I took the math placement exam and scored a 44 out of 50. I have had mostly B’s and A’s in my math courses, and the hardest math class I took was Calculus AB.
I am going to take the Chinese and Chemistry placement tests in the coming days, and was wondering if anyone could provide advice for preparation/information about the scores I currently have for math.
Just to clarify - in the title, I am also asking how tests are weighed along with grades, GPA, IB/AP test scores, SAT/ACT test scores, etc.
I assume you’re an incoming first year?
HS grades and standardized test results are disregarded in placement. Your AP and IB scores will place you as it is spelled out here: http://collegecatalog.uchicago.edu/thecollege/examinationcreditandtransfercredit/
There are three sources of placement. The online test you just took, the on campus calc accreditation test you can take during o-week, and your AP scores. The best placement stands, so you can only move up by taking accreditation exams. For more info, see: https://math.uchicago.edu/undergraduate/course-info/placement.pdf
The second part of that information is actually incorrect–the calculus accreditation exam is not offered during o-week this year, and must be taken between July 11th and August 31st. See: https://orientation.uchicago.edu/page/placement-tests
Jeepers! My kids both thought o-week was about 2-1/2 days’ worth of useful content packed into nine days, and the calculus exam (and subsequent counselor meeting) was definitely part of the useful content. What the heck are people doing during the nine days of o-week that the University can’t offer a proctored accreditation exam then? The take-at-home procedure is a real PITA!
@Vesperan wtf
@JHS I’m a house o-aide and they haven’t even told us this (or what is going on during o-week)
I’m an incoming transfer student, and I’ve only just realized it recently. It is a huge pain, and hasn’t been clearly stated.
My family has not received an orientation packet, so I just called the College Programming Office - they informed me that all the orientation packets are delayed! Has any incoming student/family received one?
I agree that the Calculus Accreditation Exam is a pain. Complicating things for us is they won’t even put the calc exam in the mail to the proctor until the online math placement test is complete. And the school charges families $30 for all this hassle! BTW, my D read online that you can take the proctored calc exam on campus on 9/15, two days before move in.
The immunization form due on Monday 8/15.
I suspect the immunization form is due next week so they have plenty of time to bug you about it before it really has to be in.
On the new calc rules, from the dean of students, via overheard:
“Dear [REDACTED],
Thank you for taking the time to write and convey your thoughts on the changes made to the Math Accreditation Exam. While we understand your concerns, this change was absolutely necessary. And while change often elicits strong feelings, both positive and negative, change is necessary for a college to remain relevant and meet the needs of incoming students. Such changes are made only with much thought and planning to mitigate any negative consequences. The College is committed to making certain that no student’s success is compromised by their inability to access our resources or meet our requirements.
You raise several concerns about the change and the effect it might have on a student’s ability to take the exam. First, we anticipated and addressed the potential financial burden before making the changes by providing a mechanism to wave the fee when requested to do so. All Odyssey and low-income students receive a waver for the fee automatically, and if any other student faces an unforeseen burden, we will consider a request for a similar waiver.
Secondly, the Math Department has made changes that will free many students from taking the exam who have had to do so in past years. For example, incoming students who score a 5 on the Calc BC Advanced Placement exam will automatically receive an invitation to start in honors math. We believe that a significant number of incoming students will be impacted by this change, since last year over 500 incoming students received a 5 on the exam. Students who meet this mark, therefore, will not have to take the accreditation exam at all.
We also mitigated the burden of finding a proctor by setting up testing sites and locations over the summer, in Chicago and around the world: Delhi, Beijing, Rome, Paris, as well as three different dates in Chicago. The first one in Chicago is next Friday and coincides with the end of Chicago Academic Achievement Program (CAAP) so our low-income, first-gen CAAP participants can take it here on campus before they return home. The other dates were arranged so that pre-season athletes, as well as other incoming students in the area or who are here for our Pre-Orientation programs, will be able to take the exam on campus. This includes a date we added just before move-in so that students who happened to be arriving the day before could take the exam on campus.
We have had a very positive response from incoming students and have been assisting anyone who writes with questions about the exam. We have also assisted with students’ logistical arrangements as needed and will continue to do so. Our goal is to make certain that whoever needs to take the exam is able to do so.
Ultimately, there is no longer enough time during O-Week for a 4 hour exam. This year we responded to requests from our students to include more diversity and inclusion training and discussion during O-Week. The College and CSL felt this was very important and, as such, the diversity and inclusion Campus Life Meeting (CLM) will now take place over a two day period, a much longer period of time than in previous years. We’ve also had to make significant changes to our Title IX education for incoming students, so the schedule is packed with federally-mandated programing. This is all, of course, in addition to the required curricular pieces (including course registration) that must happen. Our O-Week schedule is completely full from morning to night each day.
