Placement Test FAQs

It is strongly recommended that you take placement tests in your first term at UMGC. While test results are generally downloaded to students' records on a daily basis, it is strongly recommended that placement tests be taken at least four business days before the last day of term registration. Otherwise, we cannot guarantee your results will be posted in time for you to register for courses.  

Remember, you cannot register for math courses at UMGC until you take the math placement test and your results have been posted.

On-Site Proctored Exam

Students who live in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C. can take math placement tests at the Academic Center at Largo, which accepts both walk-ins and reservations. There are other placement testing sites throughout Maryland—browse locations to see if a site near you offers testing—and are by appointment only. Contact the location directly by phone for a schedule and to make reservations. Students who live outside of the local area can use a UMGC-approved alternate site.

Online Proctored Exam

Register to use the online proctoring option through Placement Exams in MyUMGC. After you register, you will receive an e-mail that contains instructions for registering for an online proctored exam and an Accuplacer test voucher, which is valid for 90 days from the date it is sent to you. If you do not take your exam within 90 days, you will be required to register again.

If you have been advised to take the online placement test for French, German, or Spanish, please visit Placement Tests and follow the instructions in the Foreign Language Placement Test section.

Immediately following the test, your placement score will be available on the computer screen. Occasionally, the software does not allow students to print their results. However, as long as your proctor used our link, then Accuplacer will have a copy of your placement.

The results of your placement test will be posted to Placement Exams in MyUMGC approximately 48 hours after you complete the exam. Your advisor should be able to see your results by then.

The math placement test is required unless you are transferring a course equivalent to MATH 105/107 and are not beginning with MATH 009. You will be unable to register for a math course besides MATH 009 until the placement results are entered into the system.

You are not required to take a writing placement before you register for a writing course at UMGC.  

The recommended sequence for fulfilling the general education communications requirement in communications is WRTG 100A and WRTG 101.

If you have taken college-level writing coursework at another institution, you should talk with an advisor to determine whether you have already fulfilled the general education communications requirement for 100-level writing.

There is no cost for the placement test itself. If taking the test at an approved alternate site, you may incur a cost for the proctor and/or the site.

Please check with your proctored site to determine if they accommodate walk-ins for the placement test. If you plan on taking the placement test at the Academic Center at Largo, walk-ins are accommodated on a space-available basis. Please keep in mind that the testing center closes promptly at the designated times.

The WebCAPE Foreign Language Placement Exam is an internationally recognized language proficiency and assessment tool. UMGC uses the WebCAPE exam to assess your proficiency in French, German, and Spanish.

Accuplacer is a nationally recognized student assessment exam. UMGC uses the Accuplacer to assess your skill levels in math.

Valid picture identification (state-issued driver's license or ID card, passport, or military ID) is required for all placement testing, regardless of the location.

Calculators, other electronic devices, and study aids cannot be used during the placement test session.

There are 12 to 14 questions on the math placement test. Questions are presented in a multiple-choice format and appear one at a time on the computer screen. The test is designed using adaptive techniques, meaning that the computer will determine the sequence in which questions are asked based on your responses to previous questions.

The math placement test is an adaptive test. Therefore, how long the exam will take depends on the student. On average, each placement test takes about one hour to complete.

You can use resources such as SAT preparation books, CLEP review books, or practice tests to review for the placement test. Many students find that a GED or SAT review book (available at most bookstores and public libraries) is helpful in reviewing for placement tests.

Some helpful practice tests are available at collegeboard.com, math.com, or purplemath.com.

You may use any two- or four-year college or university testing or learning center to proctor your exam.

In rare instances, you may use a librarian if the library provides proper documentation. In these cases, UMGC sends a special form to librarians for proctoring purposes. The time frame in which the form is returned and whether the librarian can accommodate your request may affect the approval or rejection time for the placement test.

All UMGC math and writing placement tests must be proctored.

From the time you register for the placement exam, it may take up to 48 hours for your proctor to get the e-mail containing the information needed to administer your placement test.

If you have an up-to-date e-mail address in MyUMGC, you will receive an e-mail informing you that your proposed proctor has been approved.

After your proctor is approved, you can contact your proctor and schedule an appointment to sit for the test. If you have registered at the Academic Center at Largo, then you should come to the testing center on the day that you selected to take the exam.

Our questions and guidelines are unique to UMGC. Therefore, we cannot accept placement tests from other colleges.

We suggest you take your placement test within four to six weeks from the approval date. You can register as far in advance as you'd like.

Yes, you will still need to take the placement test. Please see alternative testing sites to learn how to find an acceptable proctor while you are deployed.

Yes. Students may take the actual placement test twice, and they must wait at least 24 hours to retake it.