Math Placement

<p>When do the freshman find out their math placement? Is it during Orientation? thanks in advance :D</p>

<p>Yes, it’s during orientation. MAKE SURE and take the math placement test BEFORE orientation. (I was surprised at the number of people who had not taken the test in advance at D1’s orientation)…</p>

<p>Also, make sure you (and your parents, if they are going), to go online to UMD’s site to understand what the various possibilities are, based on how you score on the placement tests, etc. I was frustrated at the number of parent questions on the topic; people obviously had not even read the basics of the process.</p>

<p><===the Mom</p>

<p>Yeah, we are starting the process now of looking at his options. Thanks!</p>

<p>He did take the test already and he’s taken AP AB and BC Calc so we are looking at what math he wants to do/should do next.</p>

<p>centh(mom)…don’t know why I thought you were the new terp yourself!</p>

<p>Did he take the AP exam just this month or did he take it last year? If he scores high enough on the AP, the AP score takes precedence over whatever the placement test says. This may help…</p>

<p>[Transfer</a> Credit Center | Advanced Placement Exams (AP)](<a href=“http://www.tce.umd.edu/apchart.html]Transfer”>http://www.tce.umd.edu/apchart.html)</p>

<p>Speaking of^^</p>

<p>If I just took the AP Calc AB exam this month, how will they be able to use it for math placement when I go to orientation in June?? 'Cause the scores aren’t available untill late July. Will they just put off scheduling math until later in the summer? Help</p>

<p>if i read this correctly on the site, if you ace the exam and place into the highest class, you still have the option of taking a math class at a lower level right ?</p>

<p>Yes, you can take math at a lower level if you feel more comfortable with it. Hope someone can answer rschlege? If you did well on the AP, chances are that you’ll score high on the math placement test, so you’ll have the same options anyway. I don’t know how it works, though, if any of your classes require prerequisites that you’re hoping you’ll get with AP credits… ??</p>

<p>S took AP AB Calc last year and scored a 5. He took AP BC Calc this year and took the test last week and felt pretty confident about it (other than the first FRQ which it looks like everyone had trouble with according to the CC thread.)</p>

<p>For Rschlege, I think I remember a post by bulletandpima (Pima in particular) which said that her S found out his AP scores were in when he saw it posted on Testudo for credit…before the scores were available from College Board, because they had the scores sent directly to the school.</p>

<p>That’s correct about the AP scores, Centh, but UMD only gets the scores a week or so before they are mailed to the students. This won’t help for June orientations. Again, if your kid did well on the AP BC Calc test, chances are he’ll place into the right (higher) math course.</p>

<p>Yep, DS found out his score before, but his orientation was in July, so that is why he knew. I think if I am right he was still required to do the math placement test, maybe I am confusing it with something else though.</p>

<p>OK, I’m pretty sure what you can do if you are still waiting for BC scores is, when you go to orientation, i agree with everyone else, you will in all likelihood score in the top placement on the UMD Placement Exam. That will place you into Math 140, which is calc 1. You can tell the counselor (and it will be on ur transcript) that you have taken calc 2, and if this is the case, feel prepared to move onto calc 3, because you feel confident you will pass the test. At that point, sign up for calc 3, and if for some reason you don’t get calc 2 credit, they keep plenty of calc 2 sections open for freshman thruout the summer, so you can just go on testudo and register for the lower class. Or call you counselor, and they can approve the change… does that make sense?</p>

<p>That does make sense, thanks Moll!</p>

<p>As far as I remember the math placement exam was almost entirely (if not entirely) algebra skills. Anyone who has taken BC calc in high school should find this placement test to be a joke (if not, he has some things to worry about haha). I am not a math person, relatively speaking (took only AB, and received like, a C or D in it haha), but aced this placement exam. It is not made for kids with AP math credits, as has been pointed out, since the highest placement one can receive on it is Calc AB. AP scores therefore obviously take precedence, since they exceed calc AB.</p>

<p>At orientation he should be allowed to sign up for whatever; orientation counselers should take his word/unoffical scores that he belongs in a certain math class. But again math classes are huge so if for some reason he flunked the AP exam or whatever, all he has to do is take calc in the summer or drop the class and sign up for a lower one in the Fall.</p>

<p>My son was given his placement as MAT 140 after taking the MPE, but we were told that MAT 220 may be a bit easier. Is this true? I always assumed that the 200 level courses were more difficult than the 100 level courses.</p>

<p>MATH220 is Applied calculus instead of theoretical calculus. MATH140 is for those in majors like physics, engineering, or math. MATH220 is for pretty much everyone else (business, bio, chem, etc.). The numbers don’t really mean much in terms of difficulty sometimes.</p>

<p>Math 130 is for Life Sciences Majors…</p>

<p>I’ve been to the June 01/02 orientation.
You get to find out your score at the departmental orientation.</p>

<p>I missed only one question (from Part III), and this put me in MATH140.</p>

<p>MATH140 is the highest math course you can be placed based on the MPE scores.</p>

<p>Also, I asked about the MATH220.
MATH220 is a lower-level course than MATH140. (Higher number doesn’t mean more difficulty.)
MATH140 is Calculus I, and MATH220 is Elementary Calculus I.</p>

<p>Thanks for the info!!</p>

<p>If someone took multivariable calculus and differential equations in high school and linear algebra at a community college, is it possible to place higher in the math sequence in freshman year? Thanks in advance for help.</p>

<p>Classes you took for college credit in high school supersede your MPE score.</p>