language acquisition course taught at Vanderbilt are not required to take any further language instruction, but must still complete three courses in the International Cultures category in AXLE.

Below are the test scores by which students may demonstrate the Foreign Language proficiency required in AXLE:

  • AP scores of 4 or 5 in Chinese Language and Culture; French Language or French Literature; German Language; Italian Language and Culture; Japanese Language and Culture; Vergil, Latin Lyric Poetry, or Latin Literature; Spanish Language or Spanish Literature.
  • IB scores of 6 or 7 in French (Higher), Japanese (Higher), Latin (Higher), Russian (Higher), or Spanish (Higher).

FOREIGN LANGUAGE PLACEMENT

In planning your studies in foreign language, you want to be sure to select a course at the right level for your background and interests. In other disciplines, several introductory courses are offered for students with different objectives. This section provides advice to help you select the right course. If you still are uncertain after reading this material, your CASPAR adviser will help. Just follow the instructions in your registration email to contact him or her.

Arabic

If you have never studied Arabic, register for Arabic 1101. If you have studied Arabic, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies of Arabic Studies in the Department of Religious Studies for placement.

French

You will be placed in French courses on the basis of your score on the departmental placement test. You may take the departmental test over the summer or once you arrive on campus. You will need a valid Vanderbilt email address to use this site. If you have not taken a placement test, register tentatively in the course for which you believe yourself prepared on the basis of your high school work. (Two years of high school French typically prepare students for French 1103.) Placement test results will be used to change placement, if advisable.

  • If you have never studied French in high school, register for French 1101.
  • If your departmental placement score is below 260, register for French 1101.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 260 and 349, register for French 1103.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 350 and 419, register for French 2203.
  • If your departmental placement score is above 420, register for French 2501W.
German

You will be placed in German courses by the department on the basis of your score on the departmental placement test. If you have not taken the test, you should enroll in the course for which you believe yourself to be prepared. (Students with two years of high school German typically enroll in German 2201.) Recommended placements are given below.

  • If you have not studied German, register for German 1101.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 0 and 200, register for German 1101.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 201 and 400, register for German 1102.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 401 and 600, register for German 2201.
  • If your departmental placement score is between 601 and 800, register for German 2202.
  • If your departmental placement score is above 800, register for German 3201 and above.
Greek

If you have never studied Greek, register for Greek 1101. If you have studied Greek, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Classical and Mediterranean Studies for placement.

Hebrew

If you have never studied Hebrew, register for Hebrew 1101. If you have studied Hebrew, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Jewish Studies for placement.

Italian

If you have never studied Italian, register for Italian 1101. If you have studied Italian, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies of Italian in the Department of French and Italian for placement. 

Korean, Chinese, & Japanese

If you have never studied Korean, Chinese, or Japanese, register for Korean, Chinese, or Japanese 1101. If you have studied them, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Asian Studies for placement.

Latin

If you have never studied Latin, register for Latin 1101. If you have studied Latin, consult with the appropriate Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Classical and Mediterranean Studies  for placement.

Portuguese

Students who wish to study Portuguese begin with Portuguese 1103, Intensive Elementary Portuguese. This course assumes that the student has some degree of proficiency in Spanish or another Romance language. Portuguese 2203, Intermediate Portuguese, can be taken after 1103. While no formal placement exam is available, all students with prior knowledge of Portuguese will be interviewed and placed by the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. 

Russian

If you have never studied Russian, register for Russian 1101. If you have studied Russian, consult with the Director of Undergraduate Studies of Russian Studies in the Department of German, Russian and East European Studies for placement. 

Spanish

You will be placed in Spanish courses on the basis of your score on the departmental placement test.

You will need a valid Vanderbilt email address to use this site. You may take the test over the summer or once you arrive on campus.

  1. If you have never studied Spanish, register for Spanish 1100, Spanish for True Beginners. (Note: This course is only for those with no prior study.)
  2. If you score below 275 on the departmental test, register for Spanish 1101.
  3. If you score between 275 and 364 on the departmental test, register for Spanish 1103. (Note: Spanish 1102 is only for students continuing from Spanish 1100 or Spanish 1101. You cannot place into Spanish 1102.)
  4. If you score between 365 and 409 on the departmental test, register for Spanish 2201.
  5. If you had three or more years of Spanish in high school and a score between 410 and 459 on the departmental test, register for Spanish 2204.
  6. If you had four or more years of Spanish in high school and a score of 460 on the departmental test, register for Spanish 3290 or 3301W or 3310W.
  7. If you received a 4 or 5 on the Spanish AP test, refer to the Spanish department for guidance at  https://as.vanderbilt.edu/spanish-portuguese/undergraduate-courses/ .
Other Languages

If you wish to continue in other languages you have studied before, consult with the appropriate department for placement. Beginning courses offered in other languages are listed below.

Persian 1101

Haitian Creole 1101

Hindi Urdu 1101

K'iché 1101

Sanskrit 1101

Tibetan 1101