Before Taking Placement Assessment


  • ALEKS (Assessment and Learning in Knowledge Spaces) is a powerful artificial intelligence based assessment software product, used for the placement assessment, that zeros in on the student's mathematical strengths and weaknesses and reports its findings.
  • Students will take the first placement assessment remotely, at a time and place convenient for them.  Some regional campuses offer on-campus testing for those students unable to test remotely. 

  • Students are expected to take the ALEKS placement assessment without assistance from another person or resource.  Results from ALEKS will lead to placement in a mathematics course.  If students complete the assessment using assistance, there is a strong chance that they will perform poorly in their mathematics course and have to pay tuition fees to retake it.
  • ALEKS will have students answer between 25 and 30 questions, none of which are multiple choice.  Before beginning the assessment, students will complete an online tutorial so they know how to enter answers in ALEKS.  The tutorial and placement may take up to 90 minutes to complete. The ALEKS assessment will be available 48 hours from the time of your first login.  After that, it will timeout and you will not be able to complete that assessment.
  • Students will need paper and pencil/pen to complete the placement assessment but NO PERSONAL CALCULATOR is permitted!  A calculator will be provided by ALEKS when needed.
  • Students may be asked questions on material that is unfamiliar.  On such questions the student should answer, "I don't know."  But on any question that is even slightly familiar to the student it is important to attempt to answer.  "I don't know" is interpreted by ALEKS to mean that the student has no knowledge of the topic and this will be reflected in the assessment results.  If the student's best effort is not given then then ALEKS will underestimate their knowledge.

 

  • If you would like to learn more about ALEKS and/or sign up for an optional free trial, click here.

 

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