Placement

English Department Temporary Rhetoric and Composition Placement into ENG 101 in a Test Optional Environment During Transition to New Placement Criteria

Revised: February 12, 2021

A combination of measures is the best practice for placing students into English courses matching their entry point skills to provide the greatest chance for retention and success. A combination of two or more measures should be used when possible. If three measures are available, use the strongest two measures to place students into English courses.

Review students’ 1) ACT or SAT Scores (if available) and 2) Overall HS GPA according to the measures below to place students into English courses. Without ACT or SAT Scores, overall HS GPA may place students into 101. When two measures are contradictory, English Placement Essays determine placement.

Printable Version here.

For placement into ENG 101, students ideally need two of the following measures but may place with only overall HS GPA:

With ACT English + Reading or SAT ERW Scores*

ACT ≥ 18 or SAT ERW ≥ 480

With ACT English + Reading or SAT ERW Scores*

ACT 17 or SAT ERW 460-479

Without ACT or SAT Test Scores

AND Overall HS GPA ≥ 3.0

AND With Overall HS GPA ≥ 3.0

BUT With Overall HS GPA ≥ 3.0

If the two measures are contradictory, a Placement Essay determines placement

If students contest placement, a Placement Essay determines appropriate English courses

Students place into ENG 100 with the following:

With ACT English + Reading or SAT ERW Scores*

ACT ≤ 16 or SAT ERW ≤ 459

Without Either ACT or SAT Test Scores

AND Overall HS GPA ≤ 2.99

BUT With Overall HS GPA ≤ 2.99

If the two measures are contradictory, a Placement Essay determines placement

If students contest placement, a Placement Essay determines appropriate English courses

Additional Information

SAT ERW = Evidence-based Reading and Writing; * based on the 2018 ACT/SAT Concordance
To contest placement based on GPA, students write a Placement Essay in the first week of classes. Once placement based on the results of a placement essay has been determined no retests are provided. Students cannot use a placement test to test out of a class they are attending after the first week of classes.
Students who place into ENG 100 based on GPA can challenge placement before the semester starts or in the first week by writing a Placement Essay. Once placement based on a Placement Essay has been determined, no retests will be provided.