Language Placement and Credit by Exam

Getting Credit for a Language

Per A&S requirements, many Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees require the completion of at least eight semester hours of work in a modern or classical language. Some majors request twelve semester hours of a foreign language. Normally, completing courses 1010 and 1020 (first and second semester) in a single language satisfies this requirement. The requirement may also be satisfied by appropriate scores on the placement test given each semester by the department, or sufficiently high scores on nationally administered language tests, such as CLEP, taken before being admitted to UW.

For information about placement into the correct language class, see below. For information about the English Oral Proficiency Interview, see English Language Center's website. 

Some reasons to take a foreign language:

• Your major requires it

• You wish to double major 

• You add a language as a minor

• You have an interest in taking language courses and traveling abroad

• You want to earn more money in your job market after graduation

How do you know which class to choose?

• If you have never taken foreign language before --> sign up for the introductory class level 1010

• If you have college credit or Advanced Placement (AP) in a foreign language --> consult your transfer credit evaluation on WyoWeb and register for the next semester in the sequence 

• If you have taken high school classes --> you must be placed using a one-on-one interview with a faculty member in the language or by taking the credit by exam.

Advanced Placement Credit

AP, CLEP, and IB Placement Exams

For newly admitted students, the University of Wyoming will accept the College Board Advanced Placement Program (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), and International Baccalaureate (IB) Placement exams for language credit.  Students are responsible for arranging with collegeboard.org or ibo.org to send an official copy of their results to the Office of the Registrar.  For more information about Credit Available to Undergraduate Students, please see the official information at the Registrar's Office.

AP results

AP Chinese, Japanese Language

Score of 4 = 4 hours (=1010)
Score of 5 = 8 hours (=1010, 1020)

AP French Language, German Language, Latin Caesar, Latin Virgil, and Spanish Language

Score of 3 = 4 hours (=1010)
Score of 4 = 8 hours (=1010, 1020)
Score of 5 = 12 hours (=1010, 1020, 2030)

AP Spanish Literature and Culture

Score of 3 = 12 hours  (=1010, 1020, 2030)
Score of 4+ = 15 hours total: 12 hours and 3 hours introduction to literature (=1010, 1020, 2030 and 2140)

CLEP results

French

Score of 41 - 49 = 4 hours (=1010)
Score of 50 - 56 = 8 hours (=1010, 1020)
Score of 57 or above = 12 hours (=1010, 1020, 2030)

German

Score of 40 - 47 = 4 hours (=1010)
Score of 48 - 53 = 8 hours (=1010, 1020)
Score of 54 or above = 12 hours (=1010, 1020, 2030)

Spanish

Score of 41- 49 = 4 hours (=1010)
Score of 50 - 53 = 8 hours (=1010, 1020)
Score of 54 or above = 12 hours (=1010, 1020, 2030)

IB in French, German, Japanese, or Spanish (HL) results

Score of 4+ = 4 hours beginning language (=1010)

Credit By Exam

• Credit by Exam is available during spring, summer and fall semesters by appointment. You must be enrolled in classes in the semester you wish to obtain credit, with the exception of incoming freshman during the summer.

• Credit by Exam is available in forty-nine languages including Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Arabic, and Mandarin (both Simplified & Traditional). Credit for languages not offered by UW will appear as LANG on your transcript. 

• Total cost for the exam is $130. $80 paid to UW and $50 paid to BYU for their Foreign Language Achievement Testing Services.

Students may receive up to 12 hours of academic credit by examination. The exam also places students in their correct language level.  For example, if your major requires two semesters of a single foreign language and after taking the CBE you earn credit for the first semester of the language, the results will appear on your transcript as 4 credit hours.  You will be eligible to take the second semester of the language, and will have saved yourself one class toward your major.

The exam can be taken by appointment or during established dates/times in the languages department at the beginning of each semester. The exam is administered by staff within the Modern and Classical Languages department.  Please email languages@uwyo.edu or call 307-766-4176 for details.

When you are on campus and ready to take this exam, you’ll need to first visit the Office of the Registrar in Knight Hall to obtain an approved application form.  A fee of $80 must be paid at the Cashier’s Office.  Take the application form, the receipt of fee payment, and a photo ID with you to the languages department to schedule an appointment for taking the exam.  The online registration process for the exam, which is administered by Brigham Young University, requires that you pay an additional $50 fee. You must register online with Brigham Young University at least 24 hours in advance of your scheduled appointment.

The university will receive your test results approximately two weeks after taking the CBE. You will receive unofficial results immediately via email.

Please call 307.766.4176 or send us an email to languages@uwyo.edu. For more information, see CBE Information (PDF).

Note that, per University policy, you may not earn credit by examination where you already have college credit at the same level or above. For example, if you already have college credit posted for a second semester course, you may receive credit hours by examination for the third semester, but not for the first and second. This includes AP credit.

Students with a native language other than English will not receive University credit for language courses below the 4000-level in their native language.

Online option

The department of Modern & Classical Languages has established a remote proctoring procedure. This option is only available to online education students who will never reside in Laramie. Please contact the department prior to planning for this option.

Taking a CBE online (PDF)

Assessment Data for Foreign Language Testing

Text Data - Number of testers by language and credits earned since 2014

Language	0 credits	4 credits	8 credits	12 credits	Total tests by language
Spanish (272)	89	1	57	125	272
German (34)	15	0	7	12	34
Japanese (8)	2	0	2	4	8
French (36)	12	1	7	16	36
Chinese (5)	1	0	2	2	5
Czech	0	0	0	1	1
Portuguese	0	0	1	2	3
Italian	0	0	0	1	1
Cebuano	0	0	0	1	1
Korean	0	0	0	2	2
Latin	0	1	1	0	2
Russian	1	1	0	1	3
Danish	0	0	0	1	1
Norwegian	0	0	0	1	1
Vietnamese	0	0	0	1	1
Finnish	0	0	0	1	1
Hungarian	0	0	0	1	1
Dutch	0	0	0	2	2
Romanian	0	0	0	1	1
Total by Credits Earned	120	4	77	175	376