Advising and Placement Testing

The General Education Program at Shippensburg University requires students to take various courses to develop certain skills and competencies. The mission of the Placement Testing Program is to determine a student's preparedness to succeed in these courses. Before students arrive on campus for their first year, we determine student proficiency by testing in reading, writing (English), and mathematics. ACCUPLACER, an untimed computerized test developed by the College Board, is used to test skills in math and reading. English skills are assessed by students' writing a short essay assigned by the English Department, which is then read by the faculty in the English Department.

First-Year Student Testing Requirements

Students are required to take the English Placement Test (writing) if their verbal SAT is below 505;
Students are required to test in math if their math SAT is below 515;
Students are required to test in reading if their verbal SAT is below 500; and
Students exceeding the listed SAT requirements can attempt to test into higher-level courses. Please see the Placement Testing Office for more information.

Transfer and Other Degree-Seeking Students Testing Requirements

Either the college dean or the Admissions' Office staff informs the student if testing is required.
Testing is required for all transfer who do not transfer a college level math or writing class.

Test Components

English Placement Essay

The English composition program is designed to provide students with sufficient writing skills to fulfill undergraduate writing requirements. Students earn a placement in the writing class that best meets their needs based on their performance on the English Placement Essay. Students write an essay on a topic about which they have some general knowledge. No special preparation is needed, other than to focus on writing as well as possible. We will provide a blue book for outlining, rough drafting, and final copy. Only the final copy is evaluated.

The essay will be reviewed by English Department faculty members. They will evaluate a student's ability to understand and respond to the assignment, to write a coherent and reasonably well-organized essay, and to control errors. Students who would benefit from smaller classes and remedial instruction will be required to earn a "C" or higher in ENG 050: Basic Writing. Upon successful completion of this course, students must then complete ENG 101: College Writing, the required composition course for graduation. More advanced writers will be advised to enroll in ENG 110: Advanced.

Placement Writing.

Reading Comprehension

The Reading Comprehension Test requires students to understand what they read, to critically analyze the main ideas of a passage, and to draw inferences. Questions are composed of two primary types. The first type includes both long and short reading passages with questions based on the text. The second type of question involves sentence relationships. Two sentences are presented, followed by a question about the relationship between the two sentences. A developmental score (less than 74) requires students to earn a "C" or higher in RDG 050: Reading and Study Skills. Two versions of this course exist. Students who score between 68 and 73 are required to complete a 1 credit version of RDG 050. Student who score below 68 are required to complete a 3 credit version of RDG 050. Students who place into the 3 credit course are restricted to 12 credits their first semester. Students who test into the developmental level have one academic year to begin remediating their placement or, as dictated by University policy, they may not be allowed to return.

Mathematics

Test results determine a student's eligibility to enroll in college-level math courses. Test scores can fall within developmental, pre-college, college, or advanced placements. Students who test into the developmental range (score below 58) must earn a "C" or higher in MAT 050: Developmental Math. Two versions of this course exist. Students who score between 37 and 57 are required to take a 1 credit version of MAT 050. Students who score below 37 are required to completed a 3 credit version of MAT 050. Students who score into this level have one academic year to begin remediating their placement or, as dictated by University policy, they may not be allowed to return.

The test consists of a variety of items ranging from solving problems in context to algebra, geometry, and trigonometry. The majority of test items include content normally encountered by students in the typical high school college-preparatory mathematics curriculum.

Testing Procedures

First-year students who have confirmed their admission to Shippensburg receive a letter and a brochure from the Placement Testing Office indicating which test(s) they are required to take. They then indicate the date and time they wish to test.

Timing

The computerized tests are untimed. Generally however, testing takes a maximum of two and one half-hours if students need to take reading, math and the English test. Most students finish their exams in less time.

Test Materials

We provide all necessary testing materials. Calculators are not permitted. If needed, a `pop-up' calculator is provided in the test.

