Policies & Procedures

Procedure 2.2.1: New Student Assessment

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Part 1. Incoming Student Assessment

ATC requires admitting students to complete a new student assessment in the academic areas of reading comprehension, writing, and mathematics on the Minnesota State-endorsed, Accuplacer. The incoming assessment shall not be used to make college admissions decisions. Course placements received as a result of testing are mandatory. Accuplacer ESL will be utilized to assess English Language Learners’, English language proficiency. For specific testing information, students are directed to the Student Support Services website at: www.anokatech.edu.

Part II. Accommodations

ATC supports all students admitting to the college. Students with documented disabilities shall be provided reasonable accommodations to insure equal access to Programs. Students with disabilities must provide documentation to the Office on Disabilities to apply for testing accommodations. Contact Student Support Services.

Part III. Testing Exemptions include the following:

Subpart A

a. Students registering for a total of 9 credits or less are exempt, from testing. Students must test prior to registering for the 10th credit.

b. Students with prior college level coursework in the reading, English or mathematics with a course grade of “C” or above.

c. Students presenting system-endorsed test scores that are no more than three years old on Reading and English; and two years on Arithmetic and Algebra.

d. A student holding an Associates or Bachelor’s degree from an accredited U.S. institution of higher learning.

e. Students presenting ACT sub scores of 24, or higher that are no more than three years old.

f. Students enrolling in non-credit, hour based courses or corporate training are exempt from testing unless otherwise noted in the course description.



Subpart B

All documentation of prior learning must be official documents that are presented to the Dean of Academic Resources. Students will be notified of testing exemptions determination within ten working days.

Part IV. Ability to Benefit

Students who do not possess a high school diploma or General Education Development(GED) and are applying for federal financial aid are required to meet minimum scores on the Accuplacer reading comprehension, sentence skills, arithmetic or Accuplacer ESL in one sitting. Those who do not meet minimum scores must retest all areas. A review of academic skills is mandatory before retesting (see retesting procedure). Minimum scores are those set by the Federal Government.

Part V. Retesting Procedure

Students will be allowed to retest on all or part(s) of the Accuplacer course placement assessment once every two (2) years.

All students must have a signed retest form indicating that they have worked with Adult Education teachers to improve skills.



Students must pay a retest fee per each sitting for testing. Payment will be made at the Business Office window.

Part VI. Cut Scores for Course Placement

The following cut scores meet or exceed the prescribed scores and procedures set by Minnesota State. Course placements based on Accuplacer subtest scores indicate that a student is ready for introductory college-level courses. A student who obtains the minimum score or higher shall be placed in a corresponding college-level course.



Reading

a. College-level Reading: A student who scores 77.50 or higher on the Reading Comprehension test shall be placed in courses that designate college-level reading skills as a prerequisite.

b. Developmental Reading: A student who scores below 77.50 on the Reading Comprehension test shall be placed in developmental reading courses.



Writing

a. A student who scores 77.50 or higher on the Reading Comprehension test and 85.50 or higher on the Sentence Skills test shall be placed in college-level writing courses.

b. Developmental Writing: A student who scores below 77.50 on the Reading Comprehension test and scores below 85.50 on the Sentence Skills test shall be placed in developmental writing courses.



Arithmetic

a. A student who scores at 70.5 or higher on the Arithmetic test shall be placed into an arithmetic course.

b. A student who scores below 70.5 on the Arithmetic test will be placed into a developmental arithmetic course.

College Algebra: Placement into College Algebra shall be based on two test scores.

a. A student must score 75.50 or higher on the Elementary Algebra Test and 49.50 or higher on the College Level Mathematics test. A student attaining the minimum scores shall be placed into College Algebra.

b. A student who scores below 75.50 and 49.50 will be placed into appropriate developmental algebra course(s).

Placement	Minimum Score	Accuplacer Subtest
College-level reading	77.50	Reading Comprehension
College-level writing	77.50 and 85.50	Reading Comprehension Sentence Skills (optional additional measure for college-level writing)* *If a college or university opts to use the Sentence Skills subtest as an additional measure, the minimum scores must be attained for both subtests.
College Algebra	75.50 and 49.50	Elementary Algebra College Algebra (both scores are required) A student attaining the minimum scores or higher shall be placed in College Algebra.

Part VII. Program and Course Prerequisites

Standards must be met prior to being admitted to a program or register for courses. Course prerequisites are identified on the ATC online course schedule. Refer to the Cut Score Validation Process to change cut score.

Part VIII. Assessment of Students who are non-native speakers of English

Course Placement for English Language Learners (ELL) students will be implemented at a later date. The Office of the Chancellor has not determined the cut score(s) and procedure at this time. The ESL version of the Accuplacer has been identified as the test to determine course placement. 

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History:

Originator: AASC

12.2007 Adopted

12.2007 Last review

08.2017 Technical change: MnSCU to Minnesota State