Course Placement Guides

Southwest Minnesota State University is committed to placing students into their English and Mathematics courses as accurately as possible. SMSU’s placement guides utilize a system of “Multiple Measures” for more accurate placement by looking at all scores available for each student. The advantage of course placement for students is the opportunity to bypass developmental education courses that delay taking college-level courses. Course placement can be determined using one or a combination of the following:

Scores from ACT, SAT, MN Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) - valid within the last 5 calendar years
High school GPA - valid within the last 10 calendar years
Standardized score reports from Advance Placement (AP), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), and International Baccalaureate (IB)
Completion of college-level coursework from an accredited U.S. college or university
Course Placement Assessment - ACCUPLACER - valid within 2 calendar years

*For Summer & Fall 2022 semesters: If a student has no scores for placement purposes, students with a cumulative High School GPA of 2.60, in consultation with their advisor, may be placed into English 151.

*For Summer & Fall 2022 semesters: If a student has no scores for placement purposes, students with a cumulative High School GPA of 2.80, in consultation with their advisor, may be placed in Math 110.

Last Modified: 9/28/23 9:49 AM | Website Feedback