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Course Placement Testing Policy

Exemption from Testing 

Students who present current ACT sub scores will be exempt from testing. The ACT sub scores will be used for course placement for college-level courses. Students without ACT scores, or with ACT scores that signify the student is not ready for college-level work, must take the Accuplacer tests.

English Placement Policy

Undergraduate students seeking enrollment in ENGL 101 must demonstrate readiness to succeed in the course. Students will be eligible to enroll in ENGL 101 if they have earned:

  • An ACT English sub-score of 18 or above
  • An SAT verbal score of 450 or above

Undergraduate students with ACT English sub-scores of 26 or higher (SAT reading score of 600 or higher) may opt to enroll in ENGL 201 instead of ENGL 101. ENGL 201 may be used to fulfill Liberal Arts and Sciences Curriculum (LASC) Goal Area 1B for students who choose this option.

  • In order to be considered valid for placement purposes, an ACT/SAT score must have been earned within three years from the start of the class.
  • An ACT English sub-score of 18-20 (SAT verbal sub-score of 450 to 509) will place students in a small class size version of ENGL 101. Students who wish to enroll in a large enrollment section of ENGL 101 may take the Accuplacer Reading Comprehension and Sentence Skills exam. Students scoring 86 or above on reading comprehension and 91 or above on sentence skills may register for a large enrollment ENGL 101.
  • An ACT English sub-score of 17 or below (SAT verbal sub-score below 450) requires the Accuplacer Reading Comprehension and Sentence Skills tests for placement in ENGL 101. Accuplacer scores are valid for three years from the start of the class. A score of 78 or above on the reading comprehension test and 86 or above on the sentence skills test will place students in a small class size version of ENGL 101. Scores below either of these will place the student in ENGL 099.
  • A student must pass ENGL 099 with a C- or better before enrolling in ENGL 101.
  • The English placement policy will be reviewed by the University Policy Committee every two years.

Math Placement Policy

Undergraduate students seeking enrollment in a mathematics course must demonstrate readiness to succeed. Undergraduate students with the ACT and corresponding SAT Math sub-scores as outlined below may choose to start in the listed MATH courses. Students may also choose to enroll in courses below the top level they qualify for. Students are encouraged to meet with an advisor in their department or in the math department to ensure the course they register for is appropriate for their chosen major:

  • An ACT Math sub-score of 24 or above (SAT Math sub-score of 560 or above) and prerequisite knowledge of trigonometry may enroll in MATH 261.
  • An ACT Math sub-score of 24 or above (SAT Math sub-score of 560 or above) may enroll in MATH 142, MATH 143, MATH 210, MATH 229 or MATH 234.
  • An ACT Math sub-score of 23 or above (SAT Math sub-score of 540 or above) may enroll in MATH 227.
  • An ACT Math sub-score of 22 or above (SAT Math sub-score of 520 or above) may enroll in MATH 127.
  • An ACT Math sub-score of 19 or above (SAT Math sub-score of 460 or above) may enroll in MATH 099, MATH 105, or MATH 110.
  • An ACT Math sub-score of 18 or below (SAT Math sub-score of below 460) must take the Accuplacer for placement.
    • An Accuplacer Arithmetic score of 57 or above or an Accuplacer Arithmetic and Elementary Algebra combined score of 100 or above may enroll in MATH 090 or MATH 095.
    • An Accuplacer Elementary Algebra score of 76 or above may enroll in MATH 099, MATH 105, or MATH 110.
    • An Accuplacer Intermediate Algebra score of 60 or above may enroll in MATH 127 or MATH 227.
    • An Accuplacer College Level Mathematics score of 50 or above may enroll in MATH 142, MATH 143, MATH 229, or MATH 234.
    • An Accuplacer College Level Mathematics score of 50 or above may enroll in MATH 261 if accompanied by prerequisite knowledge of trigonometry.
    • A new entering freshman who does not attain any of the above scores will be automatically enrolled in MATH 090A for their first semester.

ACT, SAT, and Accuplacer scores must have been earned within two years from the start of the class.

The Math placement criteria given above will be reviewed by the Math Department Course Placement Committee every two years to ensure placement levels are correlated to recent student success data.

Course completion or in-process exemption from testing 

Students who have completed their math requirement at another institution will be exempt from testing. Students enrolled in courses leading up to their math requirement completion will also be exempt from testing and be able to register for the next course in the sequence. Students will be able to register based on “good faith” that they are passing the required prior courses. Any student who does not pass the prior course will have their registration dropped once grades are known and will not be allowed to remain in the course.

Appeals Process

Students who do not believe they have been appropriately placed with their ACT sub score, may take the Accuplacer to determine placement. Students who do not feel the Accuplacer has given appropriate placement may re-take the Accuplacer to attempt a higher score.