Second Language Requirements

Proficiency-Based Assessment Information and Instructions

TESTING DEADLINES:    
     
•  Exam requests are accepted from the first day of classes through the Friday of Week 6.    
•  Exams must be taken by the Friday of Week 8.    
•  If you speak, read, and write in a language other than English and cannot find a testing option below to demonstrate proficiency in that language, contact the Department of World Languages and Literatures (world@pdx.edu) to see if other options might be available.    
 

ACTFL 

• PSU students may submit approved ACTFL exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement. 
• Please note, although ACTFL OPI scores do fulfill the Second Language Admission Requirement, an ACTFL OPI score alone does not suffice to waive the B.A./M.A. Second Language Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:  
  • Admission Requirement: Visit PSU's Admissions page to learn which ACTFL scores are approved to meet the Second Language Admission Requirement
  • B.A./M.A. Requirement: See the chart below to learn which ACTFL scores are approved to meet the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken an ACTFL exam in one of the approved languages, submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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Advanced Placement

• PSU students may submit approved Advanced Placement (AP) exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency: Visit PSU's Admissions page to learn which AP scores are approved to meet the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken an AP exam in one of the approved languages, submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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ALTA Writing Exam

• PSU Students may submit approved ALTA Writing Exam scores to satisfy  both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement. NOTE: ALTA exams are only accepted in the writing format.
• PSU only accepts ALTA Writing Exam results in the following languages (subject to change): Afrikaans, Azerbaijani, Bangla, Bosnian, Burmese, Dari, Ewe, Fante, Fulani (Puula), Ga, Gujarati, Hausa, Igbo, Kazakh, Kinyarwanda, Kurmanji, Lao, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali, Pashto, Punjabi (Eastern or Western), Sinhala, Slovak, Slovenian, Sorani, Tajik, Tamil, Tigrinya, Twi, Uzbek, Wolof, and Yoruba.
• Scores needed to demonstrate proficiency: 
  • Admission Requirement: 3 or higher
  • B.A. and M.A. Requirement: 5 or higher
• Instructions:
  • For students who need to complete an ALTA Writing Exam:
    1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral form. Your assigned advisor's name and contact information is listed in your myPSU account on the "Academics" page. More information on how to find your advisor: pdx.edu/advising/pathways
    2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
    3. Once we receive your exam request form, a payment link will be emailed to you to pay the $95 fee.
    4. Once the payment is received, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
    5. After taking the test, allow two weeks for the results to be received and processed by WLL.
  • For students who have already completed an ALTA Writing Exam:
    1.  ALTA Writing Exams may be taken prior to entering the University. If you have taken an ALTA Writing exam in one of the approved languages, submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures and email a copy of your score to world@pdx.edu. 
    2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility: Students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option.
  • Location: Fully remote/online.
  • Fee: $95
  • Credit: This exam is to demonstrate proficiency only. No credits will be awarded.
  • Format: See the Sample Questions provided by ALTA (in English - test will be administered in other language)
  • Time limit: 60 Minutes
  • There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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BYU FLATS

• PSU students may submit approved Brigham Young University Foreign Language Achievement Testing Services (BYU FLATS) exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• PSU only accepts BYU FLATS exam results in the following languages (subject to change): Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Bulgarian, Cambodian, Cantonese, Cebuano, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Fijian, Finnish, Georgian, Greek, Haitian Creole, Hmong, Hungarian, Icelandic, Ilonggo-Hiligayan, Indonesian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Malagasy, Malay, Mongolian, Polish, Romanian, Samoan, Serbian, Tagalog, Tahitian, Thai, Tongan, and Ukrainian.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:
  • Admission Requirement: 102 or higher
  • B.A. and M.A. Requirement: 201 or higher    
• Instructions:
  • For students who need to complete a BYU FLATS exam:
    1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral form. Your assigned advisor's name and contact information is listed in your myPSU on the 'Academics' page. More information on how to find your advisor: pdx.edu/advising/pathways.
    2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
    3. Once we receive your exam request form, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
    4. After taking the test, allow two weeks for the results to be received and processed by WLL. 
    5. There is a mandatory 6-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.
  • For students who have already completed a BYU FLATS exam:
    1. BYU FLATS exams may be taken prior to entering the University. If you have taken a BYU FLATS exam in one of the approved languages, email flats-sec@byu.edu to request an official score report be sent to Portland State.
    2. Please also submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility: Students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option.
  • Location: Fully remote/online
  • Fee: $50 + $20 for proctoring. Total: $70.
  • Credit: This exam is to demonstrate proficiency only. No credit will be awarded.
  • Format: The exam is multiple-choice and includes a listening comprehension section. ​There are no speaking or writing parts.
  • Time limit: 2.5 hours
  • Consult the BYU FLATS website for more information.
  • There is a mandatory 6-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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CLEP

