<p>Those who have taken the Dartmouth CHINESE placement exam (the one at orientation to opt out of the language requirement) please reply. </p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>I took it; what would you like to know?</p>
<ol>
<li><p>How many characters do I need to know to pass it? pinyin?</p></li>
<li><p>Whats the test format? MC? dialog? written? </p></li>
<li><p>Did you pass it? if so, what is you background/experience with chinese?</p></li>
<li><p>Do most people pass it? </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thank you for replying</p>
<p>I'm Chinese-American and can speak/understand pretty fluently. I was born here and my parents mostly speak English in the home, but I learned Chinese very young; I went to Chinese school a few yrs in elementary school and learned how to read/write but mostly have forgotten. </p>
<p>The test has a written portion (reading a passage and ansering questions, also basic translation - you can answer in pinyin) and an oral portion (which is basically just casually talking to a teacher).</p>
<p>If you have a solid grasp of spoken Chinese but didn't do well on the written portion (or only answered in pinyin) (like me, and most test-takers), you can opt to get put in Chinese 4, an accelerated class for native speakers where you go through 3 terms material of Chinese in 1 term, learn (or re-learn) characters, and it's taught in a mix of Chinese and English. It's intense, and REALLY fast, but it's a fast way to get your language credit, and the teacher (Alan Li) is good. Almost all people with solid background in Chinese language can get put in this class (we start out with the basics).</p>
<p>If you can read and write pretty well (at an elementary school level, basically - about 500-1000 characters, i think?) you can be exempted from the language requirement, or be placed in a higher-level chinese class - usually the 20-level (second-year level).</p>
<p>So theres no multiple choice on the test? Just a written, translation, and oral? Whats the approximate test length and amount of time given?</p>
<p>How is the grading curve for Chinese 4? I'm afraid I won't get an A. </p>
<p>Do you have AIM/MSN? If so, would you mind giving it to me(pm)?</p>
<p>Thanks for helping</p>
<p>Chinese 4 doesn't have a curve, but the median for the class is A-.<br>
What's your experience with Chinese? I came in knowing literally just 5 characters (though I come from a Chinese background), and ended up with an A in the class. </p>
<p>The class is VERY straightforward, so it's not that hard to get a A if you put in the time (I had to put in a lot of time in the beginning because I knew almost no characters, and had to learn from the very beginning). There are no surprises.</p>
<p>Chin 4 was one of the best courses I've taken so far, though I'm only a freshman.</p>
<p>As for the placement exam, if you can speak any dialect of Chinese, they'll recommend Chinese 4, though you can choose not to take it, and go the regular Chinese 1 path.</p>
<p>If you have a basic understanding of characters, you'll probably be placed in Chinese 31. From what I've heard, that's how it works. I haven't met anyone placed into Chinese 22 or 23.</p>
<p>is translation from chinese to english, or english to chinese, or both?</p>
<p>Thanks Tilly for the information.</p>