Spanish Placement and Proficiency

UW Tacoma offers both Spanish placement testing and Spanish proficiency testing.

Spanish Placement Testing

If you intend to take a Spanish language course at UW Tacoma, you may need to take a placement test to be placed into the appropriate level course.

You need to take the Spanish placement exam if you:

  • Have taken a Spanish course in high school
  • Have not taken any Spanish at the college level
  • Speak Spanish at home or are a bilingual or heritage speaker of the language

You do not need to take the exam if you:

  • Have never taken a Spanish class and intend to enroll in Spanish 101 (TSPAN 101) at UW Tacoma
  • Have an AP score of 3 or higher
  • Do not intend to enroll in a Spanish language course at UW Tacoma

Steps for Taking the Spanish placement test (WebCAPE)

The Spanish placement test is offered online through WebCAPE. Tests can be taken at any time, from anywhere.  The WebCAPE exam will cost $10 which is due prior to the start of your exam. 

  1. Go to WebCAPE and fill out the web form.  Be sure to select "University of Washington Tacoma" as your organization and provide your full name.  (It is not required, but you may choose to take this test on a computer in the Office of Undergraduate Edcuation.  To do so, you must schedule an appointment by emailing ouetests@uw.edu.)
  2. Pay the $10 test fee.
  3. Take the exam.
  4. Save your score report
  5. Discuss placement results with your academic advisor or request enrollment for the course you were placed into. Make sure to include a copy of your score report with your request. Questions can be sent to siasadv@uw.edu.
Spanish Proficiency Testing (SP100A)

The Spanish proficiency test may be used to meet university world language requirements. It is a one-hour, timed test that is taken on campus in a proctored environment. All questions are multiple choice, including an audio portion which asks you to respond to recorded information. Test results are usually available after completion of the test during a conversation with your test proctor.  You must wait at least six months before retaking the proficiency test. 

For the purpose of world language admission requirements, a score of 45 or above is equivalent to proficiency in TSPAN 101 and TSPAN 102. A student admitted to UW Tacoma with an admissions deficiency in world language may fulfill their deficiency by either taking coursework through the second quarter, typically equivalent to TSPAN 102 or by scoring 45 or higher (equivalent to placement into TSPAN 103) on the SP100A proficiency test (referred to as the SP100A in the course time schedule).. A score of 45 or higher requires no additional Spanish courses.

Steps for taking the Spanish proficiency test

Advance registration is required.

  1. Email ouetests@uw.edu (using your UW netid@uw.edu email account) with the following information:

    1. Name
    2. Student ID number
    3. Telephone number
    4. 3 different testing dates and times to take the test
  2. Pay the $25 testing fee (Must be paid online or in person at the Cashier's Office prior to taking test)
  3. Arrive at least 5 minutes early to your scheduled appointment
  4. Bring your valid photo ID (you will be unable to take the test without valid photo identification. Husky ID card preferred)