NC Early Mathematics Placement Test

Home Curriculum & Instruction Policy & Legislation Resources Accountability Contact Information

NCEMPT Program Website

Growth within North Carolina's university system means greater demands for student services, housing, classroom space, and course offerings. Unfortunately, remedial programs in mathematics and English are among those in great demand. In an effort to minimize the present and future demand for remedial mathematics, the UNC-General Administration began support of an Early Mathematics Placement Testing Program (EMPT) for high schools throughout the state in 1998. The basic idea in an EMPT program is to let high school students taking Algebra II complete an exam closely resembling a university mathematics placement test. It is expected that college-bound high school students who are identified as "at risk" (likely to place into a remedial mathematics course) will make the effort to improve their mathematical knowledge while still in high school.

The primary goal of the NC EMPT program is to significantly reduce the percentages of freshmen at the state-supported universities requiring remedial mathematics courses. This will be achieved by using the EMPT results to advise high school students as to their readiness to take college level mathematics courses, and especially to warn those students who may place into remedial mathematics when they get to college. Students obtaining this information by their junior year of high school are able to take corrective action in the high school senior year, which will hopefully prevent them from needing to take remedial mathematics in college. The EMPT also has two associated side effects. Namely, college bound high school students are encouraged to stay "on track" in their high school mathematics courses, and high school students are encouraged to take a mathematics course in their high school senior year. Both of these effects have been shown to be strong factors in preventing college students from having to take a remedial mathematics course at the college level. At Ohio State University, where a similar program has been in place since 1982, the percentage of first-year university students needing remedial mathematics dropped 50% over a five-year period.

No attempts are made to compare different teachers within a high school or different high schools within the state. The NC EMPT program is designed to be as non-threatening as possible to students, teachers, and high schools. All participation is voluntary, both on the part of the high schools and the students. The NC EMPT program continues to receive feedback from its participating high schools that is positive and supportive. The program is offered at no cost to the participating high schools or individual students. The university system is saving money by reducing mathematics remediation costs, and students and/or parents are saving tuition costs for remediation classes.

The director of the NC EMPT program is Dr. Robert Bernhardt and the project manager is Ellen Hilgoe. The Advisory Committee for NC EMPT consists of representatives from each of the fifteen state universities (omitting NC School of the Arts), the Department of Public Instruction, the Community College system, the Governor's Office, and the UNC-General Administration. Additional information can be obtained from Ellen Hilgoe at Mathematics Department, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, by telephone at 252-328-6418, or by email to ncempt@ncempt.org.

The NC EMPT program gives high school students advice on their mathematical preparation for college-level mathematics courses while they still have an opportunity to take corrective action at the high school level. It can improve their preparation for college and their chances for college success.