Placement testing is used to determine appropriate course placement in English and mathematics. Students planning to enroll in English and/or mathematics courses may be required to provide qualifying placement measures, such as ACT, SAT, AP, CLEP, transfer credit, eligible high school coursework and GPA, or scores from the state-approved placement assessment, Accuplacer. Standardized test scores are not required for admission to Central Alabama Community College. Any student who applies for admission to and enrolls in Central Alabama Community College within five years of high school graduation or enrollment may use ACT or SAT scores for placement purposes. Placement assessment scores are valid for five years from the date of the original assessment or retest.
The following categories of students are not required to complete the state approved placement assessment (Accuplacer):
- Those enrolling for four hours or less each semester in a non-degree program for recreational or health reasons in such courses as art, music, foreign language, wellness, etc.
- Those who are sponsored by or enroll at the request of a governmental agency or private institution for a specific short-term course or program such as Adult Skills Training Program, etc.
- Transient students whose courses are approved by the parent/home institution.
- Those who have completed a college degree or college course work beyond entry-level college English and mathematics.
- Students with acceptable high school GPA of 2.75 or higher and coursework with a grade of C or higher in English and math courses, or have acceptable ACT/SAT scores within five years of high school graduation/enrollment can be exempt in English and math.
- Students registering for career and technical education courses, with the exception of math and English, in the 10th or 11th grade are not required to take the state-approved placement test. Students must take the Accuplacer before the start of their 12th year of high school, or submit ACT scores which exempt them from the exam (18 or higher on ACT English and 18 or higher in Mathematics).
The Accuplacer is administered each semester. The schedule is available on the CACC website at www.cacc.edu/admissions-and-aid/how-to-apply.