I am supposed to be graduating in 2 weeks but I just found out Wednesday that my foreign langauge requirement is not met because for it to count you had to had made a B in both years of spanish in high school and I did not. The Dean is giving me the option of taking the proficiency exam and if I score high enough then that will count and I can graduate on time. If there is anyone who has taken the exam and can help me know what to study or the format of the exam I would greatly appreciate it! Or if you are good in spanish I would love some help. Thanks so much!

4/28/2007 9:51:43 PM

it's really easy, do you just have to place into fls101?

most of it is either fill-in-the-blank or reading a passage and answering questions. know your tenses and irregular verbs and stuff, all the basic stuff.

4/29/2007 6:44:29 AM

Well the Dean of foreign Language said I had to place at the 201 level, but the CALS Dean said that as long as I place in the high end of 102 I should be fine with CALS. So, you actually type in answers, it is not multiple choice?

4/29/2007 8:57:46 AM

wow, ironic that the biggest test of your college career will be a placement test most people take before they even enter college

I dont remember it being that difficult...I think mine was multiple choice, I know it was done on a computer. I think you filled in the blanks in sentences?

4/29/2007 9:18:00 AM

it's all multiple choice.

4/29/2007 10:12:51 AM

get your ass to Borders right now and get you some tapes to learn it


that proficiency test was a bitch from what i remember

4/29/2007 10:48:16 AM

You can get the tapes at the Wake County library for free. Have to assume they're at DH Hill too. Good luck.

4/29/2007 1:54:33 PM

Yeah I thought it was kinda hard, having taken three levels of spanish in high school with all As. But I placed into 202 that way. It's hard by design because it has to test for the whole range of skill levels and fluency. But I can't remember particularly what was on it to study.

[Edited on April 29, 2007 at 2:18 PM. Reason : ]

4/29/2007 2:18:06 PM

So there are no oral parts on the exam? So... I have A LOT of reading to do. I just love advisors who are on the ball with things.....

4/29/2007 5:43:19 PM

no oral parts.. it was pretty easy for me, like i said... but i took ap spanish, so idk. ymmv.

4/29/2007 5:53:32 PM

no oral parts, from what i can remember. i took it as a freshman, and i'm a senior, but i don't know of any major changes.

you sit at a computer and take it, with headphones on and stuff. but i would definitely suggest at least refreshing yourself on spanish basics, especially since this is make-or-break for graduating.

good luck!

4/29/2007 6:30:57 PM

Thanks for all the help guys! So do you think it would be benefical to get CD's and the book to study? I just found out I have to take the exam by May 8th.... so I am going to Barnes and Nobles now b/c everything is gone at the libraries.....

4/30/2007 10:40:41 AM

i bought "painless spanish" at borders- it's bright orange- and it's definately not for beginners but it might work for you.

Quote :

"IV. ABOUT THE FOREIGN LANGUAGE PLACEMENT TEST The department uses the Computer Adaptive Placement Exam (CAPE) series from Brigham Young University to place students in French, German, and Spanish. The exams test the grammatical knowledge, as well as the reading comprehension of the student. The exam adapts to each individual by providing less difficult questions if the preceding question was missed, or more difficult questions if the previous question was answered correctly. This process continues until the student consistently answers questions correctly at one level, and misses three consecutive questions at the higher level. We have had very good success with this program. Most students are placed at the correct level, commensurate with their proficiency. The exam is administered in the CHASS Foreign Language Computing Lab and requires approximately 25-30 minutes to complete."

http://sa.ncsu.edu/fl/place.htm#Score_Interpretation

5/1/2007 9:42:24 PM

It looks like there are several online examples:

http://www.google.com/search?q=spanish+placement+exams

I took it some years ago. It was all multiple choice if I remember correctly. Not hard at all. Take your time. I don't remember there being a time limit.

[Edited on May 2, 2007 at 9:03 AM. Reason : -]

5/2/2007 9:02:13 AM

If you couldn't pull Bs in high school spanish, you probably don't need to place out of anything. HS language classes are a joke compared to college ones.

5/2/2007 9:33:53 AM

i took 3 years of high school spanish, and the placement exam was a cake walk (i got pretty average grades in those 3 years of it). and yes i believe you have to be placed into FLS201 in order to recieve 2 semesters credit.

5/2/2007 10:09:52 AM

I got a tutor as well and I am meeting with her tonight, tomorrow night and then again Monday night because I take the exam on Tuesday. I wish I would have worked harder in Spanish 2 but it was my senior year and I just wanted to graduate. Funny, now years later the same stupid class is holding me back from graduating. Thanks for all the help you guys!

5/2/2007 3:31:13 PM

do you have a horribly shitty advisor or did you just manage to avoid your advisor this entire semester?

5/2/2007 8:06:44 PM

When I first came to State my advisor asked me if I had taken any foreign language in High school. I told her I took two years of Spanish and her response was " Oh that's enough." She never informed me that you had to have made a B in both years. It wasn't until Last Wednesday that I got a letter from the Dean's Office saying I had a graduation issue, so she STILL hasn't said anything. Nice huh?

5/2/2007 8:59:30 PM

Welcome to the real world kid. Stop making excuses.

5/2/2007 9:20:18 PM