The Exam
Ready to put your German language studies to the test -- and gain some college credit in the process? The exam evaluates your understanding of the language, both written and spoken, and your ability to answer questions in correct and idiomatic German.
About the Exam
The approximately two-and-a-half hour exam includes multiple-choice and free-response sections. During the multiple-choice section, you'll demonstrate your listening and reading skills. The free-response section puts writing and speaking to the test.
Except for directions, the entire exam is in German. Remember to respond only in German. You may not use dictionaries or other reference works during the exam.
Since recording equipment is used during the exam, you need to make sure you're familiar with the equipment. Ask your teacher for a trial run of the equipment and procedures used during the exam.
Note: As you're looking over exam materials from past years, in the multiple-choice section you'll notice modified cloze passages-passages with words omitted for which you must choose the best of four possible choices for the blank. Beginning with the 2004 exam, this type of question has been eliminated. However, the paragraph fill-in portion of the free response section, which asks you to write in the correct word for each blank, is still part of the exam.
Section I: Multiple-Choice
The multiple-choice section tests your listening and reading skills. Your listening skills are tested in two ways:
- You'll listen to approximately 12 brief exchanges between two speakers. Each exchange will be heard once. Then you'll choose the most appropriate completion of the exchange from among four choices.
- You'll listen to several recorded dialogues or brief monologues. Then you'll answer several multiple-choice questions about each recording.
In the reading section, you'll read several different passages and then answer various multiple-choice questions about them.
Section II: Free-Response
The free-response section tests your writing and speaking skills. Your writing skills will be tested in two ways:
- You'll demonstrate your knowledge of German structure by filling in omitted words or phrases within a text.
- You'll have 40 minutes to write a 150 to 200 word essay that showcases your ability to express ideas in written German. The essays will be graded using the following criteria: appropriateness and range of vocabulary, grammatical accuracy, idiomatic usage, organization, and style.
Below are a few suggestions for composing your essays:
- Take a few minutes to organize your thoughts before you begin writing. You'll be graded on organization and no extra credit will be awarded for writing an essay longer than required.
- Make sure you address the required number of topics.
- Remember that no credit will be given for an essay that does not address the given topic.
- Do not write in capital letters only; it will affect your grade.
- Leave time to proofread your work.
The free-response section also includes a 20-minute speaking section. Your answers during the speaking section will be recorded. First you'll respond to a series of recorded questions or prompts. Then you'll recount a story suggested by a series of six illustrations.
Scoring the Exam
Each section of the exam is weighted differently to reflect the current emphasis in college classrooms. The breakdown is:
| 20% | Listening |
| 25% | Reading |
| 30% | Writing |
| 25% | Speaking |
