Fulfilling the College Language Requirement in Spanish
The language requirement in Spanish may be fulfilled in one of five ways:
- By successfully completing Spanish 0340, 0400, or 0405.
- By presenting a score of 4 or 5 on the Advanced Placement Spanish Language or Spanish Literature Exam(s).
- By presenting a score of a 5, 6, or 7 on the International Baccalaureate Higher Level Exam in Spanish. (Standard Level is not accepted.)
- By presenting a score of 650 or above on the SAT II in Spanish Students with an SAT II score between 600-640 are eligible to take an oral test during the first week of the semester; if they pass the oral test, they are exempt from the language requirement.
- By scoring 650 and above on the in-person departmental exam (a paper-and-pencil multiple-choice exam taken at Penn during NSO or a make-up session). Only students who have a scored a 547 or above on our online placement exam are eligible to take the department exam.
NOTE: If you begin the language sequence at Penn with Spanish 0100, 0200 or 0300, you must complete the sequence by passing Spanish 0400 or Spanish 0405 at Penn in order to fulfill the language requirement.
Once you begin the language sequence at Penn, if you are considering taking a Spanish class at another institution, please be aware of our Credit Away Policy. SPAN 0400 or SPAN 0405, the last course in the language sequence, must be taken at Penn so we can ascertain that you have achieved the expected proficiency level.
If you have fulfilled the language requirement with the AP or SAT II scores listed above, please make sure to send your scores to Penn directly from the College Board website. If prompted, use the code 2926. The Office of the Registrar will update your records upon receipt of the score(s).