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Preview Advisor Notebook - 2009
Composition Challenge Exam

English Composition Placement/Challenge Exam

Requirement:
Satisfactory completion of CO150, College Composition, the All-University Core Curriculum Intermediate Writing requirement (AUCC Category 1A). 

Placement:    

• Students who score 600 or higher on the SAT verbal/critical reading or 26 or higher on the ACT English are eligible to register for CO150 and should sign up for the course their first or second semester at Colorado State. The appropriate SAT/ACT scores will be acceptable no matter when the tests were taken.
• Students who do not have transfer credit for a course equivalent to CO150, CO130, or who score lower than 600 on the SAT verbal/critical reading or lower than 26 on the ACT English must take the Composition Placement Exam to be placed in an appropriate composition course. Some students who demonstrate lower skill levels on the Composition Placement Exam will need to complete CO130, Academic Writing, before taking CO150. They should register for CO130 their first semester and CO150 their second semester. Students with satisfactory scores on the Composition Placement Exam should take CO150 their first or second semester.
  
  

Challenge to Placement:     
If students wish to challenge their placement into a composition course:

• Students who are placed into CO150 by virtue of their SAT or ACT score may challenge CO150 by taking the Composition Challenge Exam in a proctored (not online) setting. Students who successfully challenge CO150 on the Challenge Exam will receive 3 credits for CO150-Section 550 on their transcript for the upcoming or current semester.

• Students who have a transfer equivalent for CO130, Academic Writing, will be allowed to register for CO150.  These students may also challenge CO150 by taking the Composition Challenge Exam in a proctored (not online) setting. We recognize that some students enter the University with higher levels of writing skills than we might expect given the composition courses they have taken and we allow them to challenge CO150 by taking our Composition Challenge Exam. Students will be charged the $40 exam fee. Students who have CO130 transfer credit don’t have to get a test-out score (6) in order to transfer their first semester composition class in as CO150, but they do need to receive a score of 5. So, if a student receives a score of 5, we will ask Transfer Evaluation to transfer their composition class in as CO150 rather than CO130. If the student decides not to take the exam, the CO130 credit will act as a prerequisite for CO150.
  
  

The University English composition requirement must be fulfilled by all undergraduate students prior to completion of 60 credits.  Please visit the English Composition Requirement website:  http://writing.colostate.edu/comp/cocc150_requirement.cfm

Composition Program Website:  http://writing.colostate.edu/comp
Composition Placement/Challenge Exam Website:  http://writing.colostate.edu/comp/placement.cfm
Online Composition Placement Exam Website:  http://writing.colostate.edu/comp/exam

Students WILL NOT need to take the Composition Placement/Challenge Exam if:

• They score 600 or higher on the SAT verbal/critical reading or 26 or higher on the ACT English. These students may also challenge CO150 by taking the Composition Challenge Exam in a proctored (not online) session.

• They show transfer credit on their Colorado State transcript for a course equivalent to CO150. These students have satisfied the All-University Core Curriculum requirement for CO150.
• They have a transfer equivalent for CO130, Academic Writing. These students will be allowed to register for CO150. These students may also challenge CO150 by taking the Composition Challenge Exam in a proctored (not online) session.

• They submit Advanced Placement exam results that document a 5 earned in English Composition and Literature or a 4 or 5 earned in English Language and Composition. These students have met the AUCC requirement for CO150.
• They submit International Baccalaureate scores that document a 5, 6, or 7 earned for English at the Higher Level. These students have satisfied the AUCC requirement for CO150.
  
  

OnLine Exam:  Incoming students may take the Composition Placement Exam one time in an online setting prior to their term of admission using a compatible personal computer. Here is the website for the online exam:  http://writing.colostate.edu/comp/exam/. The Composition Placement Exam will be available online 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for new students only, beginning at 6:00am on April 1, 2009 through Wednesday, August 19, 2009 at midnight. To qualify for course credit by exam (CO150-Section 550 credit), students must take the Composition Placement/Challenge Exam on campus in a proctored setting. Students cannot earn credit for CO150 by taking the online exam. Students may retake the test on campus in a proctored setting only ONCE and they will be charged an additional $40. 

In order to take the online Composition Placement Exam, students will need to log in with their eID. Students taking this exam will be assessed a $40.00 fee, which will be billed to their student account. Students may work on their essays for a maximum of 90 minutes.

OnLine Composition Placement Exam Results:  Although students may take the Composition Placement Exam online at any time, the Placement Exams will be scored only once each week, on Thursdays. In order to have your exam read and scored on Thursday, you need to complete your exam by 3 p.m. on Wednesday. Results for exams scored on Thursdays will be posted on RAMweb by that Friday by 5 p.m. Go to your RAMweb homepage and on the right-hand side under Records, select Composition Placement/Challenge Exam Results. Online Placement Exams taken after 3 p.m. on Wednesdays will not be scored or posted until the following week. 

Proctored Exam Dates:        

• For fall semester 2009, proctored sessions of the Composition Placement/Challenge Exam will be given on Friday, August 21, at 3:30 p.m. in Plant Science C101 and again at 5:00 p.m. in Plant Science C101. 
•  A proctored session of the Composition Placement/Challenge Exam will also be given on Saturday, August 22, at 9:30 a.m. in Plant Science C101.
• The proctored Composition Placement/Challenge Examination is given at the beginning of the Fall, Spring and Summer semesters and during registration for Fall and Spring (test times will be scheduled in October, November and April).

Fee:
A fee of $40 will be assessed to your student account for completion of the exam.

If you have questions, please contact Sue Russell at 970-491-1898 or via email at Sue.Russell@colostate.edu.

Last Updated 6/2/09