Data tells us that it is your first encounter with ALEKS that gives the most information.
Because it’s based on artificial intelligence and machine learning, it’s not like a test that you can take a few times in hope of getting a better score. Therefore, we ask you to be ready for your first session. Make sure you’re feeling well and ready for a professional interaction. Find a quiet environment and get ready to spend some time thinking about mathematics. It can be fun! Except for a few special cases, the report on your first session will determine your placement.
Want to prepare? If it’s been a while since you’ve done any algebra, you may wish to refresh your skills. There are many online sources that can take you through some drills. We don’t recommend signing up for any of the online tutoring sources that will claim to raise your ALEKS score. The thing to keep in mind is that your success in your fall courses is based on the mathematical skills currently in your repertoire, not what you may have studied in the past.
When you find the right time to sit down with ALEKS, please commit to answering every question absolutely honestly. We want to help you, and to do that, we have to make sure it’s really your ALEKS data we’re seeing. There is some AI anti-cheating analysis built into ALEKS that will flag certain behaviors, but we’d rather just appeal to your best nature. Suppose you were entering an athletic program. Would you send someone else to do your fitness test for you? You’d arrive at that program unprepared to do the work!
When you’re ready for your session, follow the instructions in an email you will get from our orientation team.