Foreign language requirement question

[kylan11]

Hi everyone! First post here (but I have a feeling it won't be the last!). I am pursuing a BABA PM from UMPI and will enroll in a few months when I'm done with my ACE credits.

Quick question that oddly enough I haven't found the answer to: as you know UMPI requires 3 foreign language credits and I'm an international student based in Italy. I am obviously a native Italian speaker, which I guess is one of the accepted "popular" languages. 

Do I need to take (and pay for) an ACTFL exam to prove that or will my citizenship status/italian high school diploma fulfill the requirement?

Thank you so much!

[rachel83az]

You would need to pay for the ACTFL exam. Your citizenship status isn't enough. For Italian, you can do the Listening or Reading test for $51.

[dfrecore]

Needing foreign language credit is just a requirement - EVERYONE getting a degree at UMPI needs to meet it, no matter where they're from.

For the ACTFL, Italian is one of the languages that is available for all 4/5 tests: OPI/OPIc, WPT, RPT, and LPT. If you were getting the BLS and didn't have a ton of elective credits, I'd suggest taking all of the exams. But, since you are getting the BABA which only has 12cr of General Electives, I suggest that you either do one of the cheap ones (RPT or LPT) which will get you as much as 6cr for $51; or the OPIc, which can get you as much as 12cr for $108.

[kylan11]

You would need to pay for the ACTFL exam. Your citizenship status isn't enough. For Italian, you can do the Listening or Reading test for $51.

I see, thanks for the heads up. From the comment below it sounds like it might not be such bad news after all.

Needing foreign language credit is just a requirement - EVERYONE getting a degree at UMPI needs to meet it, no matter where they're from.

For the ACTFL, Italian is one of the languages that is available for all 4/5 tests: OPI/OPIc, WPT, RPT, and LPT.  If you were getting the BLS and didn't have a ton of elective credits, I'd suggest taking all of the exams.  But, since you are getting the BABA which only has 12cr of General Electives, I suggest that you either do one of the cheap ones (RPT or LPT) which will get you as much as 6cr for $51; or the OPIc, which can get you as much as 12cr for $108.

I thought I had 18-21 credits of GE, at least that's what it says here. You're saying I can get as much as 12 overnight with zero effort just by knowing my parents' language? Love it 

[ss20ts]

I thought I had 18-21 credits of GE, at least that's what it says here. You're saying I can get as much as 12 overnight with zero effort just by knowing my parents' language? Love it 

Yes you do need 18-21 credits of general education. I just checked the transfer database and no one has transferred in 12 credits in any language from these exams. Not saying it isn't possible, but no one has done it yet.

[LevelUP]

You're saying I can get as much as 12 overnight with zero effort just by knowing my parents' language? Love it 

This is foreign privilege.

The free credits along with Grammarly make it a lot easier for 2nd language English speakers to earn a degree in the U.S.

[dfrecore]

I thought I had 18-21 credits of GE, at least that's what it says here. You're saying I can get as much as 12 overnight with zero effort just by knowing my parents' language? Love it 

18-21 credits of General Electives, but it could actually be more/less depending on the concentration and the number of credits you bring into the GEC I think.

I have not heard that you can get more than 6cr for the degree, but I haven't heard that you can't either - so YMMV.  But it certainly can't hurt to take the OPIc and then see what UMPI does with the credits.  And make sure to report back here and tell us if you get more than 6cr!

[kylan11]

I guess it's a money vs potential reward situation now, say I take the risk and pay the extra $108 in hope of getting more than 6 credits, it seems unlikely to me that anyone would go "oh snap this italian born dude has an advanced italian certificate he must be a genius let's go for 12", you know? Would it make more sense to go for one of the cheaper ones at $51 since they usually transfer for 6 credits anyway?

Thanks a lot for your valuable insight by the way, I hope to give back to this hidden gem of a community as much as you've given me.

[rachel83az]

$100 for 6 credits is still pretty cheap! But I'd probably just go for the even cheaper one, because I am cheap.

[dfrecore]

I am cheap as well, but I'm also big on taking advantage of low-hanging fruit. So in this instance, I'm taking the $108 OPIc exam to try for 12cr because it's an easy win if it works. It can also get you UL credit, which the RPT/LPT exams can't.