Frequently Asked Questions

Placement Testing at the UW Testing Center

The following information refers to Mathematics Placement, Foreign Language Placement, and Honors Chemistry Placement Tests only. For information regarding other tests, including English as a Second Language (ESL) testing, please contact the UW Testing Center.

General Testing Information

Mathematics Placement Test Information

Foreign Language Placement Test Information - French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, & Spanish

Honors Chemistry Placement Test Information

 

General Testing Information

What placement tests does the UW Testing Center offer? On a regular schedule, the UW Testing Center (440 Schmitz Hall) offers the following placement tests:

Mathematics
French
German
Italian
Japanese
Korean
Spanish
Honors Chemistry

For inquiries regarding other placement tests not listed above, please contact the UW Testing Center for availability and scheduling.

I want to test during the statewide Academic Placement Testing Program (APTP) test dates in the spring. Can I take both the Mathematics Placement Test (MPT) and the Foreign Language Placement Test (FLPT) on the same day at one of these sessions?
You may take both the MPT and the FLPT during the spring APTP test dates at the University of Washington only. Other APTP testing sites offer only the MPT. Only at the University of Washington APTP dates may you take both the MPT and FLPT on the same day. FLPT are offered only at the UW.

You may also take the FLPT in conjunction with your UW Advising/Orientation session or at the UW Testing Center at one of the regularly scheduled times.

I want to take a test at one of the scheduled times in the UW Testing Center, Schmitz Hall, Room 440. How do I register?
You do not need to register for scheduled placement tests in the UW Testing Center. These tests are offered on a walk-in basis as space permits. At the time of the scheduled test, you should arrive with your picture identification and your $25 testing fee in either cash or check made payable to "University of Washington." The UW Testing Center does NOT accept payment by credit cards or debit cards.

When do I find out my score?
If you test in the UW Testing Center, your test is scored following the testing session. If you wait in the lobby of the UW Testing Center, staff will hand you a copy of your score report for your records within a few minutes of finishing testing.

If you test during the statewide APTP test dates, you will receive your test scores by mail in approximately two weeks.

If you must test in conjunction with your UW Advising/Orientation session, you will receive your test score later in your session from a session leader.

When can I register for classes after taking the test?
If you have taken the test in the UW Testing Center, your score will be entered into the student database by the end of the next business day following the test. After that time, you will be qualified to register for the courses you placed into on UW registration system. If you have further difficulty registering for a qualified class two days after testing, please contact the Registrar's Office, (206) 543-8580.

How long does testing take?
For most tests, the entire testing process takes approximately one hour and 30 minutes. The testing process includes registering, instructions, testing, and scoring. If you finish the test early, you may be allowed to leave the testing room. However, no students arriving after the scheduled testing time will be allowed to test in that session.

The actual testing time for placement tests is 60 minutes.

Mathematics Placement Test Information

How long is the Mathematics Placement Test?
The Mathematics Placement Test is a one-hour test. Allow approximately one hour and 30 minutes for the testing session to cover registration, instructions, testing, and scoring.

How much does the Mathematics Placement Test cost?
The test costs $25. If you retake the Mathematics Placement Test, it is $25 each time you take it.

How do I register and pay to take the Mathematics Placement Test?
To test on-campus, please refer to the Testing Center Schedule. You do not need to register prior to the testing. Testing is given as space is available on a walk-in basis. Bring photo identification and your $25 fee, cash or check payable to "University of Washington," to the test.

If you are a new student, you will find placement test information in the UW Welcome! booklet sent when you were offered admission to the UW. You may test at one of the statewide dates offered by the Academic Placement Testing Program during the months of May and June. Registering on-line for and testing at a statewide session allows you to take advantage of the discounted testing fee of $15. The standard testing fee is $25. Once you register on-line, your seat for the exam is not guaranteed until we receive a copy of the registration confirmation and your $15 check or money order only. Once we receive your payment, you will receive an admission ticket via email that confirms your payment along with the test location and specific information for your particular session.

What do I need to bring to the test?
On the day of the test, arrive at the testing center at your appointed time with your admission ticket, photo identification, and #2 pencils. You do not need to bring calculators or other aids. Scratch paper will be provided for you.

What is on the Mathematics Placement Test? Are sample problems available?
Testing objectives and sample problems for the Mathematics Placement Test are available at the Academic Placement Testing Program (APTP) website. Once you connect to the APTP website, you will not be able to use the "Back" button to return to the OEA Testing Center web page. You will need to type in "www.washington.edu/oea/testfaq.htm" to return to this page.

When will I get my placement scores? When are my placement scores reported to UW?
If you take the Mathematics Placement Test in the Testing Center, you will receive your score immediately following the exam. Wait in the lobby after you finish your test to receive your personal score report and placement. Your score is posted on the UW system for registration by 5:00 p.m. the following business day.

If you test offsite at one of the statewide APTP testing sessions, your score will be mailed to you and submitted to UW within two weeks after your test date.

If you must take the test in conjunction with your UW Advising/Orientation session, you will receive your score later in your session, from the session leader. Your score will be available for your registration appointment that is scheduled during your session.

