Placement Testing - Undergraduate Studies - St. Cloud State University

Course Placement Testing Policy

To support student success and to meet the requirements of MnSCU policy 3.3¹, St. Cloud State University has developed the following procedure for assessing new entering students’ skills in reading, writing, and mathematics.
All new incoming students, including transfer students, are required to take the Accuplacer subject tests if one or more of the following conditions apply:

If the student has fewer than 24 credits
If the student does not have ACT or SAT equivalent test scores
If the ACT or SAT equivalent test scores fall below the cut scores determined for English, Reading, and Mathematics for exemption from placement testing.

ACT Scores²

Shelf life of ACT equivalent scores for exemption from testing

The shelf life of ACT equivalent scores is 5 years from original test year in order to be considered for exemption. This shelf life applies to the following testing areas: Reading, English, and Mathematics.

Appeal process

See appropriate director or department head for appeal information and forms.

Exemption from testing will be based on ACT scores as follows:

1.a. Reading and English

ACT Reading and English Sub-Scores	Action
21 or above in the Reading subtest OR 18 or above in the English subtest	Student may enroll in English 191
Below 21 in the Reading subtest AND Below 18 in the English subtest	Student will take the Accuplacer Reading subtest

1.b. Mathematics

ACT Math Sub-Score	Highest Class
24 or above	Math 115
23 or above	Math 196, 171, 112
21 or above	Math 193, 072
Below 21	Math 070

NOTE: Students who wish to take 113, 211, 221 must take Calculus Readiness Test. Also any student may take Accuplacer Mathematics test for higher placement than indicated by the ACT score.

1.c. ESL

	ACT Reading and English Sub-Scores Other Standardized Test Scores	Action
Non-native speakers of English who are NOT international students³	21 or above in the Reading subtest OR 18 or above in the English subtest	Student may enroll in English 191
	Below 21 in the Reading subtest AND Below 18 in the English subtest	If the student identifies him/herself as a non-native speaker of English, the student will take the Accuplacer ESL Reading test and College ESL Essay Test unless the student requests to take the Accuplacer Reading test for native speakers of English. If the student scores 54 or below on the Accuplacer Reading test for native speakers of English, the student will be required to take the Accuplacer ESL Reading test, College ESL Essay Test, and Accuplacer Listening Test.
Non-native speakers of English who are international students	600 or above in the paper-based TOEFL OR 250 or above in the computer-based TOEFL OR 100 or above in the iBT TOEFL with subscores no less than 25 in reading, writing, and listening For additional exemption criteria, refer to the College ESL Program website (http://www.stcloudstate.edu/esl/exam.asp).	Student may enroll in English 191.
	Below 600 in the paper-based TOEFL OR Below 250 in the computer-based TOEFL OR Below 100 in the iBT TOEFL and one or more subscores less than 25 in reading, writing, and listening OR None of the additional exemption criteria is met.	Student will take the ESL Accuplacer Reading and Listening tests AND College ESL writing test.

Accuplacer Testing

The MnSCU Assessment for Course Placement Committee (ACPC), after researching several testing instruments has chosen Accuplacer as the primary testing instrument in Reading, Mathematics, and ESL to assess student skills. Sample questions may be viewed at the Accuplacer website: www.testprepreview.com/accuplacer_practice.htm.

Retesting

Students are allowed one (1) retest in a calendar year.
International students who are non-native speakers of English are required to take required ESL courses during their first semester at SCSU; therefore, retesting is not allowed.

Appeal Process

See appropriate director or department head for appeal information and forms.

Accommodation for students with disabilities

Student will contact Student Disability Services for information regarding testing accommodations, dates, and sites.

The following cut scores in each of the areas determines placement as described below:

2.a. English and Reading

Accuplacer Test Scores	Action
78 or above in Reading	Student may enroll in English 191
77 or below in Reading	Student will be placed into appropriate Reading AND English courses

2.b. Mathematics

Mandatory placement for ALL students.

Transfer students present evidence of prerequisite for exemption.

Each student presents ACT math score or takes placement test, EITHER

Accuplacer Elementary Algebra (EA) OR
Both Accuplacer Elementary Algebra (EA) and College Level Mathematics (CLM) OR
Calculus Readiness Test

Mathematics and Statistics Courses

	Math 070	Math 072 Math 193 Stat 193	Math 112 Math 171 Math 196	Math 115 Stat 219	Math 211 Math 113 Stat 229	Math 221
ACT math subscore minimum		21	23	24
Calculus Readiness Test Minimum		16	16	16	19	20
ACCUPLACER minimums	None required	70 EA	76 EA and 50 CLM	76 EA and 50 CLM

2.c. ESL

Course Placement Tests		Course Placements
Accuplacer Listening Test	90 or above	Exempt from ESL Listening & Speaking courses
	80 ~ 89.9	ESL Listening & Speaking 201
	70 ~ 79.9	ESL Listening & Speaking 101
	Below 70	No permission to take ESL L&S. Recommended to take IEC courses
College ESL Essay Test & Accuplacer Reading Test When the test scores from these two tests place a student in two different levels of ESL Reading & Writing, the essay test score will be used for the placement decision.	85 or above on the Essay Test AND 100 or above on Accuplacer Reading	Exempt from ESL Reading & Writing courses
	75 ~ 84.9 on the Essay Test OR 90 ~ 99.9 on Accuplacer Reading	ESL Reading & Writing 202
	70 ~ 75 on Essay Test OR Below 90 on Accuplacer Reading	ESL Reading & Writing 102
	Below 70 on Essay Test	No permission to take ESL R&W. Recommended to take IEC courses

Appendix I

CONCORDANCE TABLES FOR ACT AND SAT SCORES⁴

ACT English	SAT Verbal	ACT Math	SAT Math
36	800	36	800
35	790	35	790
34	780	34	780
34	770	34	770
34	760	34	760
33	750	33	750
33	740	33	740
32	730	32	730
32	720	32	720
31	710	31	710
31	700	31	700
30	690	30	690
30	680	30	680
29	670	29	670
29	660	29	660
29	650	29	650
28	640	28	640
28	630	28	630
27	620	27	620
27	610	27	610
26	600	26	600
26	590	26	590
25	580	25	580
25	570	25	570
24	560	24	560
24	550	24	550
23	540	23	540
23	530	23	530
22	520	22	520
21	510	21	510
21	500	21	500
20	490	20	490
20	480	20	480
19	470	19	470
19	460	19	460
18	450	18	450
17	440	18	440
17	430	18	430
16	420	17	420
16	410	17	410
15	400	17	400

¹The MnSCU Assessment for Course Place Committee website can be found at http://www.courseplacement.project.mnscu.edu/

²See Appendix I for SAT Equivalent scores.

³ According to the definition in MnSCU Board Policy 3.4 Part 1, “An International Student is a student who is required to be registered under the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).”

⁴ Source: ACT, Inc.