So just a few days ago, I went into the University I will be starting this fall, to take a math placement exam. Very dreadful. Prior to this, I scoured the internet for some sort of HELPFUL information about the Accuplacer exams for college. I found nothing. So, for all the future college students and Accuplacer takers. Here is the truth of those College entrance exams.
So if you haven't read my previous post, I will be going to Georgia State University, which is in Atlanta. I was notified by the college that I had to take the Math and Chem Accuplacer exams. Accuplacer exams aren't graded out of a 100 and they are simply for deciding what math or chemistry class you will be put into Freshman year. Depends on what subject the exam is for, that is the subject class you are being placed in. Now that is terrifying for very studious students. Dedicated students want to score as high as possible.
The ideology is, if you can start of your Freshman year advanced, you will finish faster. Or so they claim. The Accuplacers are given on a computer, there are levels to it. So you have score a certain number to move on to the next section. The more sections you finish the higher your class placement will be. Now specifically about the Math Accuplacer, since that is the most popular one, nearly every college student will take. There are no calculators allowed.
They provide one on the screen of the test, but that calculator leaves on certain problems. So really brush up on your fractions, decimals, and integer numbers. You will have to solve basicaly everyhting by hand, that calculator leaves on the problems you need it most. This test is all sorts of screwed up. Its a scammery set up to see how far a student can get, alot of students don't make it that far without retakes of the exam. Its a waste of money and a way to trap an incoming student into a lower class than they deserve.
Don't get me wrong. The actual math on it is easy. But the way the questions are presented, the absence of a calculator, and the fact that once you submit a question you can never go back to it....it just sets up the perfect atmosphere of anxiety and stress for a student. This does not equate to good results that a student deserves. The Accuplacer exams brag that they help put you in classes you need. That is not the case to be honest. An exam with only 20 questions, sometimes a bit more, on it....can NOT decipher your capabilities in a subject.
Also keep in mind, everyone on the exam will get different randomized questions, and have different amounts of questions. So practically, it doesn't gauge your ability. It is a test of luck, you can get lucky with questions you are good at, or have bad luck and get cursed with questions you are weak at. This is one of those College Board scams all over again, like the SAT, or ACT, or AP exams, or just colleges in general. We know all these things are scams to gain profit for a multimillionaire corporation called College Board. But nonetheless we have to go through it anyway for a shot at a career.
The night before the exam. Sleep. Just do it. You don't need to bring anything to the exam but your registration confirmation and an ID. Don't panic when you see others finishing before you, remember the more sections you get through, the better and higher up you will place. Drill yourself in adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing: fractions, decimals, variable equations, negative numbers, exponents, radical numbers, and so forth. We are so used to a calculator that during a time of pressure we forget how to do it by hand.
The test is untimed, so take all day if you want to. If everything fails in a question, start plugging in multiple choice answers to see what fits. Most of the problems will have more variables than numbers, so that gets very tricky. Assign numbers to the variables and just hypothetically test out the choices to see whatever is the closest. You are allowed to use scrap paper. I studied super hard for this test, and honestly barely any of it came to use. The math questions will be more ironic and weird than a typical math question you are used to seeing. Before you even review your trigonometry or pre calculus skills, strengthen your algebra skills. Algebra is what you need the most on the math accuplacer.
Well thats all I can advise about this crummy test. Don't get me wrong, I'm not salty because I'm weak at math. I'm actually a straight A's student, but I am not oblivious to the scammery that colleges will pull and the lies that tests and exams that forge. These exams really try to give a worth value to a student, but in reality, if you fail it, you will be placed into a lower class. Hardwork is hardwork, and no one can forge it. So either way, if you get placed at the bottom or top, you will have to put in the work to receive the reward of persistence.
Good luck on the Accuplacers. Don't get too upset, if you don't place where you wanted. Life moves on, and so will that class you get placed into. Stay positive, go in with the mindset that anything can happen. Give the test how you do best and walk out. Don't let this damper your college experience. Enjoy your time, and don't take that placement to heart. It does not determine your worth, only your hardwork will, in the long run.
Good luck on the Accuplacers. Don't get too upset, if you don't place where you wanted. Life moves on, and so will that class you get placed into. Stay positive, go in with the mindset that anything can happen. Give the test how you do best and walk out. Don't let this damper your college experience. Enjoy your time, and don't take that placement to heart. It does not determine your worth, only your hardwork will, in the long run.
Thankyou for reading.
-ISBAH xoxo
-ISBAH xoxo
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