Foreign Languages
Whitman College offers courses in Chinese, French, German, Classical Greek, Japanese, Latin and Spanish. If you wish to take courses in any of these languages, you should take the placement test to determine the best course level that suits your individual needs.
Please plan to take any applicable placement test(s) by July 15 to avoid delays in advising and registration.
Students wanting to delve deep into the language and cultural studies are encouraged to consider majoring or minoring in Chinese Studies, Classics & Classical Studies, French and Francophone Studies, German Studies, Hispanic Studies, Japanese Studies and South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, though not required.
Do You Need to Take the Placement Test?
If you have not formally studied your language of choice and want to begin studying that language, you do not need to take the placement test. You can simply register for the introductory course.
If you have previously studied French, German, Japanese or Spanish and wish to continue studying in any of these languages, you will need to take the placement test to determine which course to register for.
If you have previously studied Chinese, Greek or Latin and wish to continue studying in any of these languages, you will need to review the placement guidelines below and contact the faculty chair in that department.
If you are a native speaker of the language you wish to study, you must contact the faculty chair in that department and take the placement test to identify which course level best suits you.
Taking the Placement Test
Before accessing the online placement test for French, German or Spanish, you must activate your Whitman email and use it to create an account in the Foreign Language Tests platform. If you plan to take the Japanese placement test, you should contact the department chair for instructions.
After completing the test, you will receive your placement results. The Registrar’s Office will also receive your results and will need to upload them to your student record before you register for classes.
Please note: If you take the French language placement test, faculty in French and Francophone Studies will email you individually to discuss course placement.
Placement Guidelines
If you are interested in studying Chinese, Greek, or Latin at Whitman, you should review the language requirements and contact the faculty chair in that department (see below) before registering for classes.
- Chinese guidelines
- Classics guidelines (Greek or Latin)
If you are interested in taking intermediate Japanese courses, you must review the Japanese placement guidelines and contact Associate Professor of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Wakako Suzuki to schedule a placement test.
Questions?
If you have questions about your placement or need assistance registering for the appropriate language course level, please contact:
- Chinese: Associate Professor of Foreign Languages and Literatures (Chinese) Donghui He, hed@whitman.edu, 509-527-5891
- Japanese: Associate Professor of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Wakako Suzuki, suzukiw@whitman.edu, 509-527-5998
- Greek or Latin: Associate Professor of Environmental Humanities and Classics Kate Shea, sheakj@whitman.edu, 509-527-5894
- French: Professor of French and Francophone Studies Jack Iverson, iversojr@whitman.edu, 509-526-4750
- German: Associate Professor of German Studies and Philosophy Julia Ireland, irelanja@whitman.edu, 509-522-4388
- Spanish: Associate Professor of Hispanic Studies Aarón Aguilar-Ramírez, aguilaa2@whitman.edu, 509-527-4998