School of Rehabilitation Sciences admissions test

OLBI offers a suite of language tests for a variety of stakeholders and purposes. We follow international best practice in test design, administration, scoring and reporting procedures.

About the test

Applicants to the Audiology, Speech-Language Pathology, Occupational Therapy, and Physiotherapy Master’s degree programs must be able to express themselves in both English and French, in writing and speaking. To assess these language skills, the candidates must complete their language tests in French and/or English depending on the program.

Important information:

  • To access the tests, candidates must have a uOttawa student number and e-mail address. 
  • For candidates who have never studied at uOttawa and who will be submitting an ORPAS application for the first time, this information will only be sent by e-mail at the end of November. You must have completed and paid the ORPAS application to receive this e-mail.
  • The dates for completing the language tests differ from the deadlines for submitting the ORPAS application. Candidates may complete the language tests after the ORPAS application deadline, provided the language test deadlines are met (see deadlines section below).
  • Test results will be sent directly to the admissions committee at the School of Rehabilitation Sciences. Candidates are not required to submit test results as part of their ORPAS application.
  • Re-applicants must retake the language test(s) and pay the associated fee(s). Results from previous applications will not be accepted.
  • No other tests are accepted in lieu of the language requirements listed above.

Speech-Language Pathology

If you are applying to the Speech-Language Pathology program, you must pass a language proficiency test in both official languages, French and English.

Audiology, Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy

If you are applying to the Audiology, Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy program, you must pass a language proficiency test in the official language other than the language of instruction in your undergraduate program:

  • If English was the language of instruction in your undergraduate program, you will need to take a French proficiency test.
  • If French was the language of instruction in your undergraduate program, you will need to take an English proficiency test.
  • If the language of instruction in your undergraduate program was neither English nor French, you will have to take both language proficiency tests (English and French).
  • If you have completed multiple university degrees, including at least one in French and one in English, you can request an exemption from the language proficiency test by emailing [email protected]. Please note that the language test requirement will remain unless you receive confirmation of this exemption.

Note: Candidates applying to more than one program need to complete the required tests only once. Candidates who are also applying to the Speech-Language Pathology program must take the two language proficiency tests (French and English).

Your test results will be communicated to all programs in the School of Rehabilitation Sciences to which you have applied. 

These language proficiency tests are administered exclusively online. Both tests include the same three sections:

  1. Listening and Reading Comprehension which includes:
    • Two listening passages which consist of a recorded conversation or lecture and multiple-choice questions related to the recording.
    • Two reading passages which consist of a text which you must read and multiple-choice questions related to the text.
    • One fill-in the-blank activity which consists of a passage in which words have been deleted. You must choose, from the multiple-choice options, the words that best fit the blanks.
  2. Written Expression: you will type a written response to a topic.
  3. Spoken Expression: you will record spoken responses to a variety of questions.

Each test lasts approximately two hours. Please note that the test must be completed in one sitting. If you exit the test before completing it, you will not be able to return to the same test.