Placement and Advisory Examinations are used by UCR to assess student readiness for University work and to determine the appropriate course placement in English, Mathematics, Chemistry, and Foreign Languages. Students must satisfy placement requirements before registering for these subjects at UCR. Exam results are used for advising and placement purposes only; unit credit cannot be earned with these exams. There are four exams:

• The Writing Placement Process (WPP) is used to satisfy the University of California Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR) and to place first-year students into an appropriate Writing composition course.
   
• The Mathematics Placement Assessment (MPA) is used to place first-year students into an appropriate Mathematics course.
   
• Various Foreign Language placement exams are used to determine the appropriate level of Foreign Language entry.

• UCR's University Writing Program administers the Writing Placement Process (WPP).
   
• The UCR Academic Resource Center administers the Mathematics Placement Assessment (WPA).
   
• The Department of Hispanic Studies administers the Spanish Placement Exam. All other foreign language placement exams are administered by the Department of Comparative Literature and Foreign Languages.

• Writing: All students must satisfy the Entry Level Writing Requirement (ELWR) within three-quarters of full-time enrollment at UCR. Receiving a satisfactory score on the Writing Placement Process (WPP) diagnostic essay exam is one way to fulfill this requirement. For a full list of ways to satisfy the ELWR, please go to https://uwp.ucr.edu/elwr#before_enrolling_fulltime_at_ucr.
   
• Mathematics: All students who plan to enter a major requiring at least one Mathematics course need to take the Mathematics Placement Assessment (MPA) for appropriate placement. Undeclared students should consider taking the exam if a major they are considering requires at least one course in Mathematics. Please visit https://arc.ucr.edu/mpp#who-needs-the-mpa-specific-maj for specific majors that need to take the MPA.
  
  Students in CHASS majors other than those listed above may opt to fulfill their breadth (general education) requirement by enrolling in either a computer science or statistics course that does not require taking the Mathematics Placement Assessment (MPA).
   
• Foreign Languages: Students who studied a language in high school and/or are native speakers of the language, and plan to pursue or use the language to satisfy the foreign language breadth requirement, must take a language placement examination prior to enrolling in the language course. The College of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences (CHASS) requires students to study a foreign language. There is no language requirement in the Bourns College of Engineering (BCOE) or for most majors in the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (CNAS). To determine eligibility for a Foreign Language Placement Exam, please go to https://chassintranet.ucr.edu/pta

• All incoming first-year students who do not have documented satisfaction of the Entry-Level Writing Requirement (ELWR) by May 1st should plan to complete the Writing Placement Process (WPP) in May or June.
   
• Please visit the Math Placement Assessment (MPA) website for more information.
   
• Foreign Language Placement Exams should be taken prior to the quarter in which students start a language course. Language exams will not be given during Highlander Orientation in July. Please go https://chassintranet.ucr.edu/pta for dates, times, locations, and registration for a specific exam.

• Students can register for the Writing Placement Process through the University Writing Program website.
   
• To register for the Math Placement Assessment (MPA), go to: https://arc.ucr.edu/mpp.
   
• Depending on the subject, Foreign Language Placement Exams are given by appointment either in written format or by computer. Please go to https://chassintranet.ucr.edu/pta/ for dates, times, locations, and registration for a specific exam.

• There is a $100 fee for the Writing Placement Process (WPP). Students who received a fee waiver for the UC Application Fee will also receive a fee waiver for the WPP.
   
• The Math Placement Assessment (MPA) is $62. For more information, go to https://arc.ucr.edu/mpp.


• There is a $35 fee (effective June 2022) required for each placement examination. The examinations offered are for the following languages: Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, French, Spanish, Russian, German, Filipino/Tagalog, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese. If you would like to be tested in a language not currently offered at UCR, please contact your advisor. Incoming and continuing students agree to pay the fee at the same time they register for an exam, and the cost is billed to their account after they complete the test. Non-students must pay the fee at the exam with a check (checks payable to “UC Regents”).

• Students will receive a notification about the results of the WPP to their UCR email account within two to three weeks of taking the exam.
   
• Math Placement Assessment (MPA) results with course placement will be sent to your UCR email address.
   
• For Foreign Language Exams, all students taking the computerized exams will see their placement upon finishing the exam. UCR students taking the written and oral exams will see their placement, within three (3) business days following the exam, on their R'web application Student profile under Prior education and testing. Non-UCR students will need to contact the Department of Comparative Literature and Foreign Languages three (3) business days following the exam for their results.


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• A sample essay for the Writing Placement Process (WPP) is available at https://uwp.ucr.edu/elwr#wpp.
   
• The Math Placement Assessment (MPA) process allows you to do preparation, take an initial assessment, and then take up to 2 proctored attempts. The highest score will be used for placement. For more information, go to: https://arc.ucr.edu/mpp.
   
• There are no sample questions or exams for the Language Exams.

• The Writing Placement Process (WPP) diagnostic essay exam may not be taken a second time, but students can appeal their placement results.  More information can be found here: https://uwp.ucr.edu/elwr#faq.
   
• The Math Placement Assessment (MPA) process allows you to take up to 2 proctored attempts. The highest score will be used for placement. For more information, go to: https://arc.ucr.edu/mpp.
   
• The Foreign Language Placement Exams may not be taken a second time in the same language.

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