Preparatory language courses

Preparatory language courses are held by foreign language instructors teaching at the University Language Center (CLA) and give students the chance to practice reading, writing, speaking and listening skills in various languages in compliance with QCER proficiency levels. 

Preparatory language courses are yearly courses which take place at the same time as the core language courses included in the degree programmes.

See the Guidelines for further information.

Language proficiency tests (prove sommative or prove di lettorato)

First and second year LCE students, first year SCC students and first year LACOM and LCC students, as of the 2021/2022 cohort, must sign up to the lecturer’s exam (prova di lettorato) on Esse3, to enable the registration of the lecturer’s assessment from the course. This procedure is required for both attending students, who will have completed in-course assessment, and non-attending students who will be required to complete the Language proficiency tests for non-attending or underperforming students (prova sommativa).

As for the Third language (LCE students only), non-attending students must sign up on Moodle.

Further details can be found in the above-mentioned Guidelines (par. Access to exams and Language proficiency tests).

The prova di lettorato can be replaced by an international certification: English, Spanish, German (levels from B1 to C2), French* (B1, C1 and C2 levels).

*For French B2 level, please check the section below.

Equivalent certifications can be found on the CLA website (regularly updated).

The certifications replacing LCL tests that do not indicate any expiry date do not have any expiration.

Depending on the certificate, the student:

- can ask for exemption from the prova di lettorato by sending the certificate to the relevant course language lecturer for the language in question;

- can request the validation of the LCL exam by handing in the certification to the DSLC Students’ Secretary Segreteria Studenti (via Università 4, Modena)

All the details can be found in the Guidelines.

Recognized language certifications can be used to obtain exemption from the lecturer's exam (prova di lettorato), the Language Competence Level (LCL) exams, or for the recognition of Further Language Competencies (Ulteriori Competenze Linguistiche - UCL).

Students may contact tutor professors with any doubts, however, before doing so, they must carefully review the information on the recognition of language competences.

Language Competence Level (LCL) assessment

Students who do not have a valid international certificate must assess their language competence through LCL tests before graduation. More specifically:

• LCE (Lingue e Culture Europee) students must obtain C1 level in the first language of study and B2 level in the second one.
• LACOM (Languages for Communication in International enterprises and organizations) and LCC (Lingue, Culture e Comunicazione) students must obtain C2 level in the first language of study and C1 level in the second one.

See the CLA Moodle page for mock tests and further details on LCL exams.

The 'Scolaire' (B2 S) certification, accepted to fulfil the Additional Educational Requirements (OFA), grants exemption from the lecturer's exam (prova di lettorato) related to the "French Language" course (first year) and the "Third Language" course (second year), but not from attending the preparatory language courses.

The 'Tout public' (B2 T) certification, accepted to fulfil the Additional Educational Requirements (OFA), grants exemption from the lecturer's exam (prova di lettorato) related to the "French Language" course (first year), the "Third Language" course (second year), the "Lingua, cultura e istituzioni dei paesi di lingua francese" course (second year), and the "Biennalizzazione III lingua" (third year), but not from attending the preparatory language courses.

The DELF B2 Scolaire CANNOT replace the Language Competence Level (LCL) tests.

Only the DELF B2 Tout public can replace the Language Competence Level (LCL) tests.