Should I take the intermediate or the advanced Mathematics Placement Test?
Both the intermediate math and the advanced math tests place students in the same range of courses with the exception of calculus. If you are interested in placing into calculus, you must take the advanced test. The advanced test is recommended for students who took three to four years of high school math including a precalculus, calculus, or math analysis course. Otherwise, the intermediate test should be sufficient and may place students appropriately into courses up to precalculus (Math 120). Most students who take the advanced mathematics test and place into calculus earned A's and B's in their high school math courses and have taken 3-4 years of math courses including pre-calculus, calculus, or math analysis.

How do I know if I pass the placement test?
These tests are not pass-or-fail exams. These placement tests determine your current level of abilities and place you into the appropriate math course for which you are most prepared to successfully complete. You will be placed into either one particular course or a range of courses most appropriate for your ability level.

May I retake the Mathematics Placement Test?
Yes, you may retake the Mathematics Placement Test. However, you must wait two weeks before retaking the same type of Mathematics Placement Test, intermediate or advanced. You may switch from the advanced to intermediate test or from the intermediate to advanced test without waiting two weeks; however, students who retest without waiting two weeks tend to place into the same courses.

You may take each type of Mathematics Placement Test, intermediate or advanced, twice in a twelve-month period.

Why are we not allowed to use a calculator on the Mathematics Placement Test when my high school teacher lets me use it on tests?
The use of calculators has been discussed repeatedly by the Mathematics Placement Testing Committee, which consists of math faculty and testing experts from the various campuses. There is a definite awareness of the extensive use of calculators in high school courses. The argument against the use of calculators is three-fold:
  1. It is the committee's judgement that the problems on the test can be answered without the aid of calculators if the underlying principles are understood.
  2. Some problems can be solved with calculators without an understanding of the underlying principles (i.e., enter the numbers and push a button, to oversimplify).
  3. Fairness -- not all students would have the same calculator and there is no way to equate for differences.

Who should I contact if I qualify for special testing accommodations?
To request disability accommodations for the Mathematics Placement Test, contact APTP approximately one month prior to your desired date for testing. If you are registered with Disability Resources for Students (DRS) at the University of Washington, please request that a copy of your faculty letter be sent to the Testing Center prior to your appointment. If you are not yet registered with DRS, please contact them as soon as possible to start their process.

Disability Resources for Students Office, 448 Schmitz Hall, Box 355839, (206) 543-8924, (TTY) (206) 543-8925, email uwdss@u.washington.edu.

Until you are registered with DRS, please contact the Testing Center directly regarding accommodations for the Mathematics Placement Test.

What should I do if I cannot make my scheduled APTP statewide test date?
Call the APTP office if you cannot make your scheduled test date. You may be able to reschedule to a different test date. If you are rescheduled for another statewide test date, you will not be charged an additional fee for testing. Your payment for the original test date will transfer to your new statewide test date. Once you have rescheduled, the APTP office will mail you a new admission ticket. If you do not receive a new admission ticket before your rescheduled testing date, take your original admission ticket to the test.

If you are unable to reschedule for another statewide test date, you will need to test on a walk-in basis in the Testing Center. The walk-in fee is $25. However, if you bring your proof of payment for the previously scheduled statewide test date ($15), then you will only be required to pay the $10 balance due in cash or check.

Can I get a refund if I do not take a placement test?
If you do not complete any placement test at a statewide testing session, you may request a refund of your testing fee in the amount of $10 ($15 fee minus $5 administrative costs). To request a refund, please contact the Testing Center. Refunds are not issued for tests taken on a walk-in basis.

I tested as a standby at an off-site testing center and have not received my score and placement yet. Why?
Perhaps we have not received your $25 testing fee yet or there was an error on your answer sheet. If you have not sent in your fee, please send in the fee along with the standby form. After we have received your payment, we will mail you a score report with class placement options. If you have already paid and did not receive your score, please contact the Testing Center.

If you have any other questions regarding placement testing at the University of Washington, please contact the Testing Center.

Foreign Language Placement Test Information

French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish

Who needs to take the Foreign Language Placement Test (FLPT)?
Any student planning to attend the University of Washington and continue coursework of a foreign language used for admission to the UW must take the Foreign Language Placement Test (FLPT). For example, if you took at least 2 years of Spanish in high school, used Spanish for UW admission, and plan to continue taking Spanish at the UW, you must take the Spanish placement test before registering for a Spanish course. If you plan to take coursework at UW in a foreign language in which you have no coursework or exposure, you probably will not need to take a placement test for that language. If you have had some exposure to a language, you may want to take the FLPT to make sure you are registered for the correct course. Please contact the department sponsoring the language.

Which tests does the UW offer?
The UW Testing Center offers regularly scheduled testing in French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish.

What type of test is the FLPT? Do the tests include listening and writing sections?
The University of Washington's first-year French, German, and Italian placement tests each consist of 100 multiple-choice questions. There are approximately 33 questions for each level in the first-year language course sequence (usually 101,102, 103). There are no listening, speaking or writing sections.

The first-year Japanese placement test consists of 70 multiple-choice questions. There are no listening, speaking, or writing sections.

