Options for Meeting the Graduate Foreign Language Requirement for M.A. and M.A.T. Students

(Effective April 2003)

The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures will accept the following ways of satisfying the graduate foreign language competency requirement:

1. Equivalent coursework: Students who have passed a course equivalent to PSU level 203 or higher in a foreign language within the four years prior to their admission into their PSU graduate program will be deemed to have met the language requirement. The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures will issue a certificate of completion upon evaluation of the student's academic record. M.A. and M.A.T. students are responsible for making their academic records available to the chair of that department in the first term of admission and requesting evaluation and certification.
2. Students who do not meet the requirement under I. above should make an appointment with the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures during the first term after their admission to make an individualized plan for the completion of their language requirement. Options include preparing for and passing one of these evaluations:
   1. Oral proficiency interview (mandatory for M.A. TESOL students if they do not take a course at level 203 or above)
   2. A written test (mandatory for M.A. TESOL students if they do not take a course at level 203 or above), such as
      1. The Graduate Student Foreign Language Test
      2. The CLEP exam
      3. A special exam, administered by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures
   3. Coursework after admission: taking a course at level 203 or above
   4. Overseas intensive courses or other intensive courses
   5. Special reading courses, if available

Note: M.A. TESOL students who do not meet the requirements in I. above may choose course work at 203 level or must take both the oral proficiency interview and a written test.

The Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures will teach and test only in languages in which it has expertise. However, off-campus arrangements may be possible with the cooperation of other institutions. Certification of having passed a foreign language examination from an institution other than Portland State University must be approved by the Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures at Portland State University prior to acceptance as fulfillment of the University's master's degree foreign language competency requirement.

A student whose native language is not English may meet the foreign language requirement in English, except for students in two programs: (1) students in the M.A. in French, Spanish, or German, who must be tested in a language other than English and other than the language of their M.A. program; (2) students in the M.A. in Foreign Languages and Literatures, who are required to demonstrate fluency in two foreign languages other than English at the time of admission and are not required to demonstrate additional competency except as necessary to complete their degree requirements.