Placement Exams
Centenary College offers placement exams in several foreign languages (French, Spanish, Latin, and German) as well as biology and math. Math can be taken anytime (see below); students may take any of the other placement exams on the following occasions: during Preview Weekend, during Springboard, or during Orientation. In general, we recommend that you take any placement exam(s) before you meet with your advisor to schedule classes. Exams generally take about an hour and offer the possibility of Centenary course credit and/or exemption from introductory courses. Students may take placement exams for more than one subject but may not take the specific exam for any subject more than once. Passing scores vary but each exam requires correct answers on approximately 50% of the questions.
If you have general questions about placement exams, contact the Registrar's Office at (318) 869-5146 or . The Registrar's Office is open 8:30am to 4pm on weekdays.
Foreign Language Placement Exams
Students who have taken at least two years of French, Spanish, Latin, or German in high school, or have equivalent competency, are eligible and strongly encouraged to take Centenary's placement exams for the appropriate languages. Based on performance on the language placement exams, students may receive Centenary course credit for introductory language classes (up to 14 hours) and may, therefore, be eligible to take second or third year language classes during their first semester.
If you plan to take one of the French, Spanish, or Latin placement exams during Springboard, go ahead and let us know — it'll help us plan your Springboard experience more effectively.
The German placement exam may be scheduled during the summer advising weeks (SOAR) or during Fall Orientation. Please contact Dr. Mark Gruettner at (318) 869-5251 or . On the day of the test, ask Admissions staff to direct you to Dr. Gruettner’s office in Jackson Hall.
Biology Placement Exams
Students who have strong backgrounds in biology are eligible to take the biology placement exam. Those students who are considering careers in biology or the sciences are encouraged to take the exam. Based on the results of your test, you may be eligible to exempt Biology 101 and proceed directly into Biology 202 or 203. The biology exam will not provide course credit for Biology 101. However, biology majors who earn a passing score on the exam may graduate with 34 semester hours in biology rather than the regularly-required 38 semester hours. Non-science majors are encouraged not to take this exam as it will not replace their required science courses.
If you plan to take the Biology placement exam during Springboard, go ahead and let us know — it'll help us plan your Springboard experience more effectively.
Mathematics Placement Exam
Students who plan to pursue science and math curricula should consider taking the math placement exam, which will help students and advisors determine which math class a student should take first. The math exam will not provide course credit. The exam is available online NOW; see the directions included below.
Taking the Mathematics Placement Exam
How to take the Mathematics Placement Exam
Using any browser, go to the Blackboard.
Click on "User Login". Your username is your Centenary email account; your password is your last name followed by the last four digits of your student ID number (usually your social security number).
Click on the "Courses" tab.
In the search box, type "math".
In the list of courses that appear, find mathtest. To the right of that class should be a button that says "Enroll". Click on it.
Click "Submit" on the next screen.
Click "OK" on the next screen.
You will now be in the section of Blackboard for the Mathematics Placement Exam. Before you start the exam, note the following:
Please have scratch paper ready to carry out computations.
You may use a graphing calculator if you wish, but the exam questions do not require the use of a calculator.
Please do not use any textbooks or notes —- we want to ensure the exam helps to correctly assess your calculus readiness.
The exam will last 60 minutes.
There is no penalty for guessing.
Click on the link to start the exam.
When you finish the exam, click “Submit” at the bottom. If you left questions blank, you will have an opportunity to fill those in. Otherwise, you will receive your score. If you have any problems taking the exam (e.g., your connection to the Internet fails), contact Mark Schlatter at .
How to interpret your score
At the end of the exam, you will receive a score of the number of questions you answered correctly out of 40. The mathematics department has the following recommendations on interpreting your score:
If you scored at least 28 points on the placement exam or have a math ACT of at least 28 (math SAT of at least 620), we strongly encourage you to take calculus. Approximately 80% of students with these scores make an A or B in Math 115.
If the above is not true, but you scored at least 24 points on the placement exam or have a math ACT of at least 24 (math SAT of at least 560), you may or may not be ready. While about 25% of students with these scores earn an A in Math 115, about 50% earn a C or lower. Talk with your advisor.
If your math ACT is 23 or less and you scored 23 points or less on the math placement exam, be very careful about enrolling in Math 115 as your first math class. While an A or B is possible, approximately three-quarters of students with these scores earn a C or lower in Math 115.
For more information, take at look our document "What math class should you take?"