Online Placement Exam
This test evaluates your proficiency in French in order to best place you in the appropriate course for your level. All first-year, transfer, and/or returning students who studied French prior to entering Columbia/Barnard must take the placement exam before taking any Barnard French courses. Students who have received a 5 on the AP French exam or passed the French Baccalaureate are exempt from the placement exam and should begin with upper level French courses (ie: FREN BC3006+).
EXAM SCHEDULE
Spring 2025
Currently the exam is only open by appointment. Students must email Professor Karen Santos da Silva (ksantosd@barnard.edu) for an access code to take the exam during this period.
Results may take up to one week to post. Please email Professor Santos if you have not received a score in 5 days.
Summer 2025
June
Returning students may request an exam link by appointment only. Students must email Professor Karen Santos da Silva (ksantosd@barnard.edu) for an access code to take the exam during this period. Results may take up to one week to post. Please email Professor Santos if you have not received a score in 5 days.
July
Incoming first-year and transfer students will be able to take the exam one week before July registration opens and will stay open through registration week. Exams will be graded daily.
After July registration closes, students must email Professor Karen Santos da Silva (ksantosd@barnard.edu). Results may take up to one week to post. Please email Professor Santos if you have not received a score in 5 days.
August
The exam will open for all students (returning & incoming) one week before the fall semester begins and will remain open throughout the shopping period. Exams will be graded daily.
PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING CAREFULLY
It is NOT IN YOUR BEST INTERESTS to seek outside help in any form while taking the test. If you place out of the highest course in the language sequence, you will have an additional interview with a language professor to confirm the score.
You must complete the test within the allotted time of 90 MINUTES.
The system will only allow you to take the TEST ONCE (1x).
You WILL NOT automatically receive a grade upon completion of the exam.
When available, your result will appear in the Comment section of the exam.
READY TO FOR THE EXAM?
Click link: https://courseworks2.columbia.edu/enroll/FEGG38
- You will be redirected to a Canvas course, French Placement Exam.
- You will be prompted to Enroll in the course. Please Confirm/Accept to enroll.
- The exam can be found in Quizzes located in the left-hand menu.
Note from the Center for Accessibility Resources & Disability Services (CARDS):
If you are registered with CARDS and receive testing accommodations and would like to use those testing accommodations on the language placement exam, please contact CARDS to obtain an eligibility letter verifying your testing accommodations for the language department. You must first be registered with CARDS for testing accommodations in order to obtain a letter of eligibility.
Contact CARDS at cards@barnard.edu if you have questions about registration.
Frequently Asked Questions
The test is all multiple choice (50 questions), and covers grammar, vocabulary, sentence comprehension, translation, and short translation passage. There are no listening or oral components.
The exam takes about 45 minutes. Although, students are allotted 90 minutes to complete it.
You may only take the exam once. If you have technical issues with the exam, please contact Professor Karen Santos da Silva.
No, dictionaries are not allowed for this exam.
If you have never taken French, there is no need to take the exam. You will register for Elementary 1 with your advisor's approval.
Please note that you will not automatically receive a grade upon completion of the exam. We will notify you of your placement (or whether you will be asked to undergo an additional interview) in the comment section of your exam, no later than 48 hours before the registration start date.
If you have questions about your score, please contact Professor Karen Santos da Silva.
Questions about the exam should be directed to Professor Karen Santos da Silva.
Students entering Barnard in Fall 2016 and thereafter will receive points of credit for Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) credit, but these credits will not exempt students from General Education Requirements. Further information may be found on the Registrars website.