UGA offers, through A&T, standardized testing for Spanish, French, German, Hebrew, and Italian. These tests: 

• assess a student’s current knowledge
• determine the correct level course in which the student should begin
• and award exemption credit based on that level. 

Evaluations:

• For Proficiency: Departments assess for proficiency by administering a formal assessment of a student’s level of mastery of the language, led by a faculty member who teaches the language at UGA. 
  
  • A student assessed proficient at the third semester course level or higher can satisfy the Franklin’s Foreign Language requirement, if/when the assessing faculty member formally submits the assessment results to the Graduation Certification Office.
  • The faculty member must confirm the student reads, writes, speaks, and understands the spoken language at a third-semester level or higher 
• For Placement: Is not a formal assessment, and may be determined by an individual who does not teach the language. 
  
  • A faculty member, based on a conversation with student about the student’s experience with the language, will estimate at which level course a student can start. 
  • Placements are only estimates can only determine at which course level a student may begin; they don’t award credit and cannot satisfy the Franklin Foreign Language requirement. 
  • Students who, based on placement, enroll in a recommended course and find it too advanced may switch to a lower-level course. 

For Students with Learning Disabilities 

Franklin College will waive the Foreign Language Requirement for students found unable to complete this requirement by the Office of Accessibility & Testing (A&T) upon notification of the disability by A&T.

• Students who waive this requirement must substitute courses from an approved list of courses
• Students must select 3-4 courses (or fewer if the student has already completed some foreign language courses), according to the requirement of the student’s major. 
• These courses may not be used to satisfy other Franklin College requirements, with the exception of the multicultural requirement. 
• Substitution courses may be used to satisfy other requirements for the student’s degree.

Once A&T has determined that a foreign language substitution accommodation is appropriate….

• A&T will send Franklin College Office of Student Academic Services (OSAS) a letter requesting accommodations. 
• OSAS will process the request and notify the student via the student’s UGA email address. 
• Included in the email will be a Foreign Language Substitution Course form. With input from their advisor, the student must select from approved substitution courses.
• The student must either bring the form to the Graduation Certification Office in 358 Brooks Hall or email it to askGCO@uga.edu for final approval. 
• The foreign language requirement is marked as fulfilled upon successful completion of the selected substitution courses. 

For Students Proficient in a foreign language not offered at UGA

Student who are proficient in a foreign language that is not currently taught at UGA, and whose language proficiency therefore cannot be evaluated, may appeal to the Academic Standards Committee to waive the requirement. For questions, please contact Franklin College Office of Student Academic Services (OSAS). If granted, this this waiver carries no credit and does not satisfy any portion of the student’s core curriculum (Areas I-VI) or Major Requirements.

For Students who are non-United States Citizens 

International or non-US students may be able to waive the Franklin College Foreign Language requirement if the student…

• is not a US citizen
• holds current citizenship in a country where the primary language is not English, and the student’s native language is not English

Students who meet the above criteria may complete the Foreign Language Waiver. This waiver carries no credit and does not satisfy any portion of the student’s core curriculum or major.

Dual citizens may demonstrate proficiency per the guidelines in " For Students Proficient in a foreign language not offered at UGA" on this page.