General Tips about the Compass Placement Assessment:

2. COMPASS is taken on a computer.  It is an adaptive test, meaning the questions depend on how you answered previous questions. It is designed to allow you to complete each subtest in a minimum number of exercises or passages. The subtests are writing, reading and math.  Read the instructions carefully. How well you do may be affected by how well you follow instructions.
4. A tutorial will show you how to take the assessment and how to use a computer's mouse. You can repeat the tutorial if necessary. Make sure that you understand how the assessment works before you begin and work at your own pace. The Compass assessment is untimed.  The score report will indicates how long it took you to complete the assessment but it does not affect your score.  Your score is determined solely by the accuracy of your responses. 
6. Once you indicate that you are finished with a passage in writing or reading, or with a problem in math, you may not review or change your answers. Be sure that you provide the best possible response before proceeding to the next question.  When you are finished, you will be prompted to depress ENTER or to click anywhere on the screen. When you see the STOP sign on the screen, stop all work and do not depress keys on the keyboard. The computer program will calculate your placement level and your Compass Placement Report will be printed immediately.

Tips for Specific COMPASS Sub-Tests

Writing

In the writing portion of COMPASS, you will be asked to proofread one to five passages and to choose corrections. Read the instructions and go through the tutorial carefully. Make sure that you understand it before proceeding.  Online preparation assistance is available at:

www.act.org/compass/sample/writing.html

Reading

You will have from one to five passages to read, and you will answer questions about those passages. The objective is to see how well you understand what you have read. Read the instructions and go through the tutorial carefully.  The COMPASS reading test is very similar to the ASSET reading test.  Online preparation assistance is available at:

www.act.org/compass/sample/reading.html

Mathematics

Write your name, date and ID on the scratch paper provided and return it to the test proctor when you are finished. Use the software's calculator or your own ACT approved calculator. Take your time and review each answer before you click that you are done.  You will start at a certain level of mathematics problems. Depending on how you answer, the next question may be harder or easier. You may have as few as five problems to work. Remember that you will not be able to return to previous questions.  Online preparation assistance is available at:

 www.act.org/compass/sample/math.html