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EdReady as Placement

Your Pathway to College Courses

Program Summary

EdReady as Placement is a key component of the EdReady Montana initiative, providing a free, flexible, and student-centric method for determining college-level Math and English course placement.

Student smiles at laptop while wiring on notebook.

Instead of a one-time, high-stakes test, EdReady uses an initial, low-stakes diagnostic assessment (Knowledge Inventory) to:

  1. Establish a student’s initial placement score (their college-ready level).
  2. Generate a personalized study path that focuses only on the specific knowledge gaps preventing them from placing into their desired course.

This innovative system gives students the power to learn their way into a higher course placement, allowing them to skip unnecessary developmental or co-requisite courses, save time, and save tuition dollars.

How Montana Schools Use EdReady for Placement

EdReady has become a foundational tool across the Montana University System (MUS) and tribal colleges, acting as a crucial component of the enrollment process:

  • Initial Placement: Colleges use the initial EdReady diagnostic score (alongside other measures like ACT/SAT scores or GPA) to determine the most appropriate initial math and English course for a student’s major.
  • Targeted Remediation (The Study Path): If a student’s initial score is below the required threshold for their target course (e.g., College Algebra or College Writing), EdReady immediately provides the necessary self-paced, multimedia lessons to fill those gaps.
  • Placement Improvement: Students are highly encouraged to work through their study path until they reach a target placement score. Upon achieving this score, their official college placement level is automatically updated, enabling them to register for a higher-level course.

The goal is to ensure students are academically prepared for the rigor of their first credit-bearing college course, setting them up for success from day one.

Example Use Cases

Scenerio

Challenge

EdReady Solution

Outcome

New Freshman

Their initial math placement score in EdReady shows they will place into a non-credit Developmental Math course.

The student works in the personalized study path for 8 hours over the course of a week during the summer and raises their score.

Placement is updated to M 121 (College Algebra), allowing them to register for a credit-bearing course and stay on track with their degree plan.

New Freshman

Challenge: Their initial math placement score in EdReady shows they will place into a non-credit Developmental Math course.

EdReady Solution: The student works in the personalized study path for 8 hours over the course of a week during the summer and raises their score.

Outcome: Placement is updated to M 121 (College Algebra), allowing them to register for a credit-bearing course and stay on track with their degree plan.

Transfer Student

Arrives without a recent ACT/SAT score or high school GPA meeting the college’s placement criteria.

Takes the EdReady placement exams remotely from home.

An official placement score is immediately generated and shared with their advisor, allowing them to register for classes during orientation.

Transfer Student

Challenge: Arrives without a recent ACT/SAT score or high school GPA meeting the college’s placement criteria.

EdReady Solution: Takes the EdReady placement exams remotely from home.

Outcome: An official placement score is immediately generated and shared with their advisor, allowing them to register for classes during orientation.

High School Dual Enrollment

A high school senior needs placement into WRIT 101 for a dual enrollment course next semester.

The high school assists the student in completing the EdReady English goal.

The student achieves the required score before the college registration deadline, ensuring they can enroll in the college-level course.

High School Dual Enrollment

Challenge: A high school senior needs placement into WRIT 101 for a dual enrollment course next semester.

EdReady Solution: The high school assists the student in completing the EdReady English goal.

Outcome: The student achieves the required score before the college registration deadline, ensuring they can enroll in the college-level course.

Data & Impact: Avoiding Remediation

The use of EdReady for placement has been a successful strategy for increasing student readiness and persistence across Montana and nationally:

  • Reducing Barriers: Early pilot projects in the Montana University System showed that offering the skill-building support through EdReady helped students move through remedial math requirements more quickly or skip them altogether, decreasing the time and total cost of their degree.
  • Statewide Success: EdReady Montana grew from an initial pilot to serving over 5000  students at 8 campuses across the state, becoming a statewide model for improving math and English readiness for colleges.
  • Empowering Students: EdReady shifts the focus from an assessment that simply determines a placement score to a tool that empowers students to focus their time and effort on skills needed for college success, improve that score, and prepare for their first college class, giving them the “tools to be successful.”
  • Students pass their first college level math classes at a higher rate after using EdReady: Students in Montana pass their first math classes at a higher rate after using EdReady to improve their placement score than those who do no math after taking their placement tests.

Ready to Get Started?

Educators: Reach out to the EdReady Montana team here to find out how your institution can get started down the path toward EdReady placement for math and/or English.

If you are an incoming or current student who needs to establish or improve your course placement, EdReady is your first step!

Students – Here’s how to access your Placement Goals:

  1. Students: Reach out to your school’s student services department to see if your campus uses EdReady for initial placement into math and/or English.  If they do, see how you can get started with them. If not, reach out to the EdReady Montana team and we can get you started on a personal goal that will allow you to brush up on the skills needed all by yourself.
  2. Log In and Start: Go to your college’s official EdReady portal, log in, take the Initial Diagnostic, and begin working on your custom Study Path!
Smiling student works on laptop.

Don’t wait! The sooner you start, the more prepared you’ll be to succeed in your college courses.