Aerial view of campus with Williamsport, the Susquehanna River and Bald Eagle Mountain as a backdrop

Directions For The Online Modern Languages Placement Exam

Please Note:

  • This exam must be completed within two weeks of receiving your orientation information packet.
  • Your password for the placement exam: beawarrior (lowercase letters).
  • "ID #" = your 7-digit student ID number.
  • "Surname" = last name; "given name" = first name.
  • Print these directions before beginning the exam.

The online survey and placement exam will be used to properly place you in a French, German, or Spanish class that best suits your experience and ability in that language. All students are required to take at least one language course (101 placement requires two). If you have studied two or more languages among French, German or Spanish in high school, then you must take a placement exam in each language studied. You have the option to study any language taught at Lycoming College. Students may not test out of the language requirement.

You should not study for this exam. Do not consult another person for help or use a dictionary. A score of zero will be considered INVALID and you will be asked to retake the exam; otherwise, you may take the exam only once per language. Your test score will be sent to the email address that you provide and will serve as confirmation that you have completed the exam.

Please note that the test score will NOT indicate which course you will take at Lycoming College; rather, the results will be combined with your responses from the survey portion of the exam and from grades and number of years of study reported on your high school transcript. The Modern Language Studies faculty will review this information to determine your actual placement; this placement will be shared with you when you attend Orientation.

The survey and exam will take approximately 20 minutes. If at any point you should experience technical difficulties, simply hit the RESUME button to restart the exam. If problems persist, contact the office of the Dean of First Year Students at orientation@lycoming.edu or call (570) 321-4358.

French, German, or Spanish?

  • Choose the language(s) that you studied in high school and take the placement exam in that language.
  • If you have never studied French, German or Spanish, do not take the placement exam.

To Complete The Survey And The Exam

  • Disable your Google toolbar.
  • Gather your background information. Know how many years you took a language in high school and the average yearly grade that you received. For a class in progress, list your average at this point. Know the grade and the calendar year that you last studied the language. Think about how often you heard and used the language in your classes.
  • Choose French, German, or Spanish; MAXIMIZE your screen.
  • Fill out the survey.
  • Click "continue" to begin the exam.

Print these directions and follow this link to begin the exam.

Placement Exam