College Catalog 2014-15

EAST CENTRAL COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Any student who has not taken the ACT may take the COMPASS placement test two times. The second attempt must be at least one week after the first testing date. The student should complete appropriate tutorial work (credit or non-credit) prior to taking the second test. This workmay be in the formof any study preparation suitable for improving knowledge in the subject area. Retesting must take place before the first day of class. A student will forfeit the second testing attempt if the retesting is not completed before the start of classes for the semester. Students taking the COMPASS for initial placement and admission shall be given first priority to test. Students who have taken the ACT Any student who has taken the ACT, but wishes to improve his or her placement level(s) may attempt the COMPASS placement test one time. COMPASS is divided into four individual tests. A student may choose to skip any of the four tests but will not be allowed another opportunity to complete a test that was skipped. Testing must take place prior to the first day of class. Students taking the COMPASS for initial placement and admission shall be given first priority to test. Registration for Testing Students may register for COMPASS at the Success Center which is located on the second floor of the Eddie M. Smith Building. To register via phone, students may call 601.635.6346. Testing Locations COMPASS is administered in the Success Center’s Student Services computer lab in the Eddie M. Smith Building. Students will be assigned a testing location when they register. Fee schedule Testing fees may be paid in the ECCC Business Office which is located in the Arno Vincent Administration Building. The accepted forms of payment are cash, check, VISA or MasterCard (either debit or credit.) The cost for COMPASS will be $20 for all assessments (reading, English, pre-algebra, and/or algebra) or $10 for the English assessments or $10 for the algebra assessment. Retests will be $10 for all assessments (reading, English, pre-algebra/algebra) or $5 for each individual assessment. Students will be given a receipt upon payment. This receipt must be presented upon arrival for testing. Testing Information for Students: • Only students who have submitted an application to the ECCC Office of Admissions will be allowed to take the COMPASS assessment. • Anyone wishing to test must present a valid photo I.D. No one will be allowed to test without proper identification. This may be: a driver’s license, a military I.D. card or a school I.D. card. • No cell phones, pagers, timers, drinks, food, or tobacco products are allowed in the testing area. • An on-screen calculator is available for use during the pre-algebra/algebra test, but an approved personal calculator may be used. Cell phone calculators and TI-89 or TI-92 graphing calculators are NOT allowed. • COMPASS is an untimed test. As a general rule, testing time is approximately two hours. COMPASS (Computer-Adaptive Placement Assessment and Student Services) is a computerized assessment that provides important information about individual skills and preparation for college-level courses. It is an untimed, adaptive computer-based test that measures skills in reading, writing, and mathematics. On the reading test, the student will be given one or more passages to read and then will answer questions about the passage(s). The writing skills test consists of one or more essays in which the student will identify and correct errors in grammar, punctuation, usage, and style. On the mathematics test, the student will solve problems that measure numerical, pre-algebra and algebra skills. Some of the areas included on this test are: basic operations with integers, fractions, and decimals, exponents, ratios and proportions, percentages and topics in elementary algebra, intermediate algebra and coordinate geometry. Sample questions are available at the following Web site: http://www.act.org/compass/student. • Test results are available immediately following the test. • COMPASS scores are not transferable to other colleges. • ECCC will not fax scores to individuals, businesses or other educational entities. General Information about COMPASS

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