If you think you might take a course in any of these disciplines, at any time, during your time at Williams, take the placement exam!
Several academic departments require Placement exams so that you can be placed in the appropriate course. We update this information as departments finalize their own requirements, but you should bookmark this site and monitor it regularly. Feel free to reach out to department heads if you have any questions. You should aim to take any placement exam as soon as it becomes available.
Depending upon the department, placement exam deadlines differ throughout all of summer and into First Days. Do not miss your placement exam deadlines!
Review the list below for exam information and dates for the following subjects:
Biology • Computer Science • Chinese • French • German • Japanese • Music • Physics • Economics • Ballet• Chemistry • Spanish
| Ballet | In-person
Beginner students do NOT need to be placed. The placement class is mandatory for Intermediate or Advanced dancers who wish to place out of the Beginner level as well |
The placement class will be held on Tuesday, September 2 from 12:00-1:15 in the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance dance studio, on the second floor.
Please contact Janine Parker at jmp2@williams.edu for more details. In the Fall semester, three levels of ballet technique will be offered: Beginner (Tue/Thu, 11:20-12:35; Intermediate (Mon/Thu 1:10-2:25) and Advanced (Mon/Wed 11:00-12:15). All levels may be taken for 2 PE credits or for partial academic credit (note: partial academic credit doesn’t go toward your required number for graduation, but it does appear on your final transcript). For advanced students who wish to receive FULL academic credit, see DANC 305 in the course catalog for more information — note that participants in DANC 305 meet MWF 11:00-12:50. |
| Biology | In-person
Required to place out of Biology 101 and/or Biology 102 |
Placement Session is on Tuesday, Sept 2
1:00-3:00pm Location: TBL 112
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| Chemistry | Online | Chemistry Placement Survey Information |
| Chinese | Online
Required to continue Chinese language begun in high school. |
Students can self-enroll in the online GLOW Chinese evaluation site and follow the instructions there.
For more information about the Chinese placement test, please refer to CHIN Placement FAQ In-person interview sessions: the Sign-up spreadsheet will be available starting August 15, 2025. |
| Computer Science | Online
Required by those without a 4 or 5 on the AP Computer Science A exam who wish to place out of CSCI 134. |
Computer Science Placement Information |
| Economics | Online
This assessment is only for those with prior background in economics. If you have any prior economics background, you must complete the assessment. If you are unsure whether your background qualifies, please email the placement chair, Professor Chao, at [email protected]. |
The assessment is now available at https://glow.williams.edu/ |
| French | Online
If you’ve ever studied French before, you must take the French Placement Test. First, you must sign up by July 18, with the online form and read our webpage on the French Placement Test. |
Then, you must take the online test between July 20-31. For full info and instructions, see our French Placement Test webpage. For further info on all things French at Williams, see french.williams.edu |
| German | Required to continue German language begun in high school. | Contact Prof. Newman, gnewman@williams.edu |
| Japanese | Part in-person and part online
Required to continue Japanese language begun in high school. |
Students who would like to complete the placement evaluation should contact Professor Shinko Kagaya, skagaya@williams.edu. In-person interview sessions TBD. |
| Music | Part in-person and part online
Required by those students without a 4 or 5 on the AP Music Theory exam who wish to place out of MUS 102 and into MUS 103 |
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| Physics | Online
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Physics Placement Information
preferred completion date: 8/2 |
| Spanish | Online
Required to continue Spanish language begun in high school . |
All students who have taken one or more years of Spanish, or have experience with the language in other forms, should take the test to ensure correct placement in classes. You can self-enroll via Glow here: https://glow.williams.edu/ You can take the test any time starting now, but you must take it before pre-registration, ie, by August 1st. This way, if you have questions about which class to take, we will have the information to help guide you. For questions please contact Professor Rouhi at lrouhi@williams.edu. |