Placement Assessments
As part of the core curriculum at Spring Hill College, students are required to take English composition, foreign languages, and mathematics as well as other courses. Choosing the correct pathway for these three, in particular, is an important decision that can affect your academic progress here on the Hill, and it’s one that we want to help you do well. Placement assessments are designed to judge your readiness to assist with choosing the best English, foreign language, and math courses to ensure your success while at SHC.
All incoming students are required to complete each placement assessment before attending Badger Way orientation. For incoming Fall students, we ask that you complete the placement by June 1st. For incoming Spring students, we ask that you complete the placement by December 1st.
*Students may choose to start at the lowest level in English or Math (ENG105 or MTH100) without taking the placement assessments. However, students should consider how this change will affect their time to degree.
See Note section (*) below for more information or contact CASA (casa@shc.edu) to discuss your options.
English Placement
All incoming, freshmen and transfer students who have not previously completed their composition courses* are required to take the English Class Placement Questionnaire. The questionnaire is a self-guided survey that helps you to better understand the English composition courses available to you at SHC which allows you to make an informed decision about the best path for you to take. Starting in the correct English course sets you up for success for the writing you will do through your time at Spring Hill College and beyond.
ENGLISH CLASS PLACEMENT QUESTIONNAIRE
Foreign Language Placement
At Spring Hill College, we offer three foreign languages options: French, Italian, and Spanish. All students who have not previously been exempted from taking foreign language courses are required to take a foreign language sequence (six credits or two, sequential foreign languages classes).
Our foreign languages placement tests are administered externally through Emmersion. You will click the below link to register. Once registered, you will be guided through the assessment process. The link allows you to complete a placement test in French, Italian, or Spanish. You are not required to take all three, but will be placed in the appropriate foreign language course based on the placement level you exhibited. For example, if you complete the Italian assessment and not the French or Spanish assessment, you will be placed in the appropriate Italian course, and will not be eligible for placement in a French or Spanish course without completing that assessment.
Mathematics Placement
All incoming, freshmen and transfer students who have not previously completed the equivalent of MTH111 – Pre-Calculus* are required to take the Math Placement Assessment. This assessment helps us to determine which math class you should be placed in which is crucial to your success in your math classes. When registering for the math placement test, you may incur a one-time service fee of $15 for the CANVAS course. Please see the Notes section below regarding information about math requirements for certain degrees.
Notes
Students who have taken the AP/IB English test must submit their official scores to SHC in order to receive credit for English composition. Transfer students and students who took English composition through dual enrollment must submit their official transcript from the college where the English course(s) were completed to SHC (to be considered “official” the transcripts must be sent from the college directly to Spring Hill College – they may not come from the student). Once those transcripts are evaluated by the Registrar’s Office, the student can proceed to the appropriate courses.
ENG 121 and ENG 123 are required of all students (who have not received previous credit through transfer, dual enrollment, or AP/IB tests). Students beginning in ENG 105 will still be required to take both ENG 121 and ENG 123.
Students are required to take two, sequential foreign languages classes.
Consider Learning Italian! If you’ve ever thought about studying Italian, now’s the time! Take field trips to New Orleans and Daphne to discover the Gulf Coast’s unique Italian heritage. Bake pastries for our campus’ Saint Joseph’s altar. Once you’ve been introduced to the language here on campus, then it’s time to pack your bags for Italy! We offer semester or year-long study abroad programs in the ultimate Italian college town of Bologna. And if you prefer a little more flexibility, you can take advantage of faculty-led trips to Italy during the summer. In each of these programs, you’ll earn college credits for your degree while discovering what it means to be a citizen of the world. So what are you waiting for? Ci vediamo presto–see you soon!
Why study French? Did you know Mobile was founded by French settlers in 1702? Or that 20 million Americans still speak French to this day? Or that major French companies like Airbus and Michelin have manufacturing facilities here in Alabama? Did you know that French is one of the fastest-growing, global languages, with the majority of its speakers located in Africa? The truth is that studying French will make you a much stronger job candidate for careers in International Business, Health, Diplomacy, and Environmental Studies. The Peace Corps, Doctors Without Borders, and the United Nations actively recruit French speakers for jobs around the world. So if you’ve never thought about studying French, maybe it’s time you should. Start your journey this fall!
Learn Spanish to enhance your education and future career! With 53 million Spanish speakers in the U.S. and over 500 million speakers globally, Spanish is one of the most practical languages students can learn. Learning Spanish can open educational and cultural opportunities in Latin America, Spain, and Africa. Likewise, a knowledge of Spanish can improve and expand professional prospects in diverse fields, such as education, healthcare, transportation, government, communications, arts, international business, and more. With an emphasis on communicative, analytical, and cultural skills, our experienced faculty in the Department of Modern Languages has developed classes at all language levels that meet the strengths and academic needs of our students. In addition to our traditional beginner-level classes, we offer an introductory sequence for Nursing and Health Science majors who wish to improve their ability to communicate with patients. We also offer a minor in Spanish, and when combined with another concentration, the knowledge of Spanish can enhance your career.
All sciences, mathematics, and computer sciences students are required to take MTH121/140. MTH111 is a prerequisite which can be met with ACT/SAT scores, AP/IB tests, or our SHC math placement test. Students who do not place in MTH111 will be required to start in MTH100. For students in these major, that will mean two additional mathematics courses (MTH100 and MTH111) before they can begin their required mathematics courses.
Nursing and Psychology students are required to take MTH163 which has a MTH111 requirement. As with the majors above, MTH111 is a prerequisite for MTH163 which can be met with ACT/SAT scores, AP/IB tests, or our SHC math placement test. Students who take the placement test and place in MTH100 will be required to take MTH100 and MTH111 before taking MTH163.
Business students are required to take MTH111. Placement is required to begin in MTH111 which can include ACT/SAT scores, AP/IB test scores, or our SHC math placement test. Students who do not place in MTH111 will be required to take MTH100 before taking MTH111.
Communications, philosophy, theology, political science, sociology, and all other majors not required to take a calculus course (including those listed above) will take MTH103 or MTH104 which do not require a placement test. Students should not take MTH103/104 until they have declared a major.
Early Childhood and Elementary Education majors are required to take MTH190 and MTH192.