Dear Student,

We are offering an opportunity for students who speak, read, and write a language not taught at Tufts to be evaluated in that language for consideration toward fulfilling the language requirement for undergraduates in the School of Arts & Sciences. This is the only way for students to be evaluated in a language not taught at Tufts and to possibly use that language to fulfill the language requirement.

Please note: Students may be exempted from the language requirement without being evaluated. If you attended a high school through at least the 10th grade where the language of instruction in all your courses was not English, you are exempt from the Tufts language requirement. Contact your Advising Dean if this is the case and it is not already noted on your transcript.

Assessments in languages not taught at Tufts are offered through Tufts’ partnership with the University of Pennsylvania Language Center. Students with proficiency in a language not taught at Tufts should plan to complete this assessment if they are not already exempted due to the policy mentioned above. You can view the list of languages typically evaluated through the Penn Language Center here.

While the Penn Language Center is able to offer assessments in many languages, Tufts cannot guarantee that all languages not offered at Tufts can be evaluated, and the languages assessed by the Penn Language Center may vary by semester. If you would like to be evaluated in a language that is not on the list, please let us know when you register with Tufts, and we will check if the Penn Language Center will be able to accommodate. Please be aware that if the Penn Language Center is unable to evaluate your chosen language, you will need to take a language taught at Tufts to fulfill the Arts & Sciences language requirement.

There will be a fee of $175 for this service, but students whose family contribution is less than $10,000 will have their fee waived and should request this when they register. If you are interested in being evaluated, please complete this registration form, which will be followed by further instructions in early September on how to schedule your exam. The deadline to complete the form is Friday, September 5, at 5 p.m. ET.

What: The first part of the test is a proctored evaluation of reading and writing skills in languages not taught at Tufts; once scored, a follow-up oral evaluation will be conducted via Zoom. In Fall 2025, we are offering in-person proctoring only for the written portion of the exam.

When: Register by September 5 for testing dates in mid to late September. Testing will be offered each Fall and Spring semester so if you miss the September 5 deadline, you will be able to register in December to take the assessment at the start of the Spring semester.

Who: Students who read, write, and speak languages not taught at Tufts. Those who have studied in a high school where that language was the exclusive language of instruction should contact their Advising Dean. Others who wish to be evaluated on their skills in that language for consideration toward fulfillment of the language requirement (including the International Relations major requirement) may consider this testing option. 

Important: Proficiency in languages taught at Tufts must be evaluated by the relevant Tufts department through the Tufts Language Coordinator or a Tufts Placement Exam.

These include the following languages:

Sincerely,

Carmen Lowe
Dean of Academic Advising and Undergraduate Studies

Tanesha Leathers (A–D)
Matthew Bellof (E–K)
Jarvis Chen (L–Q)
Caitlin Casey (R–Z)
Associate Deans of Undergraduate Advising

Ericka Miranda
Allison Vander Broek
Theodore Ogaldez
Senior Academic Advisors