Soon after their arrival on campus in August, Hendrix first-year students receive placement recommendations and take placement exams in some academic area. Placement recommendations are made by the English and mathematics Faculty based on high school records, application information, and ACT/SAT scores. Placement exams are given by the language and music Faculty during New Student Orientation. All placement results appear in a student's CampusWeb account.
English Course Placement for International Students
All entering, degree-seeking international students are given an English placement test by Hendrix College. The purpose of the test is to evaluate international students’ English language skills in reading, listening, speaking, and writing. It is designed and administered by the English Evaluation and Placement Committee. An international standardized test such as TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) does not substitute.
Based on its review of appropriate materials, the English Evaluation and Placement Committee will:
- Place the student in ESOL 118 English for Academic Purposes I, or
- Place the student in ESOL 119 English for Academic Purposes II, or
- Recommend the student for ENGL 110 Introduction to Academic Writing, or
- Recommend the student for a 200-level English Literature course.
The Committee also reviews students’ English skills at the end of their semester in ESOL 118 or ESOL 119 to determine proper placement or recommendation, and students may be required to repeat a course if insufficient progress has been made. ESOL 118 and ESOL 119 are taught for credit/no credit, and students receive a grade of NC (no credit) until placed into or recommended for a higher course.
Students are enrolled in ESOL 118 or ESOL 119 the semester they receive such placement. Students shall not enroll in ENGL 110, ENGL 210, or an ENGL/ENGF 200-level course before they have received recommendation from the Committee. A recommendation of ENGL 110 or a recommendation of ENGL/ENGF 200-level class, however, is a recommendation only. Each advisee should know that the recommendation is based on review of the student’s writing by Hendrix Faculy and is considered to be in his or her best interests relative to academic success at Hendrix.
International, degree-seeking students who do not test out of the ESOL sequence after two academic semesters at Hendrix will be required to attend and pay for an intensive Hendrix summer language course at the end of which they will retake the English Placement Test.
Test Accommodations Option
Students currently enrolled in ESOL 118 or 119 have the option of requesting extra time (time and a half) on tests in their other classes. Students wishing to receive this help must contact their Classroom Teacher and the Office of Academic Support at least three days before the test on which they would like extra time.
English Placement and the College's Graduation Requirement in Writing
Neither ESOL 118 nor ESOL 119 may be used to meet the College's Level I writing requirement (W1). Upon recommendation for ENGL 110 or a 200 level English literature course, students must complete and pass with a grade of C or better one such course coded W1. The one exception to this rule concerns international students who transfer from an accredited U.S. university with a course credit in English composition; such transfers may elect to satisfy the W1 graduation requirement by passing the W1 Writing Exam administered through the College's Writing Center.