The Simulated Oral Proficiency Interview (SOPI) is a semi-direct performance-based speaking test that emulates the face-to-face Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) as closely as practical, using a tape recording and printed test booklet. The prototypical SOPI contains simple personal background questions typical of an initial encounter (warm-up) and topic- and situation-based performance tasks to assess the examinee's ability to handle the functions and content characterizing higher levels of proficiency. The test package consists of a master tape that contains all test instructions and items, an examinee response tape used to record responses, and a test booklet with test instructions and directions for all tasks. In five studies involving different test development teams and different languages, the SOPI has proved a valid and reliable surrogate for the OPI. SOPIs have been developed for Chinese, Portuguese, Hebrew, Indonesian, Hausa, Arabic, Japanese, French, German, and Spanish, and rater training has been developed. The test format's flexibility allows its tailoring for proficiency level, age group, background, and profession and administered by any teacher, aide, or language lab technician. The SOPI may offer practical and psychometric advantages over a face-to-face interview. (MSE)