THE RUSSIAN LANGUAGE PLACEMENT EXAMINATION

• Contact Professor Anna Voskresensky (annasky82@uky.edu) to set up an oral interview before classes start. Be sure to use your official UK email address, and include your student number in the message. Students will be place on the basis of both previous experience with Russian and the interview.
• In your message, specify what your experience with the language is:
  • Have you studied it formally in school? If so, for how many years? What are the topics you most recently covered in class?
  • Have you spoken the language at home with your family or friends? If so, do you also write and read the language? How often do you speak the language?
  • Have you lived in a country where the language is spoken? For how long?

Russian AP Test Information: 

*satisfies language requirement

Do you want placement or course credit?

The student must determine prior to the oral exam which of the following outcomes is sought:

1. A diagnosis of appropriate course level for continued study of the language
2. Satisfaction of all or part of the USP and/or College of Arts And Sciences foreign language requirement
3. Academic credit for a specific course or courses (pass/fail)
4. Academic credit plus a letter grade

For options 2, 3, and 4 a petition form specifying the chosen option must be obtained from the College of Arts and Sciences, and be completed and presented to the department prior scheduling the exam.

Students who have already studied a given language are strongly urged to obtain an evaluation of their language skills before selecting courses. All students who have had two or more years of high school Russian or are native/heritage speakers of Russian and are enrolling in college-level Russian for the first time must take the Russian Placement Exam. The program reserves the right to reassign students to a higher-level course, if it is discovered that the student has selected an inappropriate lower-level course.

Please note that the placement test does NOT grant credit hours or grades and cannot be used to replace failing grades in any previously completed course. The placement test simply determines one’s proficiency level. In order to enroll in a Russian language course, students who do NOT meet the exemption criteria below must take the placement test. 

Who should take the placement test?   You must take the test if any of the following applies:

• You know some Russian (e.g., you studied Russian previously, or Russian was spoken in your family, or you can read and write some Russian) and wish to take a UK Russian course OR want to be placed out of the language requirement at UK.
• You participated in a Russian Language Study Abroad Program with the UK Education Abroad Office. You must see Professor Anna Voskresensky, if you wish to take a UK Russian course when you return.
• You participated in an education abroad program with institutions other than the UK Education Abroad Office. You must take the test if you wish to take a UK Russian course when you return.
• You are a native speaker of Russian who graduated from a U.S. high school and would like to place out of the foreign language requirement.

Who should NOT take the placement test?   Do NOT take the test if any of the following applies:

• You do not know any Russian and wish to begin taking elementary Russian courses (i.e., RUS 101).
• You have a high school or college diploma from a country where Russian is the official language.  This means you are coded as an International Student by the Office of the Registrar, and you do NOT want to enroll in a UK Russian course.

Native speakers are ineligible to enroll in UK Russian language courses at the 100-200 level or in Russian conversation courses. If you are not coded as an International Student by the Registrar’s Office and believe you should be, please contact the Registrar at 859-257-3161.

What if I want academic credit hours for my Russian knowledge?

You do not need to take the placement test. You should take special department exams for credit. Please note that elementary and intermediate Russian credit (RUS 101-202) is not available for credit on the basis of a special examination. Credit is only provided for RUS 301, RUS 302, RUS 401, and RUS 402. Native speakers of Russian may not take the special examination for Russian language credit.