Mathematics Placement Test (MPT)

The Mathematics Placement Test (MPT) was first administered in 1984 and is currently taken by approximately 10,000 students annually. It has been developed collaboratively by math faculty at Washington State public baccalaureate institutions to assist students, together with their academic advisers, in selecting first-year mathematics courses for which they are best prepared.

Learn more about the MPT

 

Two versions of the test enable accurate placement of students with varying levels of academic preparation:

  • The Intermediate Math Placement Test is intended for students who have less than three or four years of high school math. It consists of 35 items covering Elementary Algebra, Intermediate Algebra, and Precalculus I.
  • The Advanced Math Placement Test is directed toward students who have taken at least three or four years of high school math. It consists of 30 items covering Intermediate Algebra and Precalculus I and II.
Sample problems have been developed to assist students in preparing for the test.

Test Administration

Participating institutions test students in large groups during on-campus orientation programs, or individually throughout the year. However, most entering students are tested through Academic Placement Testing Program (APTP), managed by the Office of Educational Assessment on behalf of participating institutions.

Placement Decisions

Placement policies and cutoff scores are set independently by each institution. For more information on how the test is used at a particular school, and for on-campus testing schedules, contact:

College Readiness Mathematics Test (CRMT)

The Office of Educational Assessment is coordinating alignment of the Intermediate Mathematics Placement Test with recently developed Washington state College Readiness Mathematics Standards (CRMS), and development of a college readiness mathematics test to be taken by Washington state 11th-grade students.

Learn more about the CRMT