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The COMPASS test is a computerized exam used to place
students into appropriate math and English classes.
You may take the test in the
testing center on campus for a cost of $15.
The testing center is located in the Foss building, room
5225.
We are no longer using SAT and ACT scores for
placement. The primary reason is that it did not work
well. Those tests are designed to help universities in
their admissions decisions. Most universities, including
the public universities in Washington State, do not use
them for placement either and require students to take
their own placement test.
If you have completed mathematics credits at another
college, those credits may be used to determine your
math placement. Find your course on the
Math
Course Equivalency Chart for WA State Community Colleges
and Public Universities, or see a
math placement advisor for review and placement
using courses from other schools. In most cases your
transfer courses are not entered in our database and so
our database will stop you from registering for a Math
class or Econ& 201 or Phil & 106. The math placement
advisor can sign your registration sheet if you are
registering in person or give you an entry code if you
plan to register via the web system. Please note that if
your last math course is from more than three years ago
and depending on which class you now wish to take, it
may be necessary to repeat the previous class.
Each instructor can allow access into his or her
class, and so another option is to talk to that
instructor. Of course that instructor will also need to
determine that you are well prepared for the class. In
most cases they will refer you to the Compass placement
test and follow those guidelines.
Students who have already completed a Bachelor's
Degree, have other special circumstances, or who have
additional questions are encouraged to talk to a
math placement advisor.
COMPASS sample questions can be found at
http://act.org/compass. If
you have not done math problems for some time, we
recommend that you also use a math book (any math book)
to review and practice math concepts and problems in
preparation for the test.
You may retake the COMPASS test to improve your
score. The cost is $15 each time. If your
score doesn't improve even after you spend time
preparing for the test (some practice questions can be
found at
http://act.org/compass), it is best to register for
the recommended course.
The main reason we enforce prerequisites for math
classes is to ensure student success. Each math
class builds on knowledge from a previous course, and a
student without the prerequisite knowledge will likely
fail the course. In addition, that student will ask
questions in class that are part of the prerequisites
which impacts the whole class negatively because it
results in less time for the mathematics material that
needs to be taught at that level. The COMPASS test
allows us to determine what you have learned and what
you still remember from previous math courses so that we
can start you at the appropriate level.
There could be a number of reasons for placement into
a pre-college course. One reason is that the
minimum requirement at many high schools does not
require students to take math their senior year.
If you have not taken math for one or more years, you
may need to take a course or two to refresh your
knowledge before you are ready for college math.
Your high school curriculum and our college
curriculum are not exactly the same. There may be some
topics we expect you to know that weren't emphasized in
your classes. That's why we ask everyone to take
the placement test. Even if you took a lot of math
in high school and did well, you might still have some
gaps that you need to fill in before you can succeed in
our college-level classes.
Previous college math courses can usually be used to
determine placement, although you may need to do a
repeat if the course is more than three years old.
If your course was at a college in Washington state, you
may be able to find it on the
Math
Course Equivalency Chart for WA State Community Colleges
and Public Universities. If the course is not
listed there, see a
math placement advisor for proper placement.
If you took the course significantly more than three
years ago, we recommend that you take the COMPASS test
for placement.
The math class you should take depends on your major
and your interests. This is a good question to
discuss with your advisor. See the
college catalog descriptions and the
mathematics flow chart for more information.
The
mathematics department website has a link to each
instructor's individual homepage. You can also
speak to individual instructors during their
office hours.
If your math class is a prerequisite for any other
class, a grade of 2.0 is required to meet the
prerequisite. If you do not get a 2.0 or higher in
your class, you will have to repeat the course in order
to meet the prerequisite. Or you can take the COMPASS
test again to place higher. If you receive a grade below
2.0 and are enrolled in a subsequent math course the
following quarter, you will automatically be dropped
from the course when the grades are submitted and you
will have to re-register for an appropriate class.
There are several resources on campus to support your
success. Every instructor has office hours, and
visiting your instructor during office hours may be one
of the best ways to get help with your course material.
The
Math Learning Center, located in the 2200 building,
is a great place to study. Learning assistants are
available as well as textbooks and calculators.
The MLC website has a list of online help sites and
tutoring services on their website at
http://www.shoreline.edu/math/links.html. See
the next question for more information on how to receive
college credit for studying in the MLC.
Individual one-on-one and small group tutoring is
also available for students completing transfer and
professional/technical programs at no cost to registered
students. The tutoring offices are located
in the Foss building, rooms 5201 & 5204.
Call (206) 546-7852 or (206) 546-4776 for additional
information.
Math 090 and Math 100 are variable credit courses
offered through the Math Learning Center. You may
sign up for 1 to 3 credits, and you must spend 20 hours
in the MLC per credit. Get credit just for
studying math! Find more information at
http://www.shoreline.edu/math/MLC%20Credit%20Courses.htm.
A college degree is an indication that you are
well-prepared to succeed in your chosen field. In
addition to the coursework in your specialty, every
college degree requires you to take some general
education courses, including courses in writing and
quantitative reasoning. Taking a math class is the
most common way to meet the quantitative reasoning
requirement for a degree.
In addition, many disciplines require particular
mathematical skills for their specialized course-work.
Different fields need different mathematical skills.
We have many types of courses for you to choose from.
If you're not sure which one applies best to your area
of study, see an advisor in your field or a math
advisor.
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