Retesting

Retest Policy

Students may retake the English and/or Math Placement Tests one time within a one-year period. Students must wait a minimum of 3 weeks from their initial test date and then they may attend any regularly scheduled test session.

For example: A student takes to the placement test on May 1st, but is not satisfied with her math results. She may take the math test again on or after May 22nd. If she takes the math test again on May 22nd, she will not be able to take the math test again until May 22nd of the following year.

For the English Second Language (ESL) and Chemistry tests, students can only take the test once per Fall or Spring semester.

Students with special circumstances may submit a petition to the Dean of Counseling to request a retest earlier than these guidelines.

Tips for Retesting

Be sure to study before taking the test again. Most students who take the test again without studying will have the same placement as their first test. Review these Online Study Resources.

For math, concentrate primarily on studying the subjects you were placed into after your first test. For example, if you were placed into Math 151 (Algebra 1) focus on studying this topic. Study and review higher level math subjects only if you had previously done very well in these subjects in high school.

For English, be sure to study and review the sample questions so you understand the type of questions asked on the Reading Comprehension and Sentence Skills tests.

• Review Tips for taking the Placement Test.

• If you are retesting for both English and math, consider taking each test on a separate day.

  Combined, the English and math tests usually take 2 – 2.5 hours. You may be able to concentrate more if you just take one test at a time. However, if you decide to do this you must tell the testing proctor before the test begins.

• The tests are not timed, so during the test work carefully and check your work. Remember, you are not allowed to go back to previous questions to change your answer. So consider each question carefully.

  If necessary, take breaks during the test to get a drink of water or just walk around and stretch. Be sure to let the proctor know that you need to take a break.

• Remember the placement tests are excellent assessments of your current skill levels for English and math.

  It will almost always benefit you to enroll in courses that will improve your basic English and math skills before going on to higher-level courses. Oftentimes, students need to review course work that they may have studied in high school.