Passing the Test
SDSU Testing Services is collaborating with campus partners to swiftly move tests online to ensure students can meet degree requirements and graduate in a timely manner.
“We all understood how critical these tests were to people who needed them to meet their graduation requirements or to select their major.”
A visit to San Diego State University Testing Services is a critical stop for thousands of students on their way to graduation, so some were worried when the COVID-19 pandemic brought a pivot to virtual instruction and services.
Taylor Herrera was scheduled to take the California Government Exam to satisfy a requirement for May graduation when on-site testing was postponed one day before her scheduled March 14 test. With no clarity due to the rapidly shifting time, Herrera worried how her graduation might be impacted.
“It was kind of stressful,” said Herrera, a biology major. ‘Everything was up in the air.”
Fortunately for Herrera and others, SDSU Testing Services swiftly migrated key tests online and worked to ensure that students did not fall behind on their paths to graduation.
“It truly is amazing that in six weeks we were able to convert paper-and-pencil tests to online tests,” said Testing Services Director Janet Castro. “We all understood how critical these tests were to people who needed them to meet their graduation requirements or to select their major. So we all got down to business and kept being persistent until we could make it happen.”
Testing Services administers standardized tests for students — including placement exams, admissions tests and entrance exams — as well as for people in the greater community, such as those taking national tests for nursing school or for law enforcement.
The department served about 14,000 SDSU students and another 8,000 community members during the 2018-19 academic year.
Working with Instructional Technology Services, the School of Teacher Education and the Department of Political Science, Testing Services prioritized transitioning the Liberal Studies mathematics proficiency assessment and the California Government Exam. Passing the former is a prerequisite to declaring liberal studies as a major and the latter is a requirement for graduation. “It truly was a collaborative effort,” said Castro.
More than 30 students have signed up for the government exam, and more than 330 students took the Liberal Studies math exam during May alone.
“We understood the importance of helping students continue on in their education,” said Heather LaPerle, assistant director of Testing Services, “and we didn’t want to become roadblocks to graduation or to them declaring their majors.”
In addition to the government and liberal arts exams, Testing Services administers the nursing program admissions, Test of Essential Academic Skills.
Other departments, including the departments of Journalism and Media Studies, Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Mathematics and Statistics, are working with students to complete required placement exams. Students who need to take those exams should contact their departments for additional information, LaPerle said.
Herrera received word in early April that the California Government Exam had moved online, took it a week later, passed and was on her way to participating in May’s Virtual Commencement Celebration.
“I was very happy they could accommodate student needs and not delay our graduation,” Herrera said. “I was super relieved.”
To find a complete list of Testing Services exams and how to schedule them, visit testing.sdsu.edu. Appointments for exams must be made via phone at 619-594-5216 or email [email protected].
