FAQ Category: Testing

Once you have answered a question, you are unable to review it, based on the adaptive nature of the ALEKS assessment. Be sure to carefully check your work before submitting your response.

There will be a maximum of thirty questions. The exact number will vary based on your survey questions and the adaptive format of the assessment. It is likely you will be asked questions on material you are not familiar with. On these questions it is okay to select “I don’t know,” and move on to the next question. Answering “I don’t know” lets ALEKS know you are unsure how to solve a particular problem. There is no penalty to incorrectly answering a question. This just helps ALEKS with proper class placement.

The ALEKS placement assessment is timed. You will have 3 hours to complete the exam, however the national average for completing the assessment is 1 hour and 17 minutes. We encourage you to take your time. Do not schedule the exam when you have an appointment you must run off to.

ALEKS PPL exams are taken through the SFCC Testing Center. You may book your exam at any time on the TC Booking’s Page.

Accessibility services and features offered through ALEKS PPL can be seen here: https://www.mheducation.com/prek-12/program/microsites/MKTSP-GAB02M0/accessibility.html

The Testing Center follows accommodations set and requested through Student Accessibility Services. Any person with a disability who would like to request an accommodation for testing can contact SFCC’s Accessibility Services office at 505-428-1711. Please request specific accommodations and modifications prior to any scheduled exams.

ALEKS PPL uses open-response questions for you to calculate and type in your answers. It also is unique in that it is a complete learning program. Following the initial assessment, the advanced AI system creates a customized Prep & Learning module so you can work to improve your math skills. ALEKS also allows Spanish speaking students to switch the test language to Spanish.

The ACCUPLACER exam we previously administered at SFCC was also an adaptive program. It was administered using twenty multiple-choice questions, and depending on your score, there could be other exams that would open. This exam does not allow for continued study to improve math skills, nor does it offer a Spanish language option.

ALEKS is an open-response test. When you first log into the exam, you will complete a brief survey that will help identify the topics your test will begin with. Then you will go through a short Tools Tutorial to show you how to enter your answers, use the calculator, and how to use the graphing tool. During the test you can click on the Help button at the top of the screen, at any time.

ALEKS is an adaptive, online program that encompasses 314 topics. The advanced AI can accurately sense a testing candidates’ proper placement in thirty or fewer questions, so the length of the Placement Assessment varies for everyone. It is designed to identify if you are prepared for a particular course. After you take the first placement assessment, you will have the opportunity to review and master additional topics to reassess and improve your placement using your customized Preparation and Learning module.

•Real numbers: including fractions, integers, and percentages

•Equations and inequalities: including linear equations, linear inequalities, systems of linear equations, and quadratic equations

•Linear and quadratic functions: including graphs and functions, linear functions, and parabolas, exponents and polynomials (integer exponents, polynomial arithmetic, factoring, and polynomial equations), rational expressions (rational equations and rational functions)

•Radical expressions: including higher roots and rational exponents

•Exponentials and logarithms: including function compositions and inverse functions, properties of logarithms, and logarithmic equations

•Geometry and trigonometry: including perimeter, area, and volume, coordinate geometry, trigonometric functions, and identities and equations.

The ALEKS PPL exam is taken at the SFCC Testing Center.

The assessment is free for SFCC students.

For non-students there is a $25 proctoring fee. Payments can be at the SFCC’s Cashier’s Office prior to the exam time.

Transfer students and online students who have taken ALEKS PPL at another institution may submit their ALEKS scores to the Registrar’s office at SFCC. Students will be placed into courses based on those scores, however, to access the ALEKS PPL Preparation and Learning module to improve scores, students will have to take the initial proctored assessment through SFCC. This is the only way for the student to start working within the SFCC ALEKS PPL cohorts.

Registrar’s Office: https://www.sfcc.edu/offices/registrar/

1. New students who have not already taken ALEKS PPL assessment are encouraged to take the exam prior to registering for first-semester classes.

2. Students who have not already taken the assessment and wish to enroll in a mathematics course at SFCC for the first time are required to take the ALEKS PPL mathematics placement assessment before registering in a math class.

The Placement Assessment is used to determine the mathematics course in which you will have the greatest success. Upon completion of the Placement Assessment, you should meet with your academic advisor to go over your scores. Your advisor will review your scores and help make appropriate recommendations for course registration based on your educational pathway.

ALEKS PPL Steps (PPL = Placement, Preparation, and Learning)

1. Schedule an appointment on the SFCC Testing Center Bookings page to take your first proctored exam. 
2. Bring a valid photo ID and your SFCC login information, i.e., Username and password.
3. Testing Center staff will help you in log into the assessment through your mySFCC home page
4. Before you start the assessment, you will complete a brief survey followed by a Tools tutorial to learn how to use ALEKS. We highly encourage you to take time to complete the entire tutorial so you will be comfortable navigating all the problem types.
5. After you complete the first assessment, check the Math Placement Score Table to see the courses you are eligible for, and schedule an appointment to meet with an advisor. 
6. If you did not earn the proficiency score you think you should, you can use the prep and learning modules to review and retake the assessment up to four more times, within a 12-month period. 
7. If you earned the placement result needed to enroll in a particular course, you are still eligible and encouraged to use the ALEKS PPL learning modules to review and prepare for your math course. 

Be Honest About Your Skill Level

There is no benefit to cheating on the placement assessment- your only benefit will be that you place into a math course higher than your current level of mathematical knowledge. While taking the assessment, please do not access any other website or resource such as formulas, calculator, etc.

ALEKS PPL is a web-based program that uses artificial intelligence to map a student’s strengths and weaknesses. The Assessment is up to 25 open-ended questions and generally takes an hour and 20 minutes to complete. After the Assessment, an individualized Prep and Learning Module is available for students to refresh their knowledge on forgotten topics. Students then can reassess and improve their placement.

ALEKS consists of three parts:

• An initial placement assessment (Required to take proctored in the Testing Center)
• The Prep and Learning Module, an individualized, self-paced online review (Optional)
• Access to four additional Placement Assessments (Optional)

SFCC encourages each student to spend time in the Prep and Learning Module, even if the desired score is achieved, because time spent in ALEKS will lead to better preparation and improved grades.

What is the purpose of placement testing? 

The Placement Assessment results will be used to determine the most appropriate courses for each student as they move forward with college coursework. After taking the ALEKS PPL Assessment, students should meet with their advisor to review their results and enroll in the best classes based on their scores. This is a “Placement Assessment,” not a test. The difference is that a Placement Assessment is designed to determine what a student knows and what a student needs to work on, i.e. their baseline of knowledge. At the end of the ALEKS PPL Assessment, a student will have a much better sense of his/her strengths and weaknesses in math. Students then have a chance to brush on topics that may have been forgotten or have not been practiced recently.

You may only use scratch paper and a pencil provided by the testing center staff. Any personal items brought to the testing center will be placed in a locker. Textbooks, notes, calculators, and other resources, not provided in the ALEKS PPL assessment cannot be used by testing candidates. Using outside resources may lead to improper course placement resulting in subsequent course failure. It is also a violation of SFCC student conduct policy.