For Students Who Submitted An SAT Or ACT Test Score When Applying To HPU
Your math placement is determined by a combination of this score and your high school GPA. You will not need to take a placement test.
For Students Who Did Not Submit An SAT Or ACT Test Score
For students who did not submit an SAT or ACT test score, but whose major requires a particular math class (e.g. STEM majors require MTH 1410, Psychology majors require MTH 1130 or above, Accounting majors require MTH 1310 or MTH 1410), you will need to take a placement test to determine your readiness for these courses. For information about required math courses for various majors, see the Undergraduate Bulletin.
Note: Students earning AP or dual enrollment credit for mathematics courses should contact [email protected] for next steps.
You will receive information about how to access the placement test from [email protected] with detailed instructions, including deadlines. As a reminder, your placement test results do not affect your admission to the university. Instead, we use your placement test results to place you into classes that will be the best fit for you. Please take the test alone, without outside help or assistance, so that we do not place you into courses that are too easy or too difficult for you. Please be aware that your performance on the math placement test will be directly tied to the courses you will be allowed to register for beyond just your math class. In some majors, a low math placement could negatively affect the timing and sequencing of classes in your major and require more than eight semesters to graduate.
Topics on the Placement Test
The math placement test includes topics from fundamental mathematics to algebra to precalculus and is designed to assess which topics you have already mastered.
Algebra
- Order of operations
- Factoring/distributing
- Solving equations (linear, quadratic, rational)
- Interval notation
- Simplifying rational expressions
- Finding equations of lines
- Rationalizing numerator and/or denominator
Exponential and Logarithmic Functions
- Laws of exponents and logarithms
- Convert from exponential to logarithmic form
- Convert from logarithmic to exponential form
- Expand or simplify a logarithmic function
Functions
- Piecewise defined functions (evaluating and graphing)
- Evaluating functions (at a number, at an expression)
- Domain of a function
- Composition of functions
- Graphs of functions
- Reading the graph of a function
- Graphs of applications
- Sketching a graph (linear, polynomial, rational, exponential, trigonometric)
- Inverse functions – formulas and graphs
Trigonometry
- Simplifying with identities
- Right triangle ratios
- Values of trig functions from the unit circle
- Solving a right triangle
Additional Resources
If you want to brush up on any of the topics listed in the section above, MATHhelp and Khan Academy both provide excellent, free resources. The links below will take you to the relevant content.
Detailed instructions about how to log in and access the test will be in the email you receive from [email protected].
You will receive a specific deadline in the email from [email protected], which is tied to your Freshman Orientation weekend. While there is no “one size fits all” answer to exactly when you should take the test, we recommend not waiting until the last moment. Doing so creates a stressful environment for you and does not account for technical difficulties you might encounter. Remember, your results on the placement test impact which classes you can register for at HPU not just in math, but in some cases in your major as well.
Yes. There is a built-in online calculator for the placement test.
No. Take the time you need to complete the problems and try not to feel stress about time.
After you complete the math placement test, a score will appear on the screen, together with information on how to interpret it.
Students can retake the placement test once, if desired. After you see your score and interpret it (see above), you will be asked if you want to retake the test. If you select “yes,” you will be provided access to a second attempt at a placement test. You do not have to immediately take your second attempt, but it still must be completed before the deadline.
If this happens, you may need to take a prerequisite course for the math course your major requires. Even in this situation, the prerequisite course will still count for credit towards your graduation.
Yes! High Point’s Math Boost may be exactly what you are looking for.
Please contact Dr. Sharpe, Department Chair in Mathematical Sciences, at [email protected]. Provide your name, student ID number, major (if known), and any pertinent information in your initial email.
Ultimately, every student’s placement will be shown in the “Placement Test Results” section of my.highpoint.edu, whether or not they needed to take the placement test. Students seeing MTH 1010 must take that course. Students seeing MTH 1110 may register for their choice of MTH 1110, STS 1150, or STS/CSC 1600. Students seeing MTH 1130, MTH 1310, MTH 1400, or MTH 1410 should register for those specific courses.