Language Placement & Exemptions
Placement exams are designed by UCI faculty and administered by DTEI-Academic Testing Center in order to assess your current knowledge of the subject. This assessment will then place you into the proper course level that is most suitable for you. Placement exams are available for select languages offered at UCI, and it is also available for Math 2A (Calculus I) placement.
Exemption exams allow a student to complete their language requirement(s) by assessing their language proficiency. These exams are most suitable for students who speak a language other than English fluently and are not interested in additional coursework.
The Academic Testing Center offers students placement and exemption options in the following languages:
Arabic*
Armenian
Chinese*
French
German
Japanese*
Korean*
Persian*
Russian
Spanish*
Vietnamese*
Exams marked with an asterisk (*) are a single exam that serves as both a placement and exemption test. Students will be exempted up until the course they are placed in. For example, students who are placed in the 2A course will be cleared from taking the 1A-C courses for that language.
Placement Testing
Are you interested in enrolling in a language course but have prior experience with the language?
Students with previous experience/background should complete a placement exam if they are interested in enrolling in a language course. Placement exams are designed to evaluate the language skills of students and assess their preparation for coursework.
Students with no prior experience are not required to take a placement exam (exceptions listed below). You may enroll directly through WebReg if space permits.
Placement tests are required for the following languages: Arabic, Armenian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Russian, Spanish, and Vietnamese.
Exceptions
Placement tests are not required for enrollment in lower-division French and German courses. Instead, students may enroll in these language courses based on their years of high school study, where one year of high school French or German is equivalent to one quarter at UCI. Students with college-level coursework in French and German should present their transcript to their academic counselor to determine which course to take.
The table below shows which course to consider based on your years of high school language study:
| High School Background (Years of French or German) |
UCI Course to Enroll In |
| One Year | 1B |
| Two Years | 1C |
| Three Years | 2A |
| Four Years | 2B |
Are you an incoming student with eligible SAT-II and/or AP scores?
If you have high scores on related AP or SAT-II tests and plan to continue study in the same language, you may wish to consult with a Humanities counselor to determine which course to take. An AP score of at least a 4 will provide credit through 2C. Students who score at least a 620 on the SAT-II should enroll in 2B or higher; however, no course credit is granted based on SAT-II scores alone.
Language Exemption
Are you looking for a language exemption to satisfy General Education requirements?
If you read and speak a language other than English, you have the opportunity to satisfy one of the following General Education requirements through the exemption testing. This option is best for students who do not wish to enroll in a language course.
Language Other Than English (Category VI General Education Requirement Policy)
Students must demonstrate competency in a language other than English. Study of a language other than English expands students’ horizons by encouraging understanding of another culture through its language and heightens awareness of one’s own language through the investigation of another linguistic system. Demonstrating competency through the 1C and/or 2A levels of UCI language course work may fulfill the Category VI requirement.
International/Global Issues (Category VIII General Education Requirement Policy)
Students must complete one course from Category VIII list. In addition, Category VIII may be satisfied by one quarter’s participation in the UC Education Abroad Program (EAP) or one quarter’s participation in an International Opportunities Program (IOP) with an approved IOP Credit Contract. Summer study abroad on an EAP or IOP (with approved IOP Credit Contract) satisfies this requirement when the program is at least five weeks long and the student completes at least one course worth at least four quarter units.
If you require exemption testing in any of these languages, register for the same exam through our registration portal.
Each exam may be taken only once. No university credit is given. There are no exam fees for currently-enrolled UCI students; however, a deposit may be required for some exams. Test results will not appear on your transcript and notification will be sent to your academic unit during Finals week.
If you are interested in taking a language exemption test, feel free to inquire whether the language exam you’re looking for is available. We are always available via email at testcenter@uci.edu.