Online Placement Test (SPOT) and Proficiency Exam

Welcome to the Japanese Studies Program!

We're very excited that you're interested in learning Japanese at UC San Diego.

If you have never been exposed to the Japanese language, JAPN 10A is the right class for you. This course does not have a prerequisite, so please enroll in it during your enrollment period for the fall quarter.

All students who have studied the Japanese language in any way must take the online Japanese placement test, the Simple Proficiency-Oriented Test (SPOT), in order to enroll in an appropriate JAPN course at UC San Diego.

• taking Japanese classes at schools
  (including AP Japanese credit and articulated Japanese courses at community colleges)
• self-studying
• tutoring
• speaking Japanese at home
• having lived in Japan
• studying abroad in Japan

SPOT is available online 24/7, and you can take it wherever you have a stable wifi connection. 

1. Take SPOT. Once you receive your test result, submit it along with your essay and all the required information via the Student Information Form (Google Form). See Steps 8-10 in the instructions below. If your SIF is not complete, we cannot process your placement.
2. Once  we receive your complete SIF, one of our Japanese language faculty will email you within 5 business days to schedule your placement interview (oral assessment). Please select a time that works best for you and confirm with the faculty. 
3. Your placement interview will take place on Zoom for about 10-15 minutes. You will find out your course level at the end of your interview and also receive a pre-authorization confirmation message via VAC for undergrads and via email for grads and non UCSD students.
4. Enroll in the course via WebReg during your enrollment period.

Note: Your test result is valid for one academic year (3 consecutive quarters). All the placement interviews are scheduled on a first come first served basis. 

Click here to access the SPOT link and instructions.

Contact:
UCSD undergrads: Virtual Advising Center (DO NOT EMAIL)
All others: japan@ucsd.edu

UC San Diego students may wish to have it certified that they have attained a level of conversational and reading proficiency to satisfy their language requirements. Revelle and Eleanor Roosevelt Colleges require such certification for the baccalaureate degree and some UC San Diego departments have an undergraduate language requirement as part of their major program. We offer a proficiency exam for Japanese.

Proficiency Exam Procedures

Please follow these procedures.

1. Contact the approved proficiency exam administrator and make an appointment for the test. After the test, the test administrator fills out the form and either certifies that you have passed proficiency or indicates that you are not proficient.
2. Bring the completed form to the Linguistics Language Program Office, APM 3101. You must return this form to the Language Program whether or not you passed the test.
3. The Language Program office will contact the test administrator to verify that the test has been given and that the results indicated are correct. If you have passed the test, the Language Program office will notify your college or major department of the results and will also inform the Registrar so the result can be posted to your transcript.

More information about taking a Proficiency Examination can be found on the Linguistics Department Website: http://ling.ucsd.edu/language/proficiency-exam.html