Many students entering The College of New Jersey will choose to take calculus, economics, or another course with a mathematics prerequisite. TCNJ is deeply interested in student success in mathematics, and college-level algebra, precalculus, and calculus courses are more rigorous than the corresponding courses taught in most high schools. For this reason, we have developed a placement system designed to identify the initial math course in which you are most likely to succeed. Even if you have had a calculus course in high school, we may require you to begin with another course to ensure your success when you take our calculus sequence.
There are several reasons why you may need to be placed into a mathematics course.
- Your major may require a calculus course (see the table on the TCNJ Placement and Assessment website).
- Your major may not require a calculus course, but you might want to take a calculus course to meet the quantitative reasoning requirement of TCNJ’s general education program.
- You might want to complete a minor that requires a calculus course.
You do not need to complete math placement to enroll in a statistics course. There is no prerequisite for STA 115. STA 215 requires a calculus course as a prerequisite, so you may need to complete math placement for the calculus course, but there is no placement test for the statistics course.
If you do need to take a calculus course, you have the following options for determining your first math course. Please click on each option to find out more about that option.
- Use SAT or ACT math scores
- Use AP Calculus exam credit
- Use IB Mathematics exam credit
- Use transfer credit, including dual enrollment credit
- Take the math placement test
- Summer options for overriding initial placement
Return to the TCNJ Placement & Assessment webpage
If you have any questions, please email mathplacement-group@