DLPT

Overview

The Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT) measures how well US government personnel read and understand spoken foreign languages. It is designed, validated and maintained by the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center (DLIFLC) in Monterey, California, and is used worldwide by the Department of Defense and most other federal agencies. Results are used for operational readiness, incentive pay and training decisions for military and civilian language analysts. The current generation is the DLPT5; it replaced the DLPT IV series language by language.

The DLPT tests only listening and reading. Speaking is assessed separately through the Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI).

Who can apply

The DLPT is meant for native English speakers who have learned a foreign language, and is taken by military and civilian US government language personnel. It must be taken at an authorised test centre, since its software, hardware and security rules do not allow testing on private computers.

Levels or stages

Lower-range test

Covers Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) levels 0+ to 3. This is the test most examinees take.

Upper-range test

Covers ILR levels 3 to 4. You become eligible for it in a skill by scoring level 3 in that skill on the lower-range DLPT5 (or on a lower-range DLPT IV if no lower-range DLPT5 exists for the language). Eligibility is per skill: a 2+ in listening and a 3 in reading lets you take only the upper-range reading test. The lowest possible upper-range score is 3, so a weak performance simply means you are not above level 3.

Some languages have only a lower-range test, some only an upper-range test, and some both.

Exam pattern

Listening and reading are separate tests and need not be taken on the same day. Each is allowed three hours, with a 15-minute break around the halfway point that does not count towards the time limit.

Multiple-choice format (lower range)

Multiple-choice format (upper range)

Each multiple-choice question has four answer options, only one of which is correct. On the lower-range listening test, early passages are played once and later ones twice. Some questions are unscored research items, and you are not told which ones.

Constructed-response format. Languages with too few test takers to calibrate a multiple-choice test (DLIFLC needs at least 100, preferably 200 or more) use constructed-response tests instead. You type short answers in English in text boxes. A single test form is never a mix of both formats, though some languages use multiple-choice for the lower range and constructed response for the upper range. Computer-adaptive versions are planned only for the largest languages.

All DLPT5s are delivered on computer; there is no paper version.

Syllabus

Passages come from authentic sources such as signs, newspapers, radio and television broadcasts and the internet, and cover social, cultural, political, economic, geographic, scientific and military topics. Content is not tied to any training course, since the test measures general proficiency however it was acquired.

Each item has a short English orientation that sets the context, then the passage in the target language, then the question and answers in English. Only the passage is in the target language. Listening passages run up to about two minutes and reading passages up to about 400 words, though most are much shorter. The Chinese-Mandarin test uses both traditional and simplified characters, with traditional characters rising to half of passages at the highest levels.

Marking and results

Scores are reported separately for listening and reading as ILR levels. Lower-range tests give 0, 0+, 1, 1+, 2, 2+ or 3; upper-range tests give 3, 3+ or 4.

• Multiple choice. The score is based on the number of correct answers, and there is no penalty for wrong answers, so answer every question. Cut scores are set so that a person at a given ILR level should answer at least 70% of the questions at that level.

• Constructed response. Two trained raters score each test independently using a scoring protocol, with a third expert rater if they disagree. Answers are marked right or wrong with no partial credit, and spelling and grammar do not count as long as the idea is clear. In general you need about 75% of the questions at a level right to be awarded that level. Scores usually come within a week.

You never see which questions you got right or wrong. Scores are normally valid for one year.

Preparation tips

• DLIFLC states that there is little to gain from studying for the test itself; the best preparation is solid general proficiency built through training and real-life use of the language.

• Read the familiarisation guide for your language, or the generic multiple-choice or constructed-response guide if none exists, so the format holds no surprises.

• No dictionaries, reference books or paper notes are allowed. On constructed-response tests you may type notes in the answer boxes.

• Manage your time: trying to translate whole passages on a constructed-response test will run you out of time.

• You can review and change answers on a passage screen and at the end of the test, but listening audio cannot be replayed during review.