Language Requirement and Placement
DePauw offers students the opportunity to study Chinese, French, German, Ancient Greek, Italian, Japanese, Latin, and Spanish. Language courses are offered by Classical Studies and global language departments or programs. DePauw positions language study in exciting contexts by connecting language study to areas such as culture and history.
Language Requirement
Effective Fall 2019, students enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts will complete two semesters of a language other than English. To fulfill the requirement, both semesters must be taken in the same language. Students may choose to complete this requirement with a language they have studied previously or they may choose to begin a new language at the first-semester level. Students taking a language studied previously should begin their language study at the appropriate level, according to a placement exam and in consultation with the director of the appropriate language program. Students may fulfill part of the requirement by taking one semester in an off-campus program with advance approval of the relevant language program director. International students whose first language is not English may be certified as meeting this requirement through the Office of the Registrar, and in consultation with the director of English for Academic Purposes. With the approval of the relevant language director, students who transfer to DePauw may fulfill one semester of the language requirement through transfer credit (this is in addition to the maximum of four credits that transfer students may apply to distribution requirements). The language requirement does not apply to the School of Music four-year degree programs (School of Music students should consult the SOM graduation requirements, which are different from those required of students enrolled in the College of Liberal Arts).
General Placement Information
If you want to begin a language you have not studied previously, and that you have no significant experience with, you may request the beginning level course. These 100-level courses are listed below and in the course list for first-year students.
If you have studied a language previously, whether or not you plan to continue with the language, you must follow the placement instructions for that language, as described below. It is important to have this language placement information on file in case your interests change later.
If you have studied a language and want to continue studying it at DePauw, you may request courses at higher levels, subject to results of placement procedures described below. For some languages, placement will need to be confirmed by a proctored placement test or discussion with a language faculty member after you arrive on-campus in August or through AP results. Information about confirming language placement will be available after students arrive on campus. Even if language placement needs to be confirmed on-campus, students may still request language courses over the summer using the tentative summer placement results as described below.
If you begin your study of a language at DePauw at an intermediate or advanced level, you may be eligible for retroactive credit in earlier language courses upon appropriate completion of more advanced courses. Information about retroactive credit will be available after you arrive on campus.
General questions can be asked of the Global Language Coordinator at cjgomolka@depauw.edu.
Placement Procedures by Language
Procedures to determine language placement differ by language. Follow these instructions based on whether you have studied the language previously.
ANCIENT GREEK
If you have never studied ancient Greek you may request GRK101, Introduction to Ancient Greek I. There is no written placement test for Greek. If you have studied ancient Greek before, email Professor James Wells at jameswells@depauw.edu to discuss placement options. You will also have the opportunity to confirm your placement with a faculty member after arriving on campus.
JAPANESE
If you have never studied Japanese you may request JAPN151, Elementary Japanese I. There is no written placement test for Japanese. If you have studied Japanese before, use this Japanese Placement Guide to determine the course you should begin with. If you have questions after reviewing the guide, contact Professor Hiroko Chiba at hchiba@depauw.edu to discuss placement options. You will also have the opportunity to confirm your placement with a faculty member after arriving on campus.
LATIN
If you have never studied Latin, you may request LATN123, Elementary Latin I. There is no written placement test for Latin. If you have studied Latin before, use this Latin Placement Guide to determine the course you should begin with. If you have questions after reviewing the guide, contact Professor Dave Guinee at dguinee@depauw.edu to discuss placement options. You will also have the opportunity to confirm your placement with a faculty member after arriving on campus.
CHINESE, FRENCH, GERMAN, ITALIAN and SPANISH
If you have never studied these languages, you may request the following beginning courses:
- Chinese - CHIN161, Elementary Chinese I
- French - GFS101, Elementary French I
- German - GRMN111, Elementary German I
- Italian - ITAL171, Italian Through Culture I
- Spanish - HISP131, Introduction to the Spanish Speaking World I
If you have studied one of these languages, you must complete an online multiple-choice placement test. It is in your best interest to do your best work on the test, but you may not use resources such as dictionaries or online tools as you complete the placement. You should take the placement test once before you enter your list of 10-15 courses (June 23). You may retake the test during orientation week in August if you want to confirm your score.
To begin the online placement test for these languages, use this link.
The final screen of the placement test will display your score. Make a note of this information. You may retrieve this information by logging back into your WebCape account.
Summer placement results are tentative and you will have the opportunity to speak with language faculty members, and to learn about language programs, during on-campus orientation in August.
Additional Information for Chinese: After completing the Chinese placement test, the last page of the online system will tell you what course you are eligible to enroll in. If you have questions about your Chinese placement you may email your score to Professor Sherry Mou at smou@depauw.edu and she will offer advice. You will also have an opportunity to discuss your placement after you arrive on campus.
Additional Information for French: After completing the French placement test you should consult this French Placement Guide (accessible French Placement Guide version here) for help in interpreting your score. If you have questions after consulting the guide, contact Professor Carrie Klaus cklaus@depauw.edu for advice. You will also have an opportunity to discuss your placement after you arrive on campus.
Additional Information for German: After completing the German placement test you should consult this German Placement Guide for help in interpreting your score. If you have questions after consulting the guide, contact Professor Howard Pollack-Milgate hpollack@depauw.edu who will provide guidance about your placement. You will also have the opportunity to discuss your placement with a faculty member after you arrive on campus.
Additional Information for Italian: After completing your placement test, email your score to Professor Francesca Seaman at fseaman@depauw.edu who will provide guidance about your placement. You will have the option to Skype with Professor Seaman this summer or to talk with her in person after you arrive on campus to confirm your placement.
Additional Information for Spanish: After completing the Spanish placement test the last page of the online system will tell you what course you are eligible to enroll in; the Spanish placement guide also provides information. If you have questions about your Spanish placement you may email your score to a professor to ask for advice. Alejandro Puga (apuga@depauw.edu). You will also have an opportunity to discuss your placement after you arrive on campus.