The Texas Success Initiative (TSI) is a program designed to ensure that all students enrolled in public colleges and universities possess the academic skills needed to be successful in college-level course work. Unless exempt, all entering undergraduate students are required to be assessed in the areas of reading, writing and math prior to enrolling in college-level courses. Students who do not meet the minimum standard in one or more areas will be advised regarding TSI compliance and enrolled in the appropriate developmental program.
Texas Success Initiative Exemptions
A student may be exempt from meeting Texas Success Initiative standards by meeting one of the following standards.
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ACT
Composite score of 23 or higher with at least a 19 on both English and Math sections
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SAT
Combined critical reading and math score of 1070 with a minimum of 500 on both the Critical Reading and Math test
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TAKS
Minimum score of 2200 on both the English and/or math sections with at least a 3 on the writing component of Grade 11 TAKS (for period of 3 years from the date of testing)
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Military
Veterans and active duty personnel serving for at least 3 years preceding enrollment.
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Transfer
Transfer from a private or independent institution or a accredited out-of-state institution and has satisfactorily completed college-level coursework as determined by the receiving institution.
Transfer Course Exemptions* | Reading | Writing | Math |
| HIST 1301, 1302, or 2372 | ENGL 1301 | MATH 1314 |
| POSC 2305 or 2306 | ENGL 1302 | MATH 1324 |
| PSYC 2301 or SOCI 1301 | ENGL 2311 | MATH 1332 |
| Sophomore level or higher literature | | Math course which any of the above is a prerequisite |
| |
| *Transfer credit completed with a C or better or completed by dual credit, AP, ACT/SAT, or CLEP |
Waivers for PUP, Transient, and Active Military Students
Pre-University Program Students (PUP)
Students dual enrolling prior to completing Grade 11 TAKS or ACT/SAT may be waived on equivalent TAKS scores for Grade 10.
Transient and Non-Degree Seeking Students
Students enrolled at WTAMU to fulfill a course outside of their home institution may be waived semester by semester depending on the course. Waivers are not for prerequisites, only TSI requirements. TSI requirements must be satisfied by an exemption or assessment for the appropriate TSI area for a student to enroll in courses.
| TSI Area | Subject Area |
| READING | Heavy reading courses
(HIST, POSC, PSYC, SOCI,ENGL literature) |
| WRITING | ENGL 1000 or higher |
| MATH | MATH, CHEM, PHYS, ENGR, CS |
Active Military
Students currently on active duty in military, reserves or Texas National Guard will be waived until honorably discharged.
Approved Tests and Passing Scores
If a student has not been exempted from testing with one of the approved exemptions, they may test to satisfy TSI requirements with minimum scores. If a student doe snot meet the minimum standard score, the student must enroll and pass the appropriate developmental course before moving into a college level course of the same subject.
| | ACCUPLACER | COMPASS | ASSET | THEA |
| READING | 78 | 81 | 41 | 230 |
| WRITING | 5 essay w/sentence skills 80+ or 6+ essay | 5 essay w/writing objective 9+ or 6+ essay | 5 essay w/ writing objective 40+ or 6+ essay | 220 |
| MATH | 63 | 39 | 38 | 230 |
ACCUPLACER is recommended in most circumstances due to its flexibility. As a computerized test, students can often schedule a testing time within 24-48 hours and receive their scores upon completion of the test. If a student only needs to test in one area, ACCUPLACER allows for the student to only pay for that section. the entire test takes about 2-3 hours-reading and math are un-timed; essay is limited to one hour.
Students may take any of the approved tests through a local community college or university. Students can make arrangements through Educational Services if none of the approved tests are available. Out-of-State students should note that the Texas WritePlacer portion is required and only available through Texas testing sites.
Students planning to test at WTAMU can contact WTAMU Educational Services for prices and registration.
Test Preparation
Students are encouraged to review test material prior to testing. Scores will determine whether student is required to complete developmental coursework or eligible to begin credit-bearing courses. Select any of the approved tests for detailed information regarding format, content, and practice test.
The Virtual Math Lab is another resource for math tutorials and practice problems for the placement exams.
Accommodations for Learning Disability
Students with special needs must contact Educational Services and arrange to pre-register for a testing time and date. Accommodations will not be available for walk-ins.
Developmental Courses
Students not meeting TSI standards must complete the following sequences in affected areas and will be withheld from college-level courses of the same subject.
READING | READING | ACCUPLACER
Reading Comprehension | ASSET | COMPASS | THEA | Student enrolled in EDRD 0302 cannot concurrently enroll in |
| EDRD 0302 | 0-77 | 0-40 | 0-80 | 0-229 | Heavy reading courses
(HIST, POSC, PSYC, SOCI, ENGL literature) |
WRITING | WRITING | ACCUPLACER
Texas WritePlacer | ASSET | COMPASS | THEA | Student enrolled in ENGL 0302 cannot concurrently enroll in |
| ENGL 0302 | <5 Essay with < 80 Sentence Skills | <5 Essay with <40 Writing Objective | <5 Essay with <59 Writing Objective | 0-219 | ENGL 1301 |
MATH | MATH | ACCUPLACER
Elementary ALgebra | ASSET | COMPASS | THEA | Student enrolled in MATH 0302/0303 cannot concurrently enroll in |
| MATH 0302 | 0-62 | * | * | * | MATH 1000+, CHEM, PHYS, ENGR, CS |
| MATH 0303 | 63-84 | * | * | * |
| *Math Department requires all students to complete Accuplacer Elementary Algebra exam for placement; unless student has credit for MATH 1314, 1324, 1332. Students that are TSI affected in Math must complete MATH 0303 to satisfy TSI requirements. |
