*Holders of a bachelor’s degree beginning a second degree program are exempted from the skills testing requirements of the program.  However, these students may be required by their college to take the tests upon entry in order to help the college determine their placement in math or language skills courses.

How do skills requirements affect admissions to CUNY for freshmen?

Baccalaureate Programs

Candidates for freshman admission to a bachelor’s degree program must show that they are proficient in reading, writing and math to be admitted.  Candidates who are not proficient in one or more skills have several options: 

·      Enroll in an immersion program at the senior college;

·      Enroll in the Prelude to Success Program; 

·      Enroll in the necessary remedial courses at a CUNY community college, or in an associates' program at a comprehensive college.

If you are not skills proficient, you should speak to an admissions counselor to get more information about the best choice for you.

Three groups of students may be admitted to a bachelor’s program without first demonstrating skills proficiency: 

1.  applicants who already have a bachelor’s degree or higher from an accredited program;

2.  applicants who demonstrate proficiency in math, who meet the University’s definition of ESL and who meet all other admissions requirements may be admitted. These students must pass the reading and writing skills tests within two years of initial enrollment;

3.  applicants who qualify for the SEEK program. SEEK students must achieve full skills proficiency within one year of initial enrollment.  

Associate Programs

Candidates for freshman admission to an associate program do not have to show they are skills proficient to be admitted.  However, entering students who are not proficient based on the SAT I, ACT or Regents tests must take the appropriate CUNY assessment tests.  Once enrolled in an associate program, students will be required to take one or more remedial courses to build their skills in any areas in which they have not met the University standard.  Students usually cannot begin a full program of college-level work in an associate program until they have achieved proficiency in reading, writing and math.

How do skills requirements affect admission to CUNY for transfer students?

Transfer Students from outside CUNY

•  Students with fewer than 45 credits at the time of application must demonstrate skills proficiency to be admitted to a CUNY baccalaureate program.

•  Students with 45 or more credits are considered skills proficient; they do not have to document proficiency on the basis of SAT I, ACT, Regents or CUNY assessment tests to be admitted to a CUNY bachelor’s program.  However, ESL students may be asked by their college to take a placement test in reading and writing to assess their English language skills.

•  Transfer applicants to associate programs who are not proficient based on the SAT I, ACT or Regents tests must take the appropriate CUNY assessment tests.  These applicants do not have to demonstrate proficiency to be admitted.

Transfers from a CUNY college

•           All students who wish to transfer from a CUNY associate program to a CUNY bachelor’s program must demonstrate skills proficiency to be admitted.

If students need special arrangements for testing, are they available?

Accommodations based on disabilities will be granted to comply with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act.  Students who wish to request such accommodations should consult their college's Testing Office or Office of Student Services.

What are the CUNY/ACT basic skills tests in reading, writing, and mathematics?

Reading.  The COMPASS Reading Test is an untimed, multiple-choice, computer-based test of reading.

Writing.  The CUNY/ACT Writing Sample is a 60-minute essay test in which students are asked to respond to a question that they see for the first time when they sit for the test.

Mathematics.  The COMPASS Mathematics Test is an untimed, multiple-choice, computer-based test composed of four sections:  numerical skills/pre-algebra, algebra, college algebra, and trigonometry.

What scores on the CUNY/ACT Tests in reading, writing, and mathematics must students achieve to demonstrate minimum proficiency?

Reading:                     a scaled score of 70 or more

Writing Sample:                     a total score of 7 or more

Mathematics:       scaled scores of 30 or more on each of the first two sections of the test:  numerical skills/pre-algebra and algebra.  Some colleges require students to achieve higher scores before they can register for credit-bearing mathematics courses.

What skills do each of the tests measure?

The COMPASS Reading Test measures reading comprehension. You will be given several readings that may be practical or drawn from prose fiction, the humanities, social sciences, or natural sciences.  Questions about the readings will ask you to refer to what is explicitly stated and to determine the meaning of words through context. They will also ask you to reason to determine implicit meanings, to draw conclusions, and to make comparisons and generalizations.  The readings are like those commonly assigned in first-year courses in college.  For each passage you will be asked a set of multiple-choice questions.  Sample passages and questions are included below.

The Writing Sample assesses your writing skills based on a sample of your writing.  Students are given a choice of two questions, and are asked to write an organized, focused essay.  The essay questions are similar to one another in the following way: each one describes a choice that a person in a position of authority must make between two alternatives. The writer is asked to advise the authority on the best choice and explain why the group should agree with the writer's position.  The writing sample is scored by two trained readers, using a six-point scale.  A sample of the writing assignment (along with the scoring guide and sample papers for each score point) is included in this booklet, along with some tips on taking the Writing Sample Test prepared by CUNY writing faculty.

The COMPASS Mathematics Testis designed to measure students’ knowledge of a number of topics in mathematics.  The test is organized into four sections:  numerical skills/pre-algebra, algebra, college algebra, and trigonometry.  Numerical skills/pre-algebra questions range from basic math concepts and skills (integers, fractions, and decimals) to the knowledge and skills that are required in an entry-level algebra course (absolute values, percentages, and exponents).  The algebra items are questions from elementary and intermediate algebra (equations, polynomials, formula manipulations, and algebraic expressions).  The college algebra section

includes questions that measure skills required to perform operations with functions, exponents, matrices, and factorials.  The trigonometry section addresses topics such as trigonometric functions and identities, right-triangle trigonometry, and graphs of trigonometric functions.

Placement into CUNY's required basic math courses is based on results of the numerical skills/pre-algebra and algebra sections.  The test covers progressively advanced topics with placement into more advanced mathematics or mathematics-related courses based on results of the last two sections of the test.

Assessment Testing and Remedial Courses

Exit from Remedial and ESL Course Sequences

All students registered in their college’s top-level course in Reading, Writing, or ESL will take the test(s) at the end of the semester.  Students who do not pass the test(s) will not be able to begin college composition (Freshman English) until they pass.  Likewise, no student may be placed in a college-level mathematics course who has not passed or been exempted from the COMPASS Mathematics Test. 

Faculty at each college decide the requirements for passing each top-level remedial, developmental, or ESL course.  Sometimes, passage of the skills test is required to pass the course; sometimes it is not.  In any case, the University expects that students who pass the reading and writing tests will move directly to College Composition I at their next registration.

Retesting

Generally, students must receive at least 20 hours of instruction between retests.  They may not be retested more than two times during a semester.  Specific rules apply for workshops and summer and winter immersion.

*Holders of a bachelor’s degree beginning a second degree program are exempted from the skills testing requirements of the program.  However, these students may be required by their college to take the tests upon entry in order to help the college determine their placement in math or language skills courses.