A student of mine (he is in high school) would like to get college credit for his Mandarin skills. Is there any way to test out of Mandarin? I don't see it offered through CLEP. I appreciate your input.
How about AP Chinese Language and Culture? http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/subjects.html If that won't work, how about the ACTFL/OPI oral (by phone) exam: http://www.languagetesting.com/actfl_article.htm http://www.languagetesting.com/application/individual1.cfm The positive thing about the ACTFL exam is that your student can earn more credits and some upper level credits with a high level of proficiency, but it's about twice the price of the AP exam. It will also probably be a bit less hassle to arrange the ACTFL exam. Hope that helps, and good luck!
A Couple More Options New York University offers language proficiency exams. Their program is well-known and many schools will award college credit for scoring well. The program offers tests in Mandarin Chinese, with options for either traditional characters (used primarily in Taiwan) or simplified characters (used primarily in mainland China), so he can choose the option with which he feels most comfortable. The program offers testing in 53 different languages, including some that are difficult to find in colleges, such as Armenian, Bosnian, Gujarati, Ibo and Yoruba. Also, he can ask the college in which he enrolls if they offer language testing. Many schools will have their own foreign language examinations, usually only available to enrolled students. When I was studying at Florida State, I barely noticed a brief mention of the tests on the massive Orientation schedule, but went anyway to try my luck. For a $25 test fee, I was awarded 8 semester credits for Beginning French I and Beginning French II. It depends upon the school, though, as to whether or not they will offer this option...and usually the school will only offer testing in languages that are taught at that institution.
Another Option for Language Testing Another option for language testing is the New York University's language proficiency exams. Their programs include many different language options for testing... 53 different languages in total. One thing that is unique about this program is that it includes many languages that are not taught in most American universities. For example, Armenian, Bosnian, Gujarati, Ibo, and Yoruba are all options available. This means that students could potentially earn credits for college even if none of the professors at their school can speak that particular language. As for your student, Mandarin Chinese is available. What's more, he'll have the option of either simplified characters (the writing system used on mainland China since Mao) or traditional characters (the writing system used in Taiwan). Here is the website: Whatever test he chooses, wish him luck from me!
New York University also offers proficiency testing for languages. The results are transcripted, and many colleges will accept this test for credit. Mandarin Chinese is included, along with dozens of other languages. The details are here:
