Bachelor of Arts in World Languages and Cultures

Language Course Placement Guide

The following are suggestions to help students and advisors know which level of a FL course the student should register for initially (students should compare their abilities with the descriptions below and sign up for the course that most closely matches their proficiency). Students should send an email to languages@georgiasouthern.edu to request an appointment for a placement interview and to obtain override authorization into the course. Note that, because courses are sequenced, it is a huge advantage to students to take a FL class their very first semester or as soon as possible.

Note: You may place out of 1001, 1002, 1060, 2001, 2002, and/or 2060 courses and still get credit for them. If you have taken an offered language previously, you should attempt to take the course that best fits your current abilities—you do not need to and should not start in 1001, if you don’t need to. If you take a higher course and receive a C or better (must be a Georgia Southern course; cannot be an eCore or transfer course from another institution or AP/IB/CLEP credit), you may petition to get credit for the lower course(s) through Credit by Proficiency. For more information about the process click here and/or talk to Department of World Languages and Cultures staff for more information.

Course Credit by Proficiency

We allow undergraduate students to get credit for lower-division courses (1000s/2000s) upon passing a higher course with a C or better (must be a Georgia Southern course; cannot be an eCore or transfer course from another institution or AP/IB/CLEP credit). This is in accordance with the University’s Credit by Proficiency Examination policy. For example, if students pass FREN 2001, they can receive credit for FREN 1001 and 1002 (or 1060). The credit is “K” credit, the same as if the students had passed an AP/IB/CLEP exam.

If you are an undergraduate student, here’s the petition process you should follow:

Do not pay the test fee before receiving approval from the Office of the Registrar and the department chair.

1. Take a foreign language course at your level of current proficiency at Georgia Southern.
   • If you have not taken a foreign language course yet, and you need to estimate your level of proficiency, use this Placement Guide. If you believe your proficiency level is at 1002 or above, send an email to languages@georgiasouthern.edu to request an appointment for a placement interview and to obtain override authorization into the course.
2. Take the recommended course and pass it with a C or better.
3. Click on Proficiency Examination Form, complete the information within the form, and click ‘Submit’. (You will need to submit one form for each course that you are requesting proficiency credit for.)
4. The form will then go to the Office of the Registrar and the Department Chair of World Languages and Cultures for necessary approvals.
5. If your proficiency request is approved by both offices, you will receive an email requesting that you pay a test fee of $15 for each course requested.
6. Once the test fee is paid, please attach the receipt of payment to the form noted in the email. Do not pay the test fee before receiving approval from the Office of the Registrar and the department chair. The approval will be sent within this form.
7. Once the examiner submits ‘Satisfactory’ examination results, credit should be posted to the student’s academic record by the Office of the Registrar within 5-7 business days.

The Exit Exam (“EE”) is a graduation requirement for undergraduate majors (B.A. in World Languages and Cultures with a concentration in one or more of the following : Arabic Studies, Chinese Studies, French Studies, German Studies, Japanese Studies, Spanish Studies, Spanish for the Professions). It is a part of the B.A. degree assessment.

• Your advisor will enroll you in the 0-credit-hour course FORL 5500: Foreign Language Exit Exam. The exam components will be administered in this course through Folio on the day of the exam. The purpose of this Folio course is simply to register, and to administer the exam; consider this page its syllabus and schedule. You will see a score for each component of the exam in Folio, but a course grade will not show on your transcript. A passing result is not required for graduation.
  • Online, via Zoom
• Follow the links to read about each component and what to expect, and to know how to prepare. Links are to DOCs or PDFs (and open in new windows/tabs). The B.A. in World Languages and Cultures Exit Exam features two components (measures): a Speaking Proficiency Assessment (SPA) for SLO 1 Speaking and a Writing Proficiency Assessment (WPA) for SLO 2 Writing. Here are the corresponding Ratings Rubrics used for evaluation.
• If you have questions, contact Mr. Mauricio Peña Sánchez, the Exit Exam Coordinator.

FL 2001, 2002 Core Area B Exam

This will be administered in all WL 2001, and 2002 classes. It is due to a Core assessment requirement and assess Area B, where all those course are. This is the Core Curriculum Learning Outcome for Area B: “Students will recognize and articulate global perspectives across diverse societies in historical and cultural contexts.”

• The format is the same for all courses, however, the content is language specific.
• Results will be reported in aggregate, numbers only; no personally identifiable information will be included. (However, if you wish to know your individual result, see your instructor.)

FL 2002 Progress Assessment

All students in FL 2002 (all languages, all delivery modes) will take a Program Assessment. This provides data for the Comprehensive Program Review (CPR), an assessment of the department’s effectiveness over time. We look at the aggregate scores and use the information to help guide our decisions about the future of the program. Your participation will help us tremendously, which is why your honest efforts in completing the assignments are important to us. Performance on the FL 2002 PA will not adversely impact the grade, graduation, etc., but students are encouraged to do their best and to use it as an opportunity to practice for final exams, essays, etc. without the pressure of a grade. Your instructors may give credit for participation.

• Students will take the FL 2002 PA in Folio during week 13 of the semester. All FL 2002 students will be enrolled in their corresponding course (there will be one course for French, German, and Spanish and another for Arabic, Chinese, and Japanese [the difference is solely due to the writing systems used]). They will receive an email invitation to participate.
• All students in all languages take the same exam (format, questions). The FL 2002 PA consists of two questions for SLO 1 (Speaking) and one essay topic for SLO 2 (Writing). These attempt to elicit what most students in any language should be able to address in FL 2002. All exam prompts for both SLOs will be in writing and in English (however, students will record their answers to the speaking prompts in the target language). Here are the corresponding Ratings Rubrics used for evaluation.
• Results will be reported in aggregate, numbers only; no personally identifiable information will be included. (However, if you wish to know your individual result, see the PA coordinator.)