You are here

Home » Testing & Prior Learning

Graduate Language Requirements

Several graduate programs at UL have language requirements for their students, and there are multiple pathways to fulfilling the requirement.

Find your program's requirements here:

M.A. in English | Ph.D. in English | M.A. in French | Ph.D. in Francophone Studies | Ph.D. in Math

In the Department of Modern Languages, we administer two pathways.

1. The Graduate Language Requirement Exam in French, German, and Spanish and at two proficiency levels:
  • Intermediate Reading Knowledge
  • Advanced Reading Proficiency
2. The course FREN 535: French for Reading and Research, offered every other fall, in odd-numbered years, i.e., FA23, FA25, FA27, etc.
  • Earning a grade of B in the course will fulfill the Graduate Language Requirement at the Intermediate Reading Knowledge level.
  • Earning a grade of A in the course will fulfill the Graduate Language Requirement at the Advanced Reading Proficiency level.

Graduate Language Requirements by Program

M.A. in English

For the M.A. in English, students must demonstrate Intermediate Reading Knowledge in a language other than English in one of the following ways:

  • by successful completion of the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Intermediate Reading Knowledge administered by the Department of Modern Languages;
  • by successful completion of 4 credits in Old English at the graduate (500-600) level, either during the graduate program in English at UL Lafayette or within the last six years prior to entering the M.A. program;
  • by earning a B or higher in FREN 535 – French for Reading and Research, offered every other fall;
  • by presenting evidence of having completed, within the past six years, the second semester sophomore-level college course in any non-English language with a grade no lower than C;
  • by presentation of a satisfactory score in a particular language on the ETS Graduate School Foreign Language Test.

Ph.D. in English

For the Ph.D. in English, students must demonstrate either Advanced Reading Proficiency in one language other than English or Intermediate Reading Knowledge in two languages other than English.

Intermediate Reading Knowledge of other languages may be established in one of the following ways:
  • Satisfactory completion of an appropriate language requirement in an M.A. or other post-baccalaureate program; or
  • Presentation of evidence of having completed, within the past six years prior to entering the English Ph.D. program at UL Lafayette, the second semester, sophomore-level college course in an approved language with a grade no lower than C; the course work may be taken while the student is attending UL Lafayette; or
  • Successful completion of 4 semester hours in Old English at the graduate (500-600) level, either during the graduate program in English at UL Lafayette or within the last six years prior to entering the Ph.D. program; or
  • Successful completion of the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Intermediate Reading Knowledge, designed and administered by appropriate faculty in the Department of Modern Languages; or
  • Successful completion of FREN 535 – French for Reading and Research with a B or higher, offered every other fall.
  • Presentation of a satisfactory score on the Graduate School Foreign Language Test administered by the Educational Testing Service.
Advanced Reading Proficiency in other languages may be demonstrated in one of the following ways:
  • Passing the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Advanced Reading Proficiency, designed and administered by the UL Lafayette Modern Languages Department; or
  • Passing with a grade of B or better 9 semester hours in the target language at the junior or senior (300-400) level, or 6 hours at the graduate (500-600) level within the last five years prior to entering the Ph.D. program in English at UL Lafayette. These courses may be taken while the student is attending UL Lafayette.
  • Passing with a grade of B or better 6 semester hours in Old English at the graduate (500-600) level, either during the graduate program in English at UL Lafayette or within the last five years prior to entering the Ph.D. program
  • Passing with a grade of A or better FREN 535 – French for Reading and Research, offered every other fall.

M.A. in French

In addition to a command of French and English, students pursuing an M.A. in French, including students in the ABM program, must demonstrate Intermediate Reading Proficiency in one other language in one of three ways:

  • through the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Intermediate Reading Knowledge,
  • by earning a C or higher in a course in the language at the 202 level or its equivalent, or
  • providing official transcripts that clearly demonstrate that you have completed university coursework in the language up to the 202 level.

Ph.D. in Francophone Studies

In addition to a command of French and English, doctoral students in Francophone Studies must demonstrate either Intermediate Reading Knowledge in two other languages or Advanced Reading Proficiency in one other language.

You can demonstrate Intermediate Reading Knowledge in one of three ways:
  • through the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Intermediate Reading Knowledge,
  • by earning a C or higher in a course in the language at the 202 level or its equivalent, or
  • providing official transcripts that clearly demonstrate that you have completed university coursework in the language up to the 202 level.
You can demonstrate Advanced Reading Proficiency in one of three ways:
  • through the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Advanced Reading Proficiency,
  • by successfully completing two courses (6 hours) at the 400 or 500 level in literature in the target language, or
  • providing official transcripts that clearly demonstrate that you have completed two courses (6 hours) at the 400 or 500 level in literature in the target language.

Ph.D. in Math

A PhD student in Math must demonstrate reading knowledge in two languages other than English and the student's native language (if different from English). One or both languages may be natural (human) language. At most one language may be a computer programming language; at most one may be a mathematical software package; at most one may be a statistics software package. All languages require certification in addition to any coursework completed.

Chinese, French, German, and Russian are considered "approved natural languages," which the students may use to fulfill this requirement without first obtaining permission from the Graduate Coordinator, provided they are not the student's native language. The Department of Modern Languages will certify proficiency in French and can assist with certification in Chinese and Russian.

For certification in French, students should contact the Modern Languages Department and request to take the Graduate Language Requirement Exam – Intermediate Reading Knowledge. The Department also offers FREN 535: French for Reading and Research which may be used to certify proficiency in French.

A student who wishes to use a language other than Chinese, French, German, or Russian to fulfill the language requirement must first obtain permission from the his or her Major Professor and the Graduate Coordinator. The Major Professor will consider whether the language is relevant to the student's field of research in making the determination. After determining the language is relevant, the Major Professor will inform the Graduate Coordinator in writing of the conclusion reached. The Graduate Coordinator will make the final decision based on the information provided by the Major Professor.

Certification for computer languages and software packages is given by the Departmental Graduate Student Language Testing committee. The Committee will decide which languages and packages, and which combinations thereof, are acceptable for fulfilling the requirement. A student will receive certification by successfully completing a project assigned by the Committee. Projects assigned for certification shall be no longer than one week in duration. All languages used to satisfy the requirement are subject to approval by the student's Major Professor.