Test Results

Students receive their results immediately after testing. Test administrators ensure that they understand the results before they leave the testing arena. If necessary, students may call the Placement Testing Office (#477-1395) later for a fuller explanation. Please see table: "Explanation of Placement Testing Results in Brief" for further clarification of required actions.

Retesting

Retests are rarely given and only under special circumstances. Students who qualify for a retest are informed by the Placement Testing Office.

Accommodations for Students with Special Needs

Students with a learning difference or in need of special testing accommodations are advised to contact the Office of Social Equity, Old Main 200, #477-1161. To be eligible for accommodations, students must file the appropriate documentation with Social Equity before testing.

Special Issues

Students are given one academic year to begin remediating any developmental placements. This policy is provided in writing on the students' respective score reports and is given to them immediately following testing. Students who fail to remediate a developmental placement within one academic year are not permitted to return to Shippensburg University until such remediation takes place.
Per University policy, students who test into the developmental level in math are not permitted to register for any math course except MAT 050, Developmental Math, which is offered in the fall and spring semesters.
Students who test into the College Level I and are majoring in business, the sciences, or math can only register for MAT 120: Basic Math Models. Once this course is passed, they may register for any college level math course required by their major. MAT 120 is the prerequisite for MAT 108 and MAT 124. Majors that do not require advanced math course may schedule MAT 102, MAT 105, MAT 110 or MAT 170 depending on the student's major requirements.
Students who test into the developmental level in reading have weak reading skills and are strongly advised not to take reading intensive classes, such as World History, until their reading skills improve. Also, students who have reading test scores below 68 are limited to 12 credits their first semester.

How to Advise Students and Math Placement

A. Students who score at the College Level I level must take and pass MAT 120: Basic Math Models before they can schedule MAT 108, MAT 124, or MAT 225. Students who are not required to take MAT 108 or MAT 124 can choose from 3 options: MAT 102, MAT 105, or MAT 170. The appropriate course is dependant on the student's major.
B. Science majors testing at the college level may want/need to take MAT 124, Pre-Calculus before they take MAT 211, Calculus.
C. The following majors require an additional math or computer science course to fulfill the Category A requirements of the General Education Program: Applied Physics, Biology (all concentrations), Chemistry (all concentrations), Computer Science, Earth Science, Business (all concentrations including Economics), all Education majors, Mathematics, and Physics.
D. Criminal Justice recommends either MAT 102, Introductory Statistics or MAT 170, Elementary Statistics for Social Science; Social Work requires MAT 102 or MAT 170.
E. Geography (Land Use and Regional Development tracks) requires either MAT 102 or MAT 170. Geography-Secondary Ed. requires MAT 170. Students in either GeoEnvironmental Studies or Geography (GIS track) can choose from a variety of appropriate math courses. Political Science, Public Administration, and Sociology require MAT 170.
F. Students in the following majors may select any college math course (100-level or higher): Art, Communications-Journalism, English, French, Geoenvironmental Studies, History, Psychology, Spanish, or Speech Communications.
G. Students who are completely unsure about a major should wait to take a math course until their intentions become clearer. However, if they are leaning towards a science/math/computer science or business major, they should take the initial course required by these majors as soon as they can.
H. Students who score at the advanced level, depending on their major, may or may not be required to take a math course.
I. The following courses satisfy the Category A requirement of General Education:
- MAT 120—Basic Math Models
- MAT 102—Introduction to Statistics
- MAT 124—Pre-Calculus
- MAT 105—Math for Liberal Studies
- MAT 170—Elementary Statistics for Social Science
- MAT 108—Finite Math
- MAT 181—Applied Calculus
- MAT 110—Fundamentals of Math I
- MAT 211—Calculus I

If you have any questions, please call the Placement Testing Office at #477-1395 or #3075 (from on-campus). David Henriques is the Placement Testing Coordinator and his office is located in Horton Hall, room 122.