Guidelines for Taking ALEKS PPL

ALEKS PPL is designed to determine what mathematical content students know and where students need to improve. Its purpose is to give an accurate measure of a student's current mathematical knowledge so that they can be properly placed and successful in their mathematics courses.

There are two parts to the ALEKS PPL process. For Part I, students will register for an ALEKS PPL account, take a practice assessment, and work on Preparation and Learning Modules. For Part II, students will schedule an appointment to take a proctored ALEKS PPL assessment on the Sac State campus. See the Registration and ALEKS PPL Access page for more information.

Major Requirements

If a student's major requires any of the courses listed below, then it is recommended that the student complete Part I of the ALEKS PPL process. If a student's major does not require any of these courses, then there is no need to register for ALEKS PPL.

ALEKS Recommended Courses: Math 17, Math 24, Math 26A, Math 29, Math 30, Stat 1

Review your major in the University Catalog.

Students who have completed Part I of the ALEKS PPL process may not need to complete Part II of the ALEKS process. Check the Placement Requirements below to see which courses the student will be eligible for based on their high school coursework (for incoming freshman) or previous college coursework (for all other students). If the student is eligible for the course(s) needed in their major, then they do NOT need to complete Part II of the ALEKS process.

Placement Requirements

Students are initially eligible for mathematics and statistics courses based on their previous high school coursework if they are first time freshman or on their previous college work if they are not a first time freshman. If a student wishes to place into a course higher than the previous coursework allows, then the student must complete Part II of the ALEKS PPL process.

A student is eligible to enroll in a given course if one of the following criteria have been met.

• The student has completed the prerequisite course at Sac State with a grade of C- or higher.
• The student has completed a course with a C- or higher at another college or university, and that course is equivalent to the prerequisite course at Sac State. Visit assist.org to see articulated courses. If a course does not appear in assist.org, contact math-01@csus.edu for assistance with determining equivalency.
• The student received the appropriate ALEKS PPL score on a proctored assessment.
• The student received a C- or higher in a course that requires an equivalent ALEKS PPL score.
• The student is a first time freshman and has completed the appropriate high school coursework as outlined by the table below.