ACTFL

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign languages (ACTFL) test is designed to assess speaking, writing, listening, and reading in a foreign language in real-world situations in a spontaneous and non-rehearsed context. For each skill, these guidelines identify five major levels of proficiency: Distinguished, Superior, Advanced, Intermediate, and Novice.

Formats

ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI)
The Oral Proficiency Interview is a 30+ minute telephone interview between an ACTFL Certified Tester and a candidate. The interview is interactive and adaptive to the experiences and linguistic competence of the candidate.

ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview by Computer (OPIc)
The ACTFL OPIc is a test of oral proficiency that can be delivered electronically and on demand. This semi-direct test is individualized to the test taker and designed to elicit about a 40 minute sample of ratable speech delivered.

There are two OPIc testing options To Advanced and To Superior. If you need a Bilingual Language Endorsement you must take the To Superior test to receive a rating high enough to qualify.

ACTFL Writing Proficiency Test (WPT)
The ACTFL WPT is a timed 80-90 minute test delivered either in test booklet form or online. This is a proctored, standardized test for global assessment of functional writing ability, measuring how well a person writes in a language.

Fees

There are two fees for ACTFL tests; the test fee is paid directly to the LTI when ordering the test, and the proctor fee is paid to Western Washington University.

$20 per test – Western Washington University Students
$40 per test – Non-Western Washington University Candidates

The proctor fee can be paid at the time of testing with cash, check, debit/credit. Students also have the option of paying beforehand online with debit or credit card.  The student should request the link be sent to them when they schedule their appointment.

Registration

Washington State applicants can register for an ACTFL proficiency exam online.

Once you have registered through Language Testing International and they have sent your registration details to us, you may then contact our office to schedule your appointment. The OPI appointment is set up with LTI who then confirms with the testing site. The OPIc and WPT tests require an appointment at the WWU Testing Center by calling 360 650-3080.  Multiple tests may be scheduled on the same day.

Scores

Once your application has been processed you will be sent an email with your confirmed test date, time, and other test instructions. Please retain this for your records as you will use this website and secure password to verify the date and time of your OPI and check status of your results.

Day of Test

Please bring picture ID, and the appropriate proctoring fee. No aids are permitted during the test.

Test Lengths

  • ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) - 30+ minutes
  • ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview by Computer (OPIc) - about 40 minutes
  • ACTFL Writing Proficiency Test (WPT) - 80-90 minutes

Questions

For questions, contact LTI at admin@languagetesting.com or 1-800-486-8444.