Foreign Language Requirement Regulations

  •  All students who have been accepted or readmitted into The University of the West Indies in the academic year 2023/2024 to read for an undergraduate degree and whose native language is English are required to register for and successfully complete a prescribed three (3) credit Foreign Language, Sign Language or Caribbean Creole course. The courses recommended to satisfy this requirement are:

             CHIN1001: Chinese (Mandarin) 1A

             FREN0101: Beginners’ French

             JAPA1001: Japanese Language 1

             LING1819: Beginners’ Caribbean Sign Language

             SPAN0101: Beginners’ Spanish

  • ALL regional students who matriculated into The University with a foreign language obtained at the Caribbean Examinations Council with CSEC (Grade 1, 2 or 3) or CAPE Unit l or ll (Grades l to 5) or an equivalent, are eligible for an exemption from this requirement but shall receive no credit.
  • Eligible students must apply for Exemptions without Credit on the Automated Student Request System via the SAS portal. When making the request, students must use the relevant course code from the list provided above that matches the language passed/spoken excepting those with a pass in CAPE Spanish/French who must make the request using SPAN1000/FREN1000, respectively.
  •  To fulfill the necessary Level I credits, students have the option to select any two out of the following three courses: (i) FOUN1101, (ii) FOUN1201, and (iii) one Level I Free Elective.
  • All international students whose first language is not English and who matriculated into The University with English as a Second Language qualification shall be exempted and shall receive no credit.
  • Eligible students must apply for Exemptions without Credit on the Automated Student Request System via the SAS portal. When making the request, students must use the relevant course code from the list provided above that matches the language passed/spoken. To fulfill the necessary Level I credits, students have the option to select any two out of the following three courses: (i) FOUN1101, (ii) FOUN1201, and (iii) one Level I Free Elective. 
  • Undergraduates who satisfy matriculation requirements under the Mature Student Clause shall be required to show proficiency in a foreign language using the Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) tool.
  • The University may require students who do not possess a certification in a foreign language but might have pursued a foreign language to take a diagnostic test in the Modern Language and Literatures Department in the Faculty of Humanities and Education. Once proficiency is established, students must apply for Exemptions without Credit on the Automated Student Request System via the SAS portal. When making the request, students must use the relevant course code from the list provided above that matches the language passed.
  • Students exempted based on CSEC/CAPE Spanish or French and opting for the same language as their Level I Free Elective should follow the recommended course registration below:

               CSEC Spanish, must take SPAN1000 instead of SPAN0101

               CAPE Spanish, must take SPAN1001 instead of SPAN0101

               CSEC French, must take FREN1000 instead of FREN0101

               CAPE French, must take FREN1001 instead of FREN0101

  • Students who meet the criteria for an exemption from the Foreign Language Requirement and yet have a preference for studying a different language to fulfill the requirement are advised not to proceed with applying for the exemption. Instead, they must select a language course at Level I.
  • Students can fulfil this requirement at any point during their undergraduate programme, however, the Faculty recommends that students complete their level 1 credits/courses before advancing to level 2.

If you have further questions, click here for frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to these regulations.