• PSU students may submit approved College Level Exam Program (CLEP) exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• In addition to fulfilling a language requirement, students may earn up to 12 credits in a first-year or second-year language sequence (101/102/103 or 201/202/203), depending on the language and score.
• PSU only accepts CLEP exam results in the following languages (subject to change): French, German and Spanish.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:  

• Instructions:
  • Note: If you only need to prove proficiency in a second language to fulfill a language requirement and do not need undergraduate credit, please complete an ALTA Writing, BYU FLATS, WLL Waiver Exam or Proctored WebCAPE.
  • For students who need to complete a CLEP exam:
    1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral Form. Your assigned advisor's name and contact information is listed in your myPSU on the 'Academics' page. More information on how to find your advisor: pdx.edu/advising/pathways.
    2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu. 
    3. Once we receive your exam request form, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
    4. If you have any questions about the content of the exam, visit the official CLEP website.
    5. There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.
  • For students who have already completed a CLEP exam:
    1. CLEP exams may be taken prior to entering the University. If you have already completed a CLEP exam in one of the approved languages, request an official CLEP transcript be sent to Portland State or download the transcript request form from the College Board. 
    2. Please also submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
    3. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility:
    • Students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option. 
    • Native speakers cannot receive credit for this exam in their native language.
  • Location: Students can take this exam at an approved testing site or remotely/online.
    • Find an in-person testing center.
    • Visit the About Remote Proctoring site to see if you qualify to take a test remotely.
    • If you are unable to test at a testing center or if your technology does not meet the remote proctoring requirements, please email world@pdx.edu.
  • Fee: $93 + proctoring fee. Proctoring fee varies based on testing center and format. 
  • Credit:
    • See chart below
    • A student may earn a maximum of 12 credits in a first-year or second-year language sequence (101/102/103 or 201/202/203), depending on the language and score.
    • The language sequences must be taken in order.
    • A student who has earned credit in a 300-level or higher language course or sequence will not receive credit for a first- or second-year language course or sequence
  • Format: The exam contains approximately 121 questions. There are two listening sections and one reading section.
  • Time limit: 90 minutes
  • Consult the CLEP website for more information.
  • There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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Credit for Prior Learning 

• PSU students may complete a Credit for Prior Learning exam to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement. In addition to fulfilling a language requirement, a student may earn 12-15 credits in a first-year or second-year language sequence (101/102/103 or 201/202/203), depending on the language and score. 
• PSU only accepts Credit for Prior Learning exam results in the following languages (subject to change): American Sign Language (ASL), Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Hebrew (Modern), Italian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Norwegian, Persian, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, and Vietnamese. 
• Credit and Score Information:
  • Native speakers cannot receive credit for this exam in their native language.
  • A student may earn 12-15 credits in a first-year or second-year language sequence (101/102/103 or 201/202/203), depending on the language and score.
  • The language sequences must be taken in order (credit for one or two classes in a sequence is also permitted).
  • A student who has earned credit in a 300-level or higher language course or sequence will not receive credit for a first-year or second-year language course or sequence.
  • Credit received by exam is graded Pass or No Pass (P/NP).
• Instructions:
  • Note: If you only need to prove proficiency in a second language to fulfill a language requirement and do not need undergraduate credit, please complete an ALTA Writing, BYU FLATS, WLL Waiver Exam or Proctored WebCAPE.
  1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral Form.
  2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form and a Credit for Prior Learning form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu. 
  3. Once we receive your request forms, a payment link will be emailed to you to pay the $200 fee. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
  4. Once the payment is received, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
  5. There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period for retaking a failed exam.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility: Students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option. The course number cannot be 199, 299, 399, or 401-410. Native speakers cannot receive credit for this exam in their native language.    
  • Location: Varies by language
  • Fee: $200
  • Credit: See below
  • Format: Varies by language
  • Time limit: Varies by language
  • There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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Goethe-Institut

• PSU students may submit Goethe-Institut exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:
  • Admission Requirement: Certification of A1 or higher
  • B.A./M.A. Requirement: Certification of A2 or higher
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken a Goethe-Institut exam, please submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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International Baccalaureate

• PSU students may submit approved International Baccalaureate (IB) exam scores to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency: Visit PSU's Admissions page to learn which IB scores are approved to meet the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken an approved IB exam in one of the approved languages, request official IB transcripts by following the instructions from the International Baccalaureate.
  2. Please also submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  3. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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SAT

