EALC Language Programs
EALC offers serious and sustained training in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean. Carefully articulated four-year sequences of language study are offered in the three East Asian languages and the emphasis is on developing students' proficiency in all four skills.
Placement Exams
Placement exams are required for students with any prior exposure to the language either at home, through overseas experience, or at another institution. Only absolute beginners may place themselves.
Special Credit
Non-native speakers studying a foreign language can earn special credit for foreign language for the third and fourth semesters of language study. To earn special credit, students must take the placement test, complete a validating course on the IUB campus at the level into which they place (or higher) with a grade of C or better, and apply for the special credit. The course must be their first IUB course in that language. If a student earns a grade of C- or below in the validating course, s/he will not receive special credit. A transfer course cannot be used as a validating course.
Please note that students with native language fluency (i.e., students who learned the target foreign language in ways other than formal schooling/instruction) are not eligible to earn special credit in that language.
Minimum Grades
Students wanting to proceed to the next level of an East Asian language must earn a minimum grade of C in their current course. Any student earning a grade less than C and registering for the next semester of an East Asian language will be dropped from the class.
Proficiency Exams
Proficiency exams are offered to students who wish to demonstrate that they do not need any additional foreign language enrollment/study to meet the IU General Education World Language requirement and/or the College’s Foreign Language requirement. Proficiency exams are not tied to special credit. If you need to take a proficiency exam, visit the individual language webpages for additional information.
Instructions for Establishing Foreign Proficiency for Non-Native Speakers of English
Please visit the appropriate language webpage (Chinese, Japanese, or Korean) for information on establishing foreign language proficiency either through testing or waiver.
Reading Proficiency for Graduate Students
The main purpose of the reading proficiency requirement is to demonstrate that the student will be able to use primary sources written in their chosen language to conduct research in his or her field.