Language Requirement

Candidates for the College of Arts & Sciences Bachelor of Arts degree (including returning students and transfers from other universities, colleges or community colleges) must satisfy a language requirement in one of the following ways:

  1. Pass a UMass Dartmouth Intermediate II-level course (usually 202) in a language other than English.
  2. Pass a Placement Test. Incoming students who have studied a language in high school or elsewhere can take a placement test; if the student achieves the appropriate score, their language requirement will be fulfilled. No academic credits are awarded for satisfactory performance on this test.
    1. Placement tests can be taken online by going to the portal (my.umassd.edu): click on "Student Resources," then click on "New Students." Under the "New Students" section, click on the placement testing link. For questions, please contact the Department of Global Languages and Cultures.
    2. Please note: The placement test in Portuguese is available through the directions above, but placement scoring breakdowns and Portuguese language classes are handled specifically through the Portuguese department. Please contact the Department of Portuguese.
  3. Pass the Advanced Placement Test. A student may take AP classes in high school and NOT receive AP credits. Advanced Placement credits are only given when a student passes the Advanced Placement test. If a student passes the Literature and Culture AP test, she or he will earn 6 credits at the literature level; this also satisfies the language requirement. These are accepted as transfer credits. It is the student's responsibility to have records of these credits submitted to the Registrar's Office.
  4. CLEP (College Level Examination Program) credits are accepted as transfer credits. Any student can take a CLEP examination and have the results sent to the Registrar's Office (just like transfer credits). The results are evaluated by the Department of Global Languages and Cultures and credit will be granted according to the scores.
  5. Proof of Proficiency. If a student is proficient in a language that is not taught at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, the burden of proof of proficiency falls upon the student. A letter, on letterhead, from a business/ clergyperson/ faculty member/ member of the community may or may not be accepted as proof of proficiency. The person determining the proficiency and writing this letter cannot be a family member, and this information must be stated in the letter. The letter should contain the student's name, student ID number and a contact number for the community member. This document becomes a permanent record in the Department of Global Languages and Cultures and is kept there until the student graduates.
  6. ASL (American Sign Language). Completion of American Sign Language certification at the Intermediate II (202) level will satisfy the language requirement for all candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree, including returning students and transfer students from other institutions of higher education. Academic credits will be awarded for American Sign Language courses, provided they are taken at a regionally accredited institution of higher learning. If the student has completed the sequence of American Sign Language courses, the student will receive up to 12 transfer credits in the equivalent of foreign language elective credit at the corresponding level.
  7. Pass the American Sign Language Proficiency Interview (ASLPI).  Documentation of a passing score is required, in which case, the student will receive six credits.

Language classes at UMassD: Where do I start?      

  • If you have no language background, begin with a 101 course in the language of your choice, and continue through four semesters, ending with the 202-level language course. Start early!
  • If you have some language background and want to know which course to start with take the online placement test: in the portal (my.umassd.edu), click on "Student Resources," then click on "New Students." Under the "New Students" section, click on the placement testing link. For questions, please contact the Department of Global Languages and Cultures or Department of Portuguese.
  • When are the various language courses offered? Not every language is offered at every level each semester. For more information, check on COIN, using the prefix for the language to find the appropriate class.
  • If you have a qualified learning disability that prohibits language acquisition, please contact the Office of Student Accessibility Services for more information on how to proceed. 

Learning Outcomes for the Language Learning Sequence

The language program objectives of our department are based on the premise that students must be able to demonstrate increased proficiency in interpersonal, interpretive and presentational communication skills as well as growth in cultural, literary and interdisciplinary knowledge as they move through a sequence of study.

The language program is designed to help students achieve the following learning objectives :

  • engage in interactions with speakers of the target language for a variety of purposes and in a variety of contexts, using socially and culturally appropriate forms for participating in conversations, establishing relationships with others, providing and obtaining information, expressing feelings and emotions, and expressing opinions.
  • understand and interpret written and spoken language on a variety of topics and manifest growing awareness of the social and cultural influences shaping the production and use of knowledge in the target language-speaking world
  • present information, concepts, and ideas to an audience of listeners or readers on a variety of academic and non-academic topics.

First Semester (101)

At the end of Stage 1 all students should be able to make progress in achieving the following outcomes, using select words, phrases and expressions in strings of sentences and simple paragraphs.

