PLACEMENT AND CREDIT BY EXAMINATION IN RHE 306 (formerly E 306)

You are required to take a placement test if you plan to register for RHE 306. RHE 306 is UT Austin's first rhetoric and writing course for all but Plan II (Liberal Arts Honors Program) students and most international students. The test is not required of Plan II students, but it is required of those international students who score 250 or above on the computer-based TOEFL iBT. RHE 306 provides basic instruction in the writing and analysis of expository prose and includes an introduction to logic and the principles of rhetoric. Credit for the course, or its equivalent, is prerequisite to enrollment in all subsequent rhetoric and composition or English courses.

The placement test provides you with the opportunity to earn course credit by examination. Such credit will satisfy degree requirements in the same way as credit earned by passing a course, except that it will not count as credit earned in residence. Faculty members in the Division of Rhetoric and Writing select the tests, set the levels of performance required for placement and credit, and specify who is required to take a test. Instructional Assessment and Evaluation, IAE (formerly the Measurement and Evaluation Center, MEC) assists the division by communicating policies, giving the tests, and reporting the credit.

You may earn credit by examination in RHE 306 by taking one of the following College Board (CB) tests:

• SAT Subject Test in Writing
• Advanced Placement (AP) Examination in English Language and Composition

Credit for second-semester rhetoric and writing courses such as RHE 309K, RHE 309L, and RHE 309M, or for sophomore English courses such as E 316K, does not affect your eligibility to receive credit by examination for RHE 306. Credit for English courses such as the above for which RHE 306 is a prerequisite does not constitute credit for RHE 306.

This policy extends to but is not limited to those students who transferred from other institutions that offer placement but not credit through their testing programs: RHE 306 is a requirement for those students even though they may have taken a higher level English or composition course at their original institution. Questions concerning applicability of transferred work toward RHE 306 credit should be directed to the Division of Rhetoric and Writing Office, Parlin 3.

COLLEGE BOARD SAT SUBJECT TEST IN WRITING

Level of Performance Required for Credit

Effective on the thirteenth class day of the fall 2006 semester, students who receive credit by examination will be awarded course hours with symbol of CR (credit) recorded on the student's transcript.

Current University policy will govern the awarding of credit by examination with or without a letter grade option ("CR", "C", "B", "A") prior to the effective date. A student seeking to earn credit by examination for scores submitted to the University on or before September 15, 2006 must request that the credit be placed on his or her official record within ten years of the test administration date.

The CB SAT Subject Tests have a score range of 200-800. Satisfactory scores for credit by examination are given below for two testing periods. The differences between the scores reflect the College Board's rescaling or recentering of scores rather than a change in standards.

If your score is not high enough to make you eligible for credit in RHE 306: You must register for RHE 306.

If you are eligible for credit in RHE 306 via your scores: If you wish to take a writing course as an elective, the Division of Rhetoric and Writing offers RHE 309S for students who receive credit for RHE 306. If E 316K is specified in your degree plan as the next course to follow RHE 306, you must wait until you have at least 27 semester hours of course credit, including your credit by examination, before you can register for E 316K.

TEST ADMINISTRATION

Where and When to Take the Test: You may take the test either in a College Board test center on a nationwide test date or on the UT Austin campus on a date set by UT Austin.

College Board Test Centers

• These centers are usually in high schools. Test dates are usually in October, November, December, January, May, and June of each school year. Advance registration with The College Board is required.  The national test schedule for the SAT Subject Test in Writing is available http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/calenfees.html.
• Test scores from College Board nationwide administrations are available about four weeks after the test date.
• The College Board Bulletin for the SAT Program, which includes a list of test centers and a registration form, is available without charge at most high schools or from The College Board ATP, Box 6200, Princeton, NJ 08541. You can also register online from the College Board Web page. The registration and test fees for the national SAT Subject Test in Writing are listed on the College Board's Web site http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/sat/calenfees.html.

UT Austin Campus

Test Periods: UT Austin offers the multiple-choice portion of the SAT Subject Test in Writing for current students and prospective students during scheduled test periods several days before each class registration period and during most summer orientation sessions.

Test Registration: You must register for a test online.

Test Registration for Students with Disabilities: If you require academic accommodations or assistance due to a documented disability, you should contact these two offices at least five business days before the day of the test:

• Services for Students with Disabilities, in the Office of the Dean of Students at ssd@uts.cc.utexas.edu, http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/, or (512) 471-6259 to seek approval for authorized accommodations;
• IAE at (512) 232-2662 to register and make arrangements to take the test.

Registration Fee and Test Fee Payment: The total test fee is $50 (subject to change). When you confirm your registration for a test you will be immediately billed a non-refundable test registration fee of $15. The remainder of the test fee will be billed after you take the test. Payment is due within 14 days after the test administration.

Repeating the Test: You may take the SAT Subject Test in Writing on the UT Austin campus only once. In College Board Test Centers, you may repeat the test as often as you wish.

Admission to Test Room: When you register online you will be given the location of your test room. You must present, at the test room, a generally accepted form of identification that includes both your signature and photograph. Without such identification, you will be admitted only if you bring and relinquish a photograph of yourself. You should take several sharpened No. 2 pencils to the test room; all other test materials will be provided.

Test Results: Test results from UT Austin administrations are available within a few days after the test date, in time to register for classes. Once they are available, results may also be found online.

Score Reports: For tests taken at a College Board test center, only an official score report sent directly to UT Austin can be used to receive credit or to satisfy a computer check of course prerequisites. Use code 6882 to have your score sent to UT Austin.

For tests taken on the UT Austin campus, the score report will give your test score, grade, and any credit you may have earned. It can be used to receive credit or to satisfy a computer check of course prerequisites. Scores from UT Austin campus administrations reflect the same level of performance as do scores from College Board administrations.

Either type of personal score report will serve for registration purposes and course prerequisite verification.

COLLEGE BOARD ADVANCED PLACEMENT EXAMINATION IN
ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND COMPOSITION

The College Board Advanced Placement Examinations are offered once a year in May, usually in high schools that offer College Board Advanced Placement courses. Although determined by each school giving the test, registration deadlines are no later than March. Test results are available in July. Please visit the College Board's Web site for current test registration fees at http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/cal_fees.html.

The AP Examinations are based on course descriptions prepared by The College Board. A course description, which includes sample questions, is available for these examinations at the College Board's Web site www.collegeboard.com/apcentral.

You may also write for a course description by sending $15 to the Advanced Placement Program, Box 6670, Princeton, NJ 08541-6670. High school counselors may have reference copies of course descriptions.

If a high school in your vicinity is not administering AP Examinations, you can request special testing arrangements by contacting AP Services, Box 6671, Princeton, NJ 08541-6671, 1-888- CALL- 4- AP.

The College Board AP Examinations have a score range of 1-5. Satisfactory scores for credit are as follows:

Effective on the thirteenth class day of the fall 2006 semester, students who receive credit by examination will be awarded course hours with symbol of CR (credit) recorded on the student's transcript.

Current University policy will govern the awarding of credit by examination with or without a letter grade option ("CR", "C", "B", "A") prior to the effective date. A student seeking to earn credit by examination for scores submitted to the University on or before September 15, 2006 must request that the credit be placed on his or her official record within ten years of the test administration date.

Please note that students who have taken an Advanced Placement examination but have not earned credit are not required to take the College Board SAT Subject Test in Writing before enrolling in RHE 306.

PETITIONING/CLAIMING CREDIT

UT Austin students must petition (or claim) their credit to have it appear on their official transcript. IAE reports petitioned credit to the Office of the Registrar.

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