The College of Arts and Sciences entrance requirement is two courses at the 100 level in a foreign language. Students admitted to Arts and Sciences without this background will be required to complete these courses. The requirement may be met by examination or by successful completion of the courses taken. (Two years of good high school work in a foreign language should enable a student to place out of the first 8 credit hours and into 200-level courses.) 

The B.A. degree requirement of foreign language may be fulfilled in the following ways:

• By completing satisfactorily 6 credit hours of course work (200 and 250) or the equivalent in a foreign language.
• By completing the 200 level course and two semesters of designated culture courses taught in English from the same language base.
  • These culture courses may be taken at any point during the student's program of study of a foreign language. 
  • The two semesters of culture courses taken in lieu of 250 will only be counted under Group II and cannot simultaneously be counted in any other Group distribution. See online Matrix located on the COAS webpages for a list of acceptable classes.
• By attaining a placement test score sufficient for placement in courses at the first- semester third-year level or above in a foreign language.
• If a student places into the 250 level, she will need only to complete that class to meet the Group II requirement.

SPECIAL CREDIT AS A RESULT OF PLACEMENT TEST

Special credit may be awarded for the two highest courses a student tests out of (100, 150, 200, or 250), up to a maximum of 8 credits.   

Any student who is full-time (12cr. – 18cr.) does not need to pay for special credits under the banded tuition fee for full-time students, regardless of their freshman to senior status. Transfer and new students in their first year who are part-time are also exempt from charge for special credits. All others must pay a per credit rate for eligible special credits.

For more information about the placement test and eligibility requirements, please visit: http://www.northwest.iu.edu/placement-testing/modern-languages/index.htm 

Proficiency Examinations

A student may complete the language requirement by taking a proficiency examination administered by the department concerned. Please note that no credit is conferred through this process. Students with a background in a language other than those taught at IU Northwest may take an examination from the relevant department at IU Bloomington. Such examinations will be given after the student has petitioned the IU Bloomington department and received the consent of the department. 

Native Speakers of a Foreign Language

Students are considered “native speakers of a foreign language” if they have completed secondary (high) school in that language. They may not earn credit for any courses at the fist or secondary-year level in their native language but they may be exempted from the foreign language requirement. If the student did not complete secondary (high) school in another language, he or she may take the placement test.

For more information about the placement test and eligibility requirements, please visit: http://www.northwest.iu.edu/placement-testing/modern-languages/index.htm 

For questions, please contact the Department of Modern Languages at 219-980-6714.