Quantitative and Symbolic Reasoning

CONTENTS

Requirement
      University requirement
      Arts and Sciences requirement
      Other colleges
Q/SR courses
      The Q/SR list
      Transfer courses
Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate
Grades required
      Pass-fail
Overlaps and restrictions
Exemptions
      Postbaccalaureate students
      Proficiency test
      Transfer Associate Degree Agreement
Admission deficiency

Requirement		University requirement Freshmen entering the UW autumn 1985 or later, and transfer students entering the UW autumn 1987 or later, are required to complete one course from the University quantitative/symbolic reasoning (Q/SR) list. Normally 5 credits are required, but the 4-credit courses on the list also satisfy the requirement. Arts and Sciences requirement Students who start college anywhere in autumn 1985 or later and graduate from the UW College of Arts and Sciences must complete the University Q/SR requirement. (Note that Arts and Sciences does not allow a two-year grace period for transfer students in this instance; also note that Arts and Sciences uses the date the student started college, not the date the student entered the UW.) Students who started college before autumn 1985 are eligible for an earlier "proficiency" requirement, described in Pre-1985 General Education and Basic Skills Requirements. See Determining quarter of entry if the date on which the student started college isn't clear. Other colleges Each college has structured its requirements to meet or exceed the University Q/SR requirement. Some colleges require specific courses to meet the requirement. See General Education and Basic Skills Requirements of UW Schools and Colleges. Each school or college of the University decides for itself to what extent it will follow the policy of Arts and Sciences in applying requirements to students who began college before 1985.


Q/SR courses		The Q/SR list The list of approved Q/SR courses is maintained by the Undergraduate Gateway Center, 171 Mary Gates Hall. Transfer courses Q/SR courses require students to demonstrate competency in using mathematical or logical methods to solve applied problems. Transfer courses of 4 or more credits may count toward the Q/SR requirement if they are evaluated as exact equivalents of courses on the list, if they appear in the Equivalency Guide with a Q, or if they transfer as MATH 1XX or STAT 1XX (or 2XX, etc.). Advisers may approve other transfer courses of 4 or more credits if they are similar to courses on the Q/SR list. The adviser should post a "Q" on the course using the SRF330 screen.


Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate		A number of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate test scores receive credit awards for courses that satisfy the Q/SR requirement. See the AP tables and IB tables. Students who submitted International Baccalaureate scores before summer 2003 were awarded 5 quarter credits for each Higher Level subject in which a score of 5 or higher was earned. This was generally recorded as, for example, 5 credits of MATH 999. This 999 IB credit in Mathematics, Mathematics and Computing, and Computing Studies may be used to satisfy the Q/SR requirement.


Grades required		Any passing grade in a Q/SR course, including 0.7, is acceptable. Pass-fail As of autumn 1985, courses taken at the UW to fulfill any graduation requirement, including quantitative/symbolic reasoning, cannot be taken Satisfactory/Not Satisfactory (S/NS). A transferred course taken under a student-option pass-fail system may be counted toward the Q/SR requirement only if it was taken before the student matriculated at the UW. A transferred course that was available only on a non-graded basis is automatically acceptable, whether taken before or after matriculation at the UW. The course should appear on the transfer evaluation with a grade of CR (rather than S). UW courses taken S/NS before matriculation at the UW campus granting the student's degree may also be used to satisfy the Q/SR requirement.


Overlaps and restrictions		The course used to satisfy the Q/SR requirement may also count toward the Areas of Knowledge requirement and/or the student's major, when applicable. Non-credit courses, such as MATH 098, cannot count toward the Q/SR requirement. (Note also that MATH 100, 102, 103, and 120 are not on the Q/SR list.)


Exemptions		Postbaccalaureate students Students who have already completed a bachelor's degree at the UW or elsewhere are exempt from the University (and Arts and Sciences) Q/SR requirement. Proficiency test A Q/SR proficiency test may be taken to establish exemption from the Q/SR requirement. The test may be taken only after a student is admitted to the UW. Students should consult the Testing Office, 440 Schmitz Hall, for testing information. If a student passes the Q/SR test, a form is sent to the Graduation and Academic Records Office. The results will then be posted on the student's permanent record and on the SRF310 screen in the Student Data Base. The Q/SR proficiency test should be recommended to students who performed very well in four years of high school math, but do not wish to take any courses on the Q/SR list in college. In general, only students who are prepared for college calculus will be able to pass the Q/SR proficiency test. Transfer Associate Degree Agreement A student who enters under the Transfer Associate Degree Agreement is not exempt from the Q/SR requirement solely on the basis of having earned the degree. The student must complete a course, either before or after transfer, from the Q/SR list.


Admission deficiency		A student is deficient in mathematics if s/he lacks the University admission requirement of three high school years (units) of college-preparatory mathematics. The courses (and the minimum required grade in each) which will remove a math admission deficiency are listed under Removal of a High School Subject Deficiency. Normally, a student must remove a math deficiency before matriculation at the UW. A passing score on a math placement test does not remove a math admission deficiency. Coursework is required. Courses taken to remove high school core deficiencies may be taken S/NS. A course taken to remove a high school math deficiency may count toward the Q/SR (and/or AoK) requirement if the course is not a noncredit course, if it was taken for a grade, and if it appears on the Q/SR (and/or AoK) list.