Placement Testing

Placement

NPC is dedicated to student success. To ensure that students select courses appropriate for their skill level, many students are required to participate in the course placement process. The following conditions define who must take part in the placement process:

• Students enrolling in courses with placement prerequisites who have not previously taken a placement test. Courses that require placement include all mathematics, English, and general education courses, as well as some program-specific courses, such as ATO courses, NAT 101  and EMT 131  or EMT 246 .
• Students pursuing an NPC associate degree of any type, a Certificate of Applied Science of any type, or the Arizona General Education Curriculum (AGEC).

There are three avenues for placement into NPC courses:

• Avenue 1 - For high school or charter school students and recent graduates or students with some college.
  • High school transcript with GPA of 2.6 or above (within 5 years) AND for Math courses refer to adviser for placement.
  • And/Or college transcript with GPA of 2.0 or above in applicable general education or developmental education courses (within 5 years).
  • And/Or ACT/SAT scores (within 5 years)
• Avenue 2 - For students with a recent accredited High School Equivalency transcript.
  • Completed GED® transcript dated after 1/1/14
• Avenue 3 - For students who do not meet above criteria or who are applying to programs that require standardized reading and math competency scores.
  • Use ACCUPLACER computerized test (within 5 years)

Students may be exempt from the placement process if they meet one of the following criteria:

• Students providing proof of an accredited associates degree or higher, unless the degree includes no college-level mathematics.
• Students providing ACCUPLACER placement scores less than five years old from another institution.
• Students providing official transcripts listing a grade of “C” or better for College Composition I (reading/writing requirement) and/or college-level mathematics (mathematics requirement).
• Students providing ACT or SAT scores that meet NPC placement minimum standards.
• Students taking courses for “Audit” grade only. The Audit grade exemption applies only to courses with a placement prerequisite. Course prerequisites may not be waived by this exemption.

General guidelines for the placement process are as follows:

1. Students should contact the campus or center academic adviser to begin the placement process. NPC uses the ACCUPLACER computer-based placement test as its primary placement tool. If technical difficulties prevent the use of the ACCUPLACER test, students will need to schedule a time to return and complete the ACCUPLACER test;
2. A complete battery of ACCUPLACER assessments typically takes three hours. Depending upon the ACCUPLACER results, some students may need additional placement testing in one or more areas;
3. At the conclusion of the ACCUPLACER test, the academic adviser will meet with the student to discuss the placement results;
4. Students needing placement testing pay a $20 annual fee. This fee allows up to three tests within the academic year.

Placement test scores, whether from NPC or another institution, are effective for a maximum of five years. If more than five years have elapsed since the testing date, the student must re-test before enrolling in a class.

Placement results will be used to make initial placement for students in mathematics and English courses. Depending upon their placement results, some students may need to enroll in College and Career Preparation (CCP) courses to develop the skills needed to succeed in college-level courses.

Placement results are also used to determine eligibility for general education courses. Depending upon their placement results, some students wishing to take general education courses may need to co-enroll in a pertinent CCP course.

Certain program-specific courses, such as NAT 101  and EMT 131  or EMT 246 , also have required placement minimums. Please contact your academic adviser for more information regarding required placement scores for NPC courses.

Placement testing is available at all campuses and centers during advising office hours. Consult with the campus or center academic adviser to schedule a placement session. Students are strongly encouraged to complete testing prior to the registration period. Early placement testing gives students the opportunity to retest if needed and gives the academic adviser more time to discuss placement results with the student. Placement testing may be done during registration. Testing is typically available during registration hours, though students should plan to start testing no later than two hours prior to the end of the registration day.

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