Foreign Language Requirement

The faculty considers competence in a foreign language essential for an educated person. Studying a language other than one’s own helps students understand the dynamics of language, our fundamental intellectual tool, and enables students to understand another culture. The sooner a student acquires competence, the sooner it will be useful. Hence, work toward the foreign language requirement should be undertaken in the first two years. Courses in foreign languages and/or literature are taught in the College of Arts and Sciences by the following departments: Africana Studies and Research Center, Asian Studies, Classics, German Studies, Linguistics, Near Eastern Studies, Romance Studies, and Russian.

The language requirement may be satisfied in one of the following ways:

Option 1: Passing (a) a nonintroductory foreign language course of 3 or more credits at Cornell at the 200 level or above or (b) any other nonintroductory course conducted in a foreign language at Cornell. OR

Option 2: Passing at least 11 credits of study in a single foreign language (taken in the appropriate sequence) at Cornell.

Any exceptions to these rules will be noted elsewhere in individual department descriptions.

Students whose speaking, reading, and writing competence in a language other than English is at the same level we would expect our entering freshmen to have in English (as shown by completing high school in that language or by special examination during their first year here at Cornell) are exempt from the college’s language requirement.

Placement

Entering students who have had two or more years of high school study in a language, who have been awarded credit for language work at another college or university, or who are native speakers, bilingual, or have spoken the language at home, may enroll in a course in the same language only after being placed by examination. The placement exam may have been taken in high school (SAT II, taken after the last course, or AP, if the score was 4 or 5) or at Cornell (LP test). Students may, but need not, retake a language test if a year or more has passed since last taking it. Being placed by examination into the first course at a non-introductory level does not earn credit toward the degree. Degree credit is earned only for demonstrated mastery of work equivalent to the first course at an intermediate level at Cornell and placement into the second intermediate course. Students should seek to satisfy the language requirement in their first years at Cornell. Those with test scores one or more years old may be required to take a Cornell placement test if the instructor deems the student is not adequately prepared for the level in which he or she has enrolled.

French

Placement Tests        Language    Literature

LPF    SAT II    Courses    Courses

below 37    below 410    121

37–44    410–480    122

45–55    490–590    123

56–64    600–680    206

209

CASE required for

65 and above    690 and above        placement in language.

AP 4 or 5 in    CASE required for language, 3 credits.  placement in language.

AP 4 or 5 in literature, 3 credits  CASE required for and proficiency. placement in language.

German

Placement Tests        Language    Literature

LPG    SAT II    Courses    Courses

below 37    below 370    121

37–44    370–450    122

45–55    460–580    123

56–64    590–680    200    200

65 and above    690 and above  CASE required for placement

AP 4 or 5, 3 credits.    CASE required for placement

Italian

Placement Tests        Language    Literature

LPI    SAT II    Courses    Courses

below 37    below 370    121

37–44    370–450    122

45–55    460–580    123

56–64    590–680    209

65 and above    690 and above    CASE required for placement

AP 4 or 5 in

language, 3 credits.    CASE required for placement

AP 4 or 5 in

literature, 3 credits    CASE required for placement

Spanish

Placement Tests        Language    Literature

LPS    SAT II    Courses    Courses

below 37    below 370    121

37–44    370–450    112

122

45–55    460–580    123

56–64    590–680    200

209

207

65 and above    690 and above CASE required for placement

AP 4 or 5 in

language, 3 credits.    CASE required for placement

AP 4 or 5 in literature, 3 credits    CASE required for placement

Placement Tests and Advanced Placement Credit

•    Chinese (Cantonese and Mandarin), Hindi, Japanese, and Korean (schedule available from Department of Asian Studies, 350 Rockefeller Hall);

•    German (schedule available from Department of German Studies, 183 Goldwin Smith Hall);

•    French, Italian, and Spanish (schedule available from Department of Romance Studies, 303 Morrill Hall);

•    Russian (schedule available from Department of Russian, 226 Morrill Hall).

    The advanced standing examination in French, German, Italian, Russian, and Spanish, is called the CASE (Cornell Advanced Standing Examination). Eligibility for the CASE may be determined from the placement tables. In Russian only, all students seeking placement take the CASE.

    Native speakers of Spanish who have completed their secondary education in a Spanish-speaking country do not take the CASE. For these students, the Spanish program offers a walk-in service, the Native Language Accreditation for Spanish, in the third week of September and the first week of February. Students interested in this service should contact Brisa Teutli in 414 Morrill Hall, bt54@cornell.edu. Speakers of Spanish who completed their secondary education in a non–Spanish-speaking country are required to present either SAT II or AP or LPS scores for placement, or for eligibility to take the CASE exam.

 

2.    Arabic: departmental examination, Department of Near Eastern Studies, 409 White Hall.

3.    Greek, ancient: departmental examination, Department of Classics, 120 Goldwin Smith Hall.

4.    Hebrew: departmental examination, Department of Near Eastern Studies, 409 White Hall.

5.    Latin: departmental examination, Department of Classics, 120 Goldwin Smith Hall.

6.    Persian: departmental examination, Department of Near Eastern Studies, 409 White Hall.

7.    Turkish: departmental examination, Department of Near Eastern Studies, 409 White Hall.