Placement Policy in Reading

Prior to and during orientation, entering freshmen and entering transfer students who either are bringing in less than 12 credit hours of accepted college-level coursework or who are being admitted conditionally without appropriate college admission test scores are required to take a reading examination at the Rockford University Center for Learning Strategies (CLS). Students who score at or above the 32nd percentile have met the reading requirement for graduation. Those whose score is below the 32nd percentile must enroll in CLS 040 - Reading Skills, during their first semester at Rockford University and must complete the course successfully to be eligible for graduation.

Students whose test scores place them in CLS 040, and students enrolled in CLS 039 - Reading Skills for the International Student, may not enroll in the First-Year Student Seminar during their first term at the University, even if they pass the reading exam after the semester has begun.

Transfer students who are non-native speakers of English shall be exempt from taking the Michigan Test for reading placement if they meet one of the following conditions:

• Earn a score of 53 or better on the TOEFL Reading Comprehension and Vocabulary Section or a score of 45 out of 60 on the similar section of the Michigan Test.
• Study for at least one academic year at a school in which the language of instruction is English and earn a GPA of 3.5 or better (on a 4.0 scale).

Students who do not take the reading exam or who do not enroll in the reading course if it is required, may not enroll in more than 12 credit hours and may not take independent study or tutorial courses until the reading deficiency has been eliminated. Students who are enrolled in the reading course are limited to a semester course load of 16 hours (including the CLS 040 or CLS 039).

Students who have completed a bachelor’s degree at another accredited college and who want to pursue a second bachelor’s degree at Rockford University shall be exempt from the reading exam required of all new students.