• PSU students may submit a SAT Foreign Language Subject Test to satisfy the Second Language Admission Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:
  • Admission Requirement: 500 or higher
  • B.A./M.A. Requirement: The SAT Foreign Language Subject Test does not satisfy the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken a SAT Foreign Language Subject Test, please submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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STAMP

• PSU students may submit a Standards-based Measurement of Proficiency (STAMP) exam to satisfy the Second Language Admission Requirement.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:
  • Admission Requirement: Novice or higher
  • B.A./M.A. Requirement: The STAMP exam does not satisfy the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Instructions:
  1. If you have taken a STAMP exam, please submit a Second Language Requirement Document Review Request form to the Department of World Languages and Literatures.
  2. Once we receive your request form, we will email you the next steps. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.

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WLL Waiver

• PSU students may complete a WLL Waiver exam to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement.
• Non-PSU students may also take this exam to meet a requirement outside of PSU. 
• WLL only offers Waiver Exams in the following languages (subject to tester/proctor availability): American Sign Language (ASL), Amharic, Chinese (Mandarin), Hebrew (Modern), Hindi, Italian, Iu-Mien, Japanese, Korean, Latin, Maay Maay, Norwegian, Oromo, Persian, Portuguese (Brazilian or Continental), Russian, Somali, Swahili, Swedish, Turkish, Urdu, and Vietnamese. 
• Instructions:
  • PSU students:
    1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral Form. Your assigned advisor's name and contact information is listed in your myPSU on the 'Academics' page. More information on how to find your advisor: pdx.edu/advising/pathways.
    2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
    3. Once we receive your exam request form, a payment link will be emailed to you to pay the $80 fee.
    4. Once the payment is received, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
    5. There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period for retaking a failed exam.
  • Non-PSU students: 
    1. After you have verified with your home institution that this exam will meet its standards, submit the Non-PSU Student Language Exam Request Form.
    2. Once we receive your exam request form, a payment link will be emailed to you to pay the $100 fee.
    3. Once the payment is received, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
    4. There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period for retaking a failed exam.
    5. Exam results are issued using Portland State University Department of World Languages and Literatures letterhead and will not be recorded on a transcript.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility: PSU students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option. Non-PSU students must verify with their home institution that this exam will meet its standards.
  • Location: Varies by language
  • Fee: PSU Students - $80; Non-PSU Students - $100 (subject to change)
  • Credit: This exam is to demonstrate proficiency only. No credit will be awarded.
  • Format: Varies by language
  • Time limit: Varies by language
  • There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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Proctored WebCAPE 

• PSU students may complete a Proctored WebCAPE exam in French, German, or Spanish to satisfy both the Second Language Admission Requirement and the Second Language B.A./M.A. Requirement. 
• PLEASE NOTE: WebCAPE exams must be taken with proctoring to count for the Second Language Requirement. Exams taken without proctoring are valid for class placement purposes only.
• Scores Needed to Demonstrate Proficiency:
  • Admission Requirement: 
    • French: 253 or higher
    • German: 273 or higher
    • Spanish: 226 or higher
  • B.A. and M.A. Requirement: 
    • French: 395 or higher
    • German: 400 or higher
    • Spanish: 451 or higher   
• Instructions:
  1. Have your academic advisor complete the Advisor Language Proficiency Exam Referral form. Your assigned advisor's name and contact information is listed in your myPSU on the 'Academics' page. More information on how to find your advisor: pdx.edu/advising/pathways.
  2. Once we receive your advisor's referral form, we will email you an exam request form to complete. This email will come from world@pdx.edu.
  3. Once we receive your exam request form, a payment link will be emailed to you to pay the $30 proctoring fee. 
  4. Once the payment is received, we will email you approval to schedule the exam. The exam must be completed within 30 days of the approval notice.
  5. There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.
• About the Exam:
  • Eligibility: Students must be formally admitted to PSU and currently enrolled in or have completed a course at PSU to qualify for this testing option.
  • Location: Fully remote/online
  • Fee: $40 ($30 proctoring service fee paid to PSU + $10 exam fee paid to WebCAPE)
  • Credit: This exam is to demonstrate proficiency only. No credit will be awarded.
  • Format: WebCAPE is an adaptive test, meaning that the length of the exam is dependent on how the questions are answered.
  • Time limit: 45 minutes 
  • Please consult the WebCAPE website for more information.
  • There is a mandatory 3-month waiting period to retake a failed exam.

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