About the ALEKS Assessment

The University of Memphis places students in math courses based on their ACT/SAT Math subscores. For information regarding this placement policy, please see the UofM undergraduate catalog.

For students who do not have a valid or sufficient ACT/SAT math subscore, the ALEKS Assessment is used.

What is the ALEKS Assessment?

The ALEKS Assessment covers material from basic math through precalculus and will take approximately 90 minutes to complete. This is an assessment, NOT A TEST. The difference is that an assessment is designed to determine what you know. At the end of the ALEKS Placement Assessment, you will have a much better sense of your strengths and weaknesses in math. You will then have a chance to work on those weaknesses. There is really no penalty for incorrectly answering a question on the assessment.

Be honest. It is important to take the Placement Assessment seriously and to give it an honest effort so that the Placement Assessment truly reflects your current level of knowledge and math preparedness. There is no benefit to cheating on the Placement Assessment – the only result will be that you enroll in a class that is too difficult, or not challenging enough, potentially costing time and money. Therefore, while taking the Placement Assessment, you should not consult any outside sources for help (friends/family, internet searches, textbooks, notes etc...). The purpose of the Placement Assessment is to give an accurate measure of your current mathematical knowledge state so that you will be successful in mathematics courses.

Who must take ALEKS?

All incoming first-year students who do not have an ACT/SAT MATH subscore or whose subscore is older than five years old.

All incoming transfer students with no prior college-level coursework in math and either no ACT/SAT MATH subscore or an expired score (older than five years old.).

All continuing students whose ACT /SAT MATH subscore has expired (is older than five years old) and who have not previously taken college-level coursework in math.

All students whose ACT MATH subscore is below a 15.

When do I take ALEKS?

Students should complete the ALEKS assessment three weeks before meeting with their advisor, to allow their advisors to plan for their courses.

Are Placement Assessments timed?

No, you are free to complete the Placement Assessment at your own pace. The system will allow you to access your Placement Assessment for 24 hours. If you need to exit the Placement Assessment for any reason, you will be able to log back in and pick up where you left off.