For the first-year Spanish placement test, there are 80 multiple choice questions. The Spanish placement test includes a listening portion. There are no speaking or writing portions.

The Korean placement test consists of 90 questions. There is a listening section; there are no speaking or writing sections. Results are evaluated by level beginning with Korean 301.

What knowledge is covered on the FLPT?
In general, the FLPT covers knowledge similar to that covered in the first-year sequence of courses.

In French and Spanish, first-year course sequence covers basic grammar and vocabulary. The structures covered at each level are outlined below:

  • French and Spanish 101: Present tense of certain regular and irregular verbs (etre, avoir, aller, faire, vouloir, pouvoir, devoir; estar, ser tener, ir, hacer, salir, venir, saber, conocer, dar); articles; negation; numbers; adjectives; possessives; demonstratives; time and weather expressions; basic prepositions and contractions; simple questions; comparative, superlative; relative que; stem-changing verbs; adverbs.
  • French and Spanish 102: Preterit/passe compose; imperfect; more prepositions; reflexive verbs; adverbs; object pronouns, relative pronouns; verbs with orthographic stem changes.
  • French and Spanish 103: Subjunctive, future, and present perfect; complex interrogatives; indirect relatives (ce qui/lo que); passive; more reflexive constructions; complete relative pronouns.

In German, first-year course sequence covers basic grammar and an active vocabulary of about 1200 words. The structures covered at each level are listed as follows:

  • German 101: Present tense of regular and irregular verbs; modal verbs (mochten, konnen, mussen); separable prefixes; negation; possessive adjectives; accusative and dative cases; imperative; personal and demonstrative pronouns; accusative prepositions; basic word order.
  • German 102: Dative prepositions and two-way prepositions; ordinal numbers; time expressions; modal verbs (wollen, durfen, and sollen); present perfect tense; word order; adjective declension; comparison of adjectives and adverbs; simple past of haben, sein, and the modal verbs; dependent clauses; da-compounds and wo-compounds; subjunctive; future tense; reflexive pronouns.
  • German 103: Simple past of regular and irregular verbs; past perfect tense; relative clauses; infinitive clauses; review of prepositions and time expressions; adverbs of place; many conjunctions.

For more details and information about test content in other languages, please refer to the department's website for first-year course descriptions.

I have extensive knowledge of a foreign language. Can I be exempted from taking foreign language courses at UW?
French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish: Advanced students who do not wish to continue study of a foreign language and who score high enough on the FLPT, are considered "proficient" and are not required by most majors to complete any foreign language study for graduation.

May I retake the FLPT?
You may retake a French, Italian, and Spanish placement test 6 months after the the last time you tested. You may take the Japanese placement test once each quarter. You may take a German or Korean test twice in a 12-month period with a 75-day wait between tests. The $25 fee is charged each time you take any test.

For further information regarding language courses, please contact the appropriate department from those listed below:

French
Department of Romance Languages & Literature
Division of French and Italian Studies
University of Washington
Padelford C-254
Box 354361
Seattle, WA 98195-4361
(206) 685-1450

German
Department of Germanics
University of Washington
Denny 340-C
Box 353130
Seattle, WA 98195-3130
(206) 543-4580
uwgerman@u.washington.edu

Italian
Department of Romance Languages & Literature
Division of French and Italian Studies
University of Washington
Padelford C-254
Box 354361
Seattle, WA 98195-4361
(206) 685-1450

Japanese
Department of Asian Languages & Literature
University of Washington
225 Gowen Hall
Box 353521
Seattle, WA 98195-3521
Telephone (206) 543-4996
asianll@u.washington.edu

Korean
Department of Asian Languages and Literature
University of Washington
225 Gowen Hall
Box 353521
Seattle, WA 98195-3521
206) 543-4996

Spanish
Department of Romance Languages & Literature
Division of Spanish and Portuguese Studies
University of Washington
Padelford Hall C-104
Box 354360
Seattle, WA 98195-4360
(206) 543-2020

Honors Chemistry Placement Test Information

How long is the Honors Chemistry test?
The Honors Chemistry test allows 60 minutes of testing time. Please allow one hour and 30 minutes for the entire testing process.

How many questions are on the Honors Chemistry test?
There are 21 questions on the Honors Chemistry test.

May I use a calculator on the Honors Chemistry test?
Yes, you may use a calculator on the Honors Chemistry test; however, you may also complete the test without a calculator. You will be provided scratch paper.

How is the Honors Chemistry test scored?
The test score is based on the number of questions you answer correctly. You are not penalized for incorrect answers. If you pass, you are eligible to register for CHEM 145. If you are considered a "borderline" pass, you should meet with an advisor in the Chemistry Department before registering for CHEM 145.

May I retake the Honors Chemistry test?
Yes, but you must wait two weeks before retaking the Honors Chemistry test. You may take the Honors Chemistry test no more than twice in a twelve-month period.

What should I review before taking the Honors Chemistry test?
There is specific information that the Chemistry Department would mastered before taking the Honors Chemistry Test. The information may be obtained by visiting the Chemistry Department website, depts.washington.edu/chemugs/honors.html or by picking up a handout in the Testing Center.