  1. Interpersonal Objectives: Interacting with others in order to, e.g.,
    • ask and answer questions
    • express likes and dislikes
    • exchange opinions
    • talk about people, places, experiences, and events
    • make simple requests
  2. Interpretive Objectives: Understanding the target language in, e.g.,
    • social interactions that students themselves can engage in
    • short authentic texts on familiar topics
    • oral presentations
  3. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language in the target language in
    • giving rehearsed oral presentations with limited reliance on notes
    • writing essays/written products approaching 1 page in length
  4. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language in English to
    • report the results of interdisciplinary inquiry related to products or practices of the target culture using target language sources and websites
    • compare target culture to students' own culture orally and in writing

First Year, Second Semester (102)

At the end of Stage II students will have conslidated their ability to perform all of the functions developed in Stage I. Additionally, they will be able to perform the following functions in organized format:

  1. Interpersonal Objectives: Interacting with others in order to, e.g.,
    • offer advice
    • express agreement and disagreement in simple formats
    • exchange opinions
    • talk about people, places, experiences, and events
    • give directions
    • engage in more complex conversations
  2. Interpretive Objectives: Understanding the target language in, e.g.,
    • social interactions that students themselves can engage in
    • more complex conversations
    • directions
    • readings on unfamiliar topics
    • simple journalistic reports and oral presentations
  3. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language in the target language,
    • giving rehearsed oral presentations with limited reliance on notes
    • writing essays/written products with a minimum of 1 page in length
  4. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language in English to
    • report the results of interdisciplinary inquiry related to products or practices of the target culture using target language sources and websites
    • compare target culture to students' own culture orally and in writing

Second Year, First Semester (201)

At the end of this semester students should be able to make progress in achieving the following outcomes using multiple paragraphs.

  1. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language to, e.g.,
    • write reports of increasing length and complexity, including short, interdisciplinary research projects using target language sources and websites
    • give increasingly lengthy and less-rehearsed oral presentations, of 2-3 minutes in length by the end of the third quarter
    • begin to narrate in the past
    • narrate in present and future
    • compare and contrast significant people and events in target cultures
  2. Interpretive Objectives: Understanding the target language in order to, e.g.,
    • analyze and synthesize the main ideas and supporting data in authentic written texts
    • comprehend narration in present, past, future
    • identify themes and other literary ideas in fiction, poetry, and/or nonfiction and relate themes to student experience
    • follow and summarize shifting topics in a conversation
  3. Interpersonal Objectives: Interacting with others, including, e.g.,
    • socially appropriate expression of respect, politeness, gratitude, friendliness, and distance
    • state feelings and emotions
    • identify problems or complications and propose solutions to them
    • discussion of academic and professional topics with increasing sophistication

Second Year, Second Semester (202)

At the end of this semester students should be able to achieve the following outcomes using multiple paragraphs up to two pages.

  1. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language to, e.g.,
    • write reports of increasing length and complexity, including short interdisciplinary research projects using target language sources and websites
    • give increasingly lengthy and less-rehearsed oral presentations, of 2-3 minutes in length by the end of the third quarter
    • narrate in the past
    • narrate in present and future
    • compare and contrast significant people and events in target cultures and in comparison to students' own culture
  2. Interpretive Objectives: Understanding the target language in order to, e.g.,
    • analyze and synthesize the main ideas and supporting data in authentic written texts
    • comprehend narration in present, past, future
    • identify themes and other literary ideas in fiction, poetry and/or nonfiction and relate themes to student experience
    • follow and summarize shifting topics in a conversation
  3. Interpersonal Objectives: Interacting with others, including, e.g.,
    • socially appropriate expression of respect, politeness, gratitude, friendliness, and distance
    • state feelings and emotions
    • identify problems or complications and propose solutions to them

Third Year and Beyond (300- and 400-level courses)

  1. Presentational Objectives: Using academic language to, e.g.,
    • engage in interdisciplinary research projects and presentations on issues important to the target culture
    • narrate in the past
    • convince or persuade another to adopt a perspective or viewpoint
    • compare and contrast ideas on contemporary and historical topics
    • reflect upon service learning experiences within and outside of the campus community
  2. Interpretive Objectives: Understanding the target language in order to, e.g.,
    • comprehend narration in past
    • analyze the aesthetic qualities of works in poetry, drama, fiction, and film
    • analyze the informational content of expository and argumentative texts
  3. Interpersonal Objectives: Interacting with others, including, e.g.,
    • state and explain ideas and emotions
    • state and support opinions
    • discussion of academic, non-academic and professional topics with increasing sophistication