Categories of Exam Competition

In order to allow students with like-exposure to compete against one another, the NSE has defined Three Categories of exam competition.

* The Categories of Exam Competition will be determined on the day of the Exam Administration, not during Exam Registration. *

1. Classroom Experience

A student whose only contact with Spanish is in the classroom.

2. Outside Experience

A student who has had specific experiences with Spanish beyond the classroom:

– The student is a heritage speaker who has had exposure to Spanish but limited practice in his/her home environment. The student may hear or speak some Spanish at home.

– The student has been enrolled in a Spanish immersion or dual language program for the prior 3 years or more.

– The student’s principal language is another romance language (Catalan, French, Galician, Italian, Sicilian, Portuguese, Rumanian, etc.)

– The student has participated in an elementary Spanish language program during grades K-6 for three years or more. (This specification applies to LEVELS 01 and 1 only. Any student taking the Level 2 exam or above who participated in an elementary Spanish program may be placed in the CLASSROOM EXPERIENCE category.)

NOTE: For the purpose of the NSE Contest, an elementary Spanish language program is defined as having had 30 minutes or more of Spanish instruction per week for three years or more during Grades K-6.

3. Bilingual

– A student who comes from a home where Spanish is the predominant language:

– The student has grown up in a home where Spanish is spoken.

– The student is bilingual to some degree in both Spanish and English.