English Proficiency Test

English Placement Exam: International Students

Degree-seeking students (F-1 Status)    

English proficiency requirements for F-1 students are available through International Admissions.

As per university regulations, the English proficiency test is a condition of each international student's enrollment, unless one of the following eleven exemption criteria are met (effective Summer Semester, 2019):

1. You submitted an official TOEFL score for admission of at least 100 (internet Based Test – iBT) or 600 (paper and pencil)
2. An official IELTS score for admission of at least 7.5
3. An ACT Reading score of 21 or ACT English score of 18
4. An SAT evidence-based reading and writing (ERW) subject area test score of 480
5. An official Michigan score of 96 (undergraduates only)
6. Graduation from the Intensive English Center at SCSU (Level 4 for undergraduates, Level 5 for graduate students)
7. Successful completion of English 191 (Introduction to Rhetorical and Analytical Writing) or an equivalent course with a grade of C or better
8. Documented transfer of ENGL 100 with a grade of C or better
9. Graduation from an Associate Arts degree program at an accredited US college or university (undergraduates only)
10. Graduation from a Bachelor's degree program at an accredited US college or university
11. Graduation from a Master's degree program at an accredited US university

If your answer was "Yes" to any of the above eleven statements, then you are not required to take the English proficiency test (and you are not required to take any of the EAP courses associated with the exam either). If your answer was "No" to all of the above eleven statements, then you are required to take the English proficiency test prior to your first semester at SCSU (during the week before classes begin).

Semester at SCSU students (no longer than two semesters)

English proficiency requirements for Semester at SCSU students are available through Language Requirements.

To be exempt from the English proficiency test, you will need

• A TOEFL score of 80 (iBT), with subscores not below 17 for reading, writing, and listening or 550 or higher (paper-based).
• An IELTS score of 6.5

English Proficiency Test: United States Residents and Citizens

If you are a US Resident or Citizen who is required to take the Accuplacer Exam, you will first be given the Accuplacer Next Generation Reading test for native speakers of English. If you score 235 or below on the Accuplacer Next Generation Reading test, and if demographic questions indicate that English is a second or non-native language for you, you will be required to take the Accuplacer ESL Reading test, Accuplacer ESL Listening Test, and EAP Essay Test. Based on those test scores, you may be required to enroll in and complete EAP courses. You will not be able to enroll in a Goal 1 writing course until you meet prerequisite scores or complete EAP courses.

The Exam

The exam consists of three parts: reading, listening, and writing.

The Accuplacer ESL Reading and Listening tests are both multiple choice, computer-adaptive tests of 20 questions each, which the student is able to complete at his/her own pace (there is no specific time limit for the reading and listening tests; most students complete both of the tests within 45 minutes to 1 1/2 hours).

Here is a description of the Listening test from the company’s website. Implied Meaning may be the most difficult aspect.

The ESL Listening test consists of 20 questions and measures the ability of nonnative speakers of English to listen to and understand one or more people speaking in English. There are two content areas assessed:

• Literal Comprehension
  • Identify the main idea or main subject of a passage
  • Identify factual details and information
  • Understand instructions
• Implied Meaning
  • Understand the relationship between ideas
    (e.g., sequence of events, cause and effect, comparison and contrast, problem and solution)
  • Make inferences
  • Make predictions
  • Identify the speaker’s purpose, tone or point of view

The writing exam is a fifty minute essay on a general topic that is graded for content, organization, grammar, vocabulary and mechanics. One way to review for the writing exam is  using the Internet. The Write Place is a good site. Also Google “College Writing” or “Academic Writing” to see other school’s writing sites. Review the terms used in the grading criteria above and what they mean for college composition.

Please use the Accuplacer online test preparation site provided by the test company to prepare for the computerized tests:

Visit https://accuplacerpractice.collegeboard.org/login. Once you have easily created an account and gained access to the site, use the menu box in the upper left corner to change the test version to ""ESL Practice Tests." Select "Learn as you go." If you are a US resident or citizen who will take Accuplacer Next Generation Reading, you will find it under "Next-Generation Practice Tests." Math practice tests are also there.

On the day of the exam, please bring your computer headphones or earbuds if you have them. A photo identification card (student campus card, passport, driver's license) is required to gain access to the test site.