Udel Math Placement Test

<p>I just thought i'd post this for those who are stressing about this test, as I was before I took it. I have advice for people who didn’t take the test yet...So I just took the math placement exam and I got placed in level 5. (Calculus 1) In high school I took Calc Honors and got Bs. But honestly, when I was taking this exam I thought it was extremely difficult and that I was not going to get placed. I ended up getting a 20 on algebra and a 2 on trig. My advice for people who haven’t taken it yet is to NOT STRESS OUT WHILE YOU'RE TAKING IT ! It is very difficult but I got a 22/36 which is a 61% and still got placed in Calc. As long as you finished pre-calc or calc in high school you should be fine and be placed in Calculus one. And don‘t think because you didn‘t take Calculus yet that you will do bad, because there is absolutely NO calculus on the exam, unfortunately for me. If I took this test after I finished pre-calc in 11th grade my score would have been way higher, so actually the people who only took pre-calc should have an even easier time than those who took calc.. Oh and I would definitely take the practice exams before.. If i didn’t I probably wouldn’t of gotten placed where I wanted to. KNOW your quadratic formula, how to find slope, and create an equation using y=mx+b. When you're taking the test and start freaking out like I did because of its difficulty, just remember that I got a D- on it and still got placed well.. You definitely do not need to get every answer right so relax ! And Good luck (: Oh and those of you who freaked out because you got placed in 5 instead of 6, it is only really necessary for the engineering majors to take that class. I’m a bio major and I’m just taking the level 5 Calc I which is all Medical School requires so, don’t freak out :D. Also, if you still feel like you should of gotten into level 6, they will allow you to do so it’s just they do not recommend it at all. So no big deal! Just let me know if any of you guys have questions !</p>

<p>Just a word of caution. Calculus I is a very hard course at UD. Most UD students don’t start out with Calculus as their first math course at UD. Many students who have had AP Calulus in HS are very challenged by it. Don’t expect to coast thru it. The course moves very fast and I understand it covers most of what many students get in HS AP Calculus in just 5-6 weeks. I also would caution students about requesting a higher level of Calculus than one is assessed for. There is some rhyme and reason as to why UD does things so I really would trust them in their assessment. Vanity can sometimes get us into trouble.</p>

<p>yes and yes. Avail of the tutoring center, and DON"T wait. all the good tutors get snatched up. D needed one early on she placed into Calc 2, she was overwhelmed, and she got a 5 on AP Calc. She wound being a Calc tutor junior/senior year, and said the amount of time kids spent doing hw problems was half the reasons they did poorly in class. She feels for every hour in class/2 hours doing HW will keep you out of trouble. Most do not do that especially the freshman, still in HS mode. </p>

<p>Read Rate my professor website as to which professors you get. Especially in math. If the kids ratings are poor believe them.</p>

<p>I’ll add my daughter’s comments on her math placement test. I thought that I read somewhere that the test for engineering students is different than the one used for other majors so keep that in mind.</p>

<p>She found it exceptionally challenging. 40 - 50% of the problems were similar to the ones she had worked on in her AP Calc class but the rest were more difficult. She wrote down her thought process for each one but didn’t necessarily reach a final answer.</p>

<p>I’ll post back after she finds out her math placement at NSO in three short weeks.</p>

<p>Fauster - last year after my son took the math placement test, he immediately received his score. If I remember correctly, a 6 is the best you can do, and that will get you placed in Calc I (Math241). My son’s major required him to start with Math242 (Calc 2), and one can achieve that by a 6 on the Math placement, and I believe at least a 4 on the AP Calc exam.</p>

<p>Anyway, if your daughter scored a 6 on the placement test, or does well enough on the AP exam, they will start her in Calc 1.</p>

<p>If you get placed into level 5 you also can take Calc I.</p>

<p>Based on the events of the last week, there are definitely different math tests for different programs. As I posted on 6/8, my daughter found the engineering calc test very challenging but she wasn’t worried as she had no intention of trying to place out of Math 241 or Math 242. Last week (while we were on vacation), she got a notice that she was now required to take the ‘standard’ math placement test as her score on the initial test was not that great. Nothing like a little stress just a few days before NSO…</p>

<p>She pretty much aced the standard test last evening so she will be starting with Math 241 - right where she wanted to be.</p>