Finally, we have always faced serious challenges with the on-campus exam—all of the grading and placements had to be completed before course registration begins on Wednesday of that week. To complete this grading, Math had to hire graduate students to stay up all night Tuesday. This was not ideal and was simply not efficient. It also was becoming more challenging as the size of the entering class and the number of students taking the exam increased. We believe that this change, combined with the accommodations we have made, will allow all students who want or need the exam to take it, while providing a reasonable turn around for grading and placement.
As always, we will evaluate the process after O-Week to see what changes we can and should make for next year. We listen to the feedback we receive from our incoming students, as well as from our colleagues in the Math Department, and make any modifications necessary to ensure that students and faculty get the appropriate information to support students entering math at the correct level for their skill and their interests. There will continue to be adjustments and changes to aspects of the undergraduate experience, including O-Week, moving forward.
Thank you again for writing.
Sincerely,
Jay”
Aren’t the vast majority of first years taking some flavor of first year Calc anyway?
Effectively, they have four different year-long calculus courses, and two of them offer quarters out of sequence so students can place into the second or third quarter (although I think if they place into the third quarter what happens instead is they go into a special stand-alone class designed to bring students who have strong calculus knowledge but not good command of proofs to the point where they can take higher-level math courses). So as a practical matter there are seven different calculus placements, plus a pre-calculus course and a world of courses beyond calculus for the students who place out of it entirely. All of the calculus options will satisfy medical school admissions requirements. Some science majors are satisfied by two quarters of any of the calculus courses (or placing out of them); some may require three quarters, and may exclude the lowest-level course (or require you to take the special catch-up course).
As I understand it, the only students who need to take the full placement test now are those who (a) didn’t get a 5 on the Calculus BC AP exam, and whose math self-assessment quiz did not place them in Honors Calculus, but want to take Honors Calculus (or its inquiry-based learning variant), (b) want to skip Calculus altogether, or © otherwise don’t like the result of the self-assessment quiz.
What’s interesting to me is that this seems to imply that there’s a meaningful hurdle to getting into Honors Calculus. The attitude I remember from when my children started there – almost a decade ago, now – was that the Math Department saw Honors Calculus as representing the best possible introduction to university math and thought really everyone ought to take it. They were disappointed that lots of students declined the offer and opted for easier, less theoretical courses.
I have a lot of faith in the Chicago Math Department and the Physical Science and Biological Science Divisions. I don’t think anyone will be permanently excluded from anything important based on his first-year calculus placement. They want people to learn, and learn well, and that works best in the long run.
Here’s something that puzzles me: What’s the payoff to all the crap about a proctor? How many people are actually going to cheat to get themselves into a higher math course that they can’t handle? And how difficult is it to adjust their placements a few weeks into the first quarter when their inability to handle the course they are in becomes apparent? Far more people are looking for the easiest way through math than are trying to push themselves into an inappropriate course. And if someone cheats to get into a more difficult course, but then can handle that course, where’s the problem?
Really, there are only four inappropriate-course possibilities, and two of them should be easy to handle: (1) Someone who shouldn’t be taking calculus at all gets into 131 or 151. That should become apparent within a week or two, and the student should drop down into the pre-calculus course. (2) Someone takes 161 who really can’t handle it. It may take longer to figure that out. (3) Someone places into 132 or 152 who really needed to take the first quarter. Here, too, it may be more than a couple of weeks before that it apparent (but it may not take that long). (4) Someone cheats his way into Honors Analysis. That should be completely apparent after one or two utterly miserable weeks.
I am not convinced that the number of people cheating and the difficulty of solving any resulting real problems justifies the difficulty, fussiness and expense of the proctored-at-home exam process.
could cheating get you out of Calculus altogether?
This is fairly common. You can drop into the 150s from the 160s until 5th week.
You don’t have to take calculus. You have to take math of some sort.
^ Wait, now I’m really confused.
My D says that EVERYONE has to take the math placement test REGARDLESS of how they scored on the AP Cal BC exam. She scored a 5 on the test. That’s her understanding.
But I was reading it differently- if you got a 5 then you would be invited to Honors Cal and I assumed you won’t then need to take the math placement test. But she read it differently and her dad agrees with that interpretation.
Maybe someone needs to e mail them to clarify.
They all have to take the online placement test even if they got the 5 but only if they want placement in more advanced classes do they need to take the accreditation exam which is the long one where you need a proctor this year unless you will be on campus for one of the few dates. I agree with the previous posters that the whole proctor thing is pretty silly since cheating would just get you into a course that you would not be able to be successful in and would not result in gaining credit hours. They should just send the test with some big you are on your honor not to cheat statement to sign.
^ Wait, I thought that if you got a 5 you could be invited to the Honors Cal class.
@MurphyBrown ^ What is the ME program?
“For example the immunization form says it must be mailed or hand delivered by Monday or else, then it gives an email address you can send it to?!”
@MurphyBrown not to add to the confusion but I’m guessing that someone made a boo-boo. Health records are not supposed to be e-mailed. You should call and see is there is a fax # you can use (that is accepted for transmittal of health records). Or just wait and hand deliver them.