Placement Guidelines

GPA vs. Placement Tests

As is stated in the new Developmental Education Framework, GPA is THE primary placement indicator for developmental education courses. However, local colleges retain the flexibility to administer placement tests of their choosing for specific groups, such as students without a GPA, those challenging their placement, or other targeted populations. It is important to emphasize that placement tests should only be used for small groups and with the goal of placing students up and out of developmental education, directly into college-level courses.

Standardized Assessment Placement Scores

Colleges locally determine which (if any) placement test(s) may be offered for students without a GPA, those challenging their placement, or other specific populations. Colleges have the autonomy to choose and set their placement test ranges and thresholds. While vendors may provide "suggested" guidance for score ranges, the final determination rests with each institution.

For those colleges who would prefer to have some suggested guidelines for thresholds, there are resources available below. These scores apply to all vendors who have provided their assessment data to the System Office. Please note that the System Office will continue to update these thresholds/scores as vendors share additional information and/or as new information becomes available in general. It is important to note that colleges may also choose to offer locally developed assessments, which may have different score thresholds. We hope this clarification is helpful as you move toward implementation of the new courses!

Again, GPA remains the main factor for placement in the new developmental education courses, as outlined in the new framework

Note: Information Regarding EdReady/NROC & Other Vendors

The software and/or placement testing company (if any) will be a local college decision in the new model. EdReady can still be chosen and supported by any colleges who choose to remain utilizing EdReady/NROC. Several colleges have expressed interest in continuing to use EdReady/NROC to supplement instruction in the new courses. On the other hand, many colleges have also mentioned they wish to change software and/or placement testing companies at their institutions, and some have already started working with other software companies (e.g., Accuplacer, Hawkes Learning, Aleks, Cengage, Pearson, etc.). And some colleges are choosing to remove software from their implementation plans altogether, opting instead for course content to be delivered by the instructor and/or utilizing college-created materials.