PLACEMENT AND CREDIT BY EXAMINATION IN FRENCH

Policies Effective for the Academic Year 2009-2010*

*This is to be used as a guide only. Policies are subject to change.

UT Austin provides you with the opportunity to earn course credit by examination. Such credit will satisfy degree requirements in the same way as credit earned by passing a course, except that it will not count as credit earned in residence. Although you may take tests before you enroll in UT Austin, you must be a currently or previously enrolled student in order to receive credit. Unsuccessful attempts to earn credit by examination will not become part of your official transcript.

The University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French, one of the College Board Advanced Placement Examinations, or one of the International Baccalaureate Higher-Level Examinations provides you with the opportunity to earn credit by examination in French.

Faculty members in the Department of French and Italian select the tests, set the levels of performance required for credit, and specify who is eligible to earn credit by examination. DIIA-Student Testing Services assists the department by communicating policies, giving the tests, and reporting the credit.

LOWER-DIVISION FRENCH CURRICULUM

Second-year students enrolled in FR 312K, 312L, or 312M are encouraged to enroll also in FR 118, which meets twice weekly, requires little homework, and is designed to increase listening and speaking skills to supplement the main course.

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN COLLEGE-LEVEL PLACEMENT TEST IN FRENCH

Results of the University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French are used to place students in UT Austin French courses appropriate for their particular levels of proficiency. Test results also serve as a basis for awarding credit in one to four French courses-FR 506, 507, 312K, and 312L.

STUDENTS FOR WHOM THE PLACEMENT TEST IS REQUIRED OR APPROPRIATE
Students who have prior knowledge of French (regardless of how it was acquired) and who do not have college credit in French must take the University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French before they can enroll in their first UT Austin French course.

Students transferring college credit in French are not required, but are strongly encouraged, to take this placement test and to use the results to help them choose their first course in French at UT Austin. Transfer students may also use the placement test to earn additional credit in French or to earn credit for lower-division courses from which they were exempted without credit at another institution. In no way will French credit already earned be jeopardized by the results of this test.

Students who do not intend to enroll in a French course but who wish to attempt to earn credit by examination may also take the placement test.

ELIGIBILITY FOR CREDIT BY EXAMINATION IN FRENCH
You are eligible for credit only in those courses for which you do not have a passing or failing grade.

Level of Performance Required for Credit

The University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French has a score range of 150-850. Satisfactory scores for credit by examination are as follows:

The University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French must be taken on the UT Austin campus.

Test Periods: This test is offered on the UT Austin campus during scheduled testing periods several days before each class registration period and during most summer orientation sessions.

Test Registration: You must register for a test online.

Test Registration for Students with Disabilities: If you require academic accommodations or assistance due to a documented disability, you should contact these two offices at least five business days before the day of the test:

• Services for Students with Disabilities, in the Office of the Dean of Students at ssd@uts.cc.utexas.edu, http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/, or (512) 471-6259 to seek approval for authorized accommodations;
• DIIA-Student Testing Services at (512) 232-2662 to register and make arrangements to take the test.

Registration Fee and Test Fee Payment: The total test fee is $65 (subject to change). When you confirm your registration for a test you will be immediately billed a non-refundable test registration fee of $15. The remainder of the test fee will be billed after you take the test. Payment is due within 14 days after the test administration.

Repeating the Test: You may take the University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French only once.

Admission to the Test Room: When you register online you will be given the location of your test room. You must present, at the test room, a generally accepted form of identification that includes both your signature and photograph. Without such identification, you will be admitted only if you bring and relinquish a photograph of yourself. You should take several sharpened No. 2 pencils to the test room; all other test materials will be provided. (If possible, please leave your cell-phone at home!--or, be prepared to remove its battery to assure that it will not make any noise during the test administration.)

Test Results: Results are available within a few days after the test date. Once they are available, results may also be found online.

COLLEGE BOARD ADVANCED PLACEMENT EXAMINATIONS

UT Austin also awards credit for lower-division courses on the basis of the College Board Advanced Placement (AP) Examinations in French Language and French Literature. Students who take the College Board Advanced Placement Examination in French Language or French Literature are exempt from taking the required University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French. The College Board AP Examinations are offered once a year in May, usually in high schools that offer College Board Advanced Placement courses. Although determined by each school giving the test, registration deadlines are no later than March. Test results are available in July. Please visit the College Board's Web site for current test registration fees at http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/cal.html. These tests are not offered on the UT Austin campus.

The AP Examinations are based on course descriptions prepared by The College Board. A course description, which includes sample questions, is available for these examinations at the College Board's web site www.collegeboard.com/apcentral.

If a high school in your vicinity is not administering AP Examinations, you can request special testing arrangements by contacting AP Services, Box 6671, Princeton, NJ 08541-6671, 1-888- CALL- 4- AP.

Level of Performance Required for Credit

The College Board AP Examinations have a score range of 1-5. Satisfactory scores on either of the two AP tests are as follows:

*Scores establish eligibility to take the Department of French and Italian test for credit in these courses.

INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE HIGHER-LEVEL EXAMINATIONS

UT Austin also awards credit for lower-division courses on the basis of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Higher-Level Examinations in French: Language A1, A2, or B.

Level of Performance Required for Credit

The IB examinations have a score range of 1-7. Satisfactory scores for credit by examination in French are as follows:

FREQUENT QUESTIONS

Q. If I earn credit by examination in French, must I then enroll in a UT Austin French course in order to receive credit earned by examination?

A. No. The credit earned by examination is yours regardless of whether or not you enroll in subsequent French courses. Many degree programs require a specific level of proficiency in at least one foreign language, so your decision about enrolling in additional courses may be influenced by your degree requirements.

Q. What should I do if I think that my results place me at a course level that is too advanced?

A. The primary purpose of the University of Wisconsin College-Level Placement Test in French is to place students in the UT Austin French course that are best suited for them- neither too easy nor too difficult. If you think that you are placed incorrectly, you should consult your instructor or a counselor in the lower-division French office (H 2.114A).

PETITIONING/CLAIMING CREDIT

UT Austin students must petition (or claim) their credit to have it appear on their official transcript. DIIA-Student Testing Services reports petitioned credit to the Office of the Registrar.