All students who plan to take Spanish at Hopkins must take the departmental placement exam, before registering for a Spanish class. This exam is available online year-round. However, for the most accurate placement recommendation, it should be taken just prior to the semester in which you plan to study the language.

This multiple-choice exam is both individualized (self-adjusts to the student’s level) and non-timed. You should, however, plan to compete it in one sitting to avoid the disruption of being disconnected from the server. It covers grammar, vocabulary, reading, writing, and speaking skills. 

To register for a Spanish class

1. Read the ethics statement below and then take the departmental placement exam online. You may only take the exam once.
2. After taking the exam, send an email to Professor Loreto Sanchez requesting permission to sign up for the class that matches your score.
3. Professor Sanchez will notify the Registrar’s Office to update your SIS record and permit you to register for a Spanish class at the approved level as soon as registration opens for your cohort.

This placement exam should take approximately 50 minutes to complete. Allow yourself sufficient time to complete the entire exam at once. The results of this exam are subject to review by the program director or the corresponding course coordinator, who might determine that you should be placed in a different level of Spanish. In the meantime, however, you should register for the level automatically determined through the exam results.

You must register with your JHU email. Questions regarding the either the exam or your score should be sent to Professor Loreto Sanchez.

Students that plan to waive language requirements for their majors must contact Dr. Sánchez to have this exam proctored. She will issue an official placement notation in their transcripts. Official placement notations will not be granted for any reasons other than language requirement waivers.

Ethics Statement

Johns Hopkins University strongly believes that every member of its community should uphold the highest standard of integrity in their work and should avoid academic dishonesty. You are expected to behave in an ethical manner while taking the online language placement exam.

You must take this exam without assistance from anyone and without the help of any document (notes, book, dictionary, etc.). You are allowed to take this test only once. Reproduction of the material included on this test is a violation of ethical standards. Therefore, you should not discuss the questions on this test with others nor should you provide others with the questions included on this test.

By taking the online placement test, you accept the following statements:

• I will do my own work on this test. I will not receive assistance from another person or from books or other documents.
• I will not discuss this test with others or reproduce test questions in any format.
• I will take this test online only once.