Undergraduate students whose native language is Chinese, Japanese, or Korean and who graduated from a high school where their native language is the language of instruction can fulfill their foreign language requirement by completing the College Recorder’s Office Application of Foreign Language Proficiency for Non-Native Speakers of English . You will be required to provide/upload an official transcript from the high school you attended.
If you completed 6th grade or above but did not graduate from a high school where your native language is the language of instruction, official documentation in .pdf format proving the completion of 6th grade or above attached to the EALC-Language Proficiency Form will be required.
If you did not complete the 6th grade or higher in a country where Chinese, Japanese, or Korean is the language of instruction, you will need to take a proficiency test to establish proficiency (see testing information below.)
This process is designed for undergraduate students only. Graduate students wanting to waive their foreign language requirements will need to contact their home department DGS to work with the appropriate language program coordinator in EALC to determine if testing or providing schooling documentation will satisfy the waiver.
Note: All applications for foreign proficiency must be submitted at least one month prior to semester end to allow the College Recorder’s Office sufficient time to update the student’s record.
Placement Testing
The online Korean placement test is offered exclusively for the purpose of class placement, not for providing proficiency. All students enrolled at IU with prior knowledge of Korean will need to take an online Korean placement test before registering for their first Korean class at IUB, to identify the appropriate class to take.
The Korean placement test is offered online at https://korprf.indiana.edu/. After students register for the test, they will receive an access code that enables them to take the test. It is a randomized, timed, test with a 2-hour limit. Students are only allowed to take the test one time. A second attempt must be requested through the Department with a valid reason. Students are not allowed to use any aids during the test, including dictionaries, textbooks, notes, cell phone, etc. It is for the student’s best interest if the test reflects their current ability. Within two weeks after the semester starts, students may receive an interview from the course instructor to verify their placement.
Any inquiry regarding the placement test results should be addressed to the Recorder’s Office and your academic advisor.
The placement test results are only valid for a limited time. Please contact the Korean Language Program Coordinator for the expiration day of your results.
EALC language course credits, except for C333, C433, J333, J433, are not given to language courses taken outside of IU, including overseas. Students who need to prove their language proficiency for purposes of satisfying degree requirements must do so through EALC’s proficiency tests.
Proficiency Testing
Korean proficiency testing is offered once a semester for students who wish to fulfill their foreign language requirement for the College of Arts and Sciences or World Languages requirement for IUB’s General Education, but who are NOT planning to take a Korean course while attending the IUB.
The proficiency exam can be exempt if you submit official records of scores of one of the following non-IU proficiency tests in addition to the EALC-Language Proficiency Form:
650 or higher in SAT 2 Korean administered by College Board.
Passing Level 3 of the TOPIK (Test of Proficiency in Korean) administered by the Korean government. See http://www.topik.go.kr/ for more information on TOPIK.
**Please review the above guidelines for international students and establishment of proficiency before deciding to take this exam. You may need to submit documents instead of taking the proficiency test.
If you are not exempt and wish to take this exam to fulfill your Korean Proficiency requirement, please register at the Korean language program website and come to the above location with a pencil and photo ID. Cell phones and other electronic devices are not permitted during the test.
If there is an unusual circumstance and you must take the test sooner, you should contact the Korean Program Language Coordinator to discuss an alternate test time.
