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How to Convert Accuplacer to Compass

Two of America's leading educational testing companies, The College Board and ACT, Inc., both provide placement tests that measure students' abilities in mathematics, reading and writing. Both tests, COMPASS and Accuplacer respectively, use computer-adaptive methods. Computer-adaptive tests use the test-takers performance on one question to determine the next question that displays. Since the tests are administered through a computer, the test-taker can view his score (aside from the written essay) immediately. Many colleges use COMPASS and Accuplacer scores to determine course placement. Learning how to convert your Accuplacer score to COMPASS allows you to compare your performance on both tests.

Instructions

- 1
  Contact your college's advising department. Request a placement chart that lists both Accuplacer and COMPASS score ranges.
- 2
  Locate the score range that your Accuplacer score falls within. Divide your score by the highest score in your range. For example, if you scored 70 on the Accuplacer Writing Skills and the score range on the placement chart is 55 to 74, divide 70 by 74 to equal .946.
- 3
  Read across the chart to locate the COMPASS score range that equates to the same course placement. For example, if the chart lists that 55 to 74 on the Accuplacer would place you in English 091, look across the same row on the chart to see that the equivalent score range for COMPASS is 38 to 69.
- 4
  Multiply the upper score from the COMPASS range by the fraction that you calculated above. Record the result as the equivalent COMPASS score. In the example, 70 divided by 74 equals .946. The upper limit to the equivalent score range for COMPASS is 69, which multiplied by .946 equals 65 when rounded to the closest whole number.

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