The tests are open until 12:00 noon on Wednesday 10 June
The Virtual Language Centre is hosted on Canvas. Here, you can do an online test for all courses currently offered.
Please note that if you are a complete beginner you should enrol on a Stage 1 Part 1 course - you do not need to take a placement test.
How to access the placement tests:
-
If you have a Single Sign On (SSO) with the University please click on the 'Assess my level' button below to enrol on the Virtual Language Centre Canvas course where you can take the test
-
If you don't have an Oxford SSO then please email the Language Centre Admin Team at admin@lang.ox.ac.uk who will give you access to the Virtual Language Centre on Canvas where you can take the test via the link below
General information about placement tests
The Language Centre placement tests have been designed by our tutors to enable us to help you identify which course best suits your needs.
The tests include items that test your listening and reading comprehension, your knowledge of linguistic structures as well as your spoken and written production.
Before you take a test:
- Make sure that you are able to hear sound and that you can record your voice by performing the recommended sound check
- Make sure you have sufficient time available to do the test in one sitting
- The test items increase in difficulty - if you find something too hard just skip it
- Do not use any dictionaries - do the test as spontaneously as possible, for the speaking part do not prepare a text to read out, just talk as naturally as you can, use English words if you are stuck as this helps us understand what you can do.
After the test:
- One of our tutors will review your spoken and written production and will let you know what course they recommend you enrol for.
- You will receive this as a notification via Canvas so please make sure that your settings send you push notifications
- Please allow 48 hours for our tutors to have the time to review your test.
CEFR information
The stages of our course pathways are calibrated on the levels of the Common European Framework of Reference for languages (CEFR). Please also use the below table as a guide for the CEFR requirements for French, German, Italian, and Spanish Fast Track courses. View the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference) graph.
Stage
|
CEFR pre-course requirement
|
Equivalence in classroom learning only
|
| 1 |
None |
No prior experience of learning the language |
| 2 |
A1 |
A 60 hour course - a very rusty GCSE |
| 3 |
A2 |
2 years totalling at least 120 hours of courses - a good but rusty GCSE |
| 4 |
A2+ |
3 years totalling at least 180 hours - a recent GCSE with a high grade |
| 5 |
B1 |
4 years totalling at least 240 hours - a rusty A-Level |
| 6 |
B1+ |
5 years totalling over 300 hours - a recent A-Level |
| 7 |
B2 |
Over 6 years and continued regular practice |
Please note that for Fast Track courses in Arabic, Japanese, Mandarin and Russian, the entry requirements are:
Fast Track course
|
CEFR pre-course requirement
|
Equivalence in classroom learning only
|
| A1 |
None |
No prior experience of learning the language – this course is for absolute beginners |
| A2 |
A1 |
For learners who have a GCSE or two years / 120 hours prior learning or if you completed Fast Track stage 1+2 or General stage 2 |
