English and French Placement Tests
After admission to Dawson College and before beginning their studies, newly admitted students are required to complete an English and/or French Placement Evaluation. This test is used to measure aptitudes in English and/or French so that we may place students in the appropriate English and/or French courses. To register for your classes, you must write your Placement Test(s).
Placement Test Dates for Fall 2020
English Placement Test for Day and Evening Students
The English Placement Test is an online test and will be available during the period of May 19 – June 1, 2020.
All newly admitted students are required to write their English Placement Test in order to register for their courses.
An ad will be available in your My Dawson account with information on how to access the test.
No emails will be sent out.
It is your responsibility to make sure that you complete and submit your test during the availability period.
In order to register for your courses at your appointed time, it is in your best interest to submit your test as soon as possible.
French Placement Test for Day and Evening Students
The French Placement Test is an online test and will be available during the period of May 19 – June 1, 2020.
Please note: Students who have graduated from a Quebec high school (including Adult Education) within the last three (3) years do not write a French Placement Test as their Sec V French grades are used to generate a result.
An email with detailed instructions will be sent to eligible students 1 – 2 business days before the test opens. It is your responsibility to check and read the email with the instructions, and to make sure that you complete the online French Placement Test during the availability period.
If you do not receive the detailed instruction email and the test is available, please check your junk mail first before emailing placementtest@dawsoncollege.qc.ca with your student number, full name, and inquiry, promptly so that you can complete your test before the availability period expires.
Frequently Asked Questions
English Placement
The English Placement Test is an online test only. This test is offered three (3) times a year for our newly admitted students; please refer to English Placement Test dates for the next availability period so that you can make sure that you do not miss it.
All new students are required to write this test.
Yes.
All new students are required to write the English placement test.
Yes.
In some very rare circumstances, such as you have successfully completed a grade 12 English course from a Canadian high school, you may be exempt from taking the test. Please email placementtest@dawsoncollege.qc.ca to inquire about this. Make sure to include your full name and student number.
Please note: ESL courses are not eligible for this and you must write your English Placement Test.
Students in a DEC program who do not write this test will be unable to register for their courses in the upcoming semester.
Students in a Continuing Education (evening) program will be unable to add an English course to their schedule without having taken this test.
If you are a returning student and are not sure if you need to take this test or not, please check to see if you have a result (under Placement Test in your My Dawson). If you do not have a result, you must take the test.
The test evaluates students’ writing, grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension skills.
This is not a pass/fail test. We are simply looking at placing you into one of our 603-101 Introduction to College English sections.
Students who do not make it into 603-101 can expect to take a Preparation for College English course. This is not one of the required English courses to receive a DEC.
Only admitted and confirmed students will have access to the test in their My Dawson account, located under the Placement Test tab. No access code is required for this test.
French Placement
If you have graduated from a Quebec high school (including Adult Education) within the last three (3) years, you do not take the French Placement Test as a result will be generated for you based on your Sec V French grades.
The French Placement Test is an online test only. This test is offered three (3) times a year for our newly admitted students; please refer to French Placement Test dates for the next availability period so that you can make sure that you do not miss it.
Yes.
Only students who have graduated from a Quebec high school within the last three (3) years do not take this test. All other students are required to take this test in order to register for their upcoming semester.
Students in a DEC program who do not write this test will be unable to register for their courses in the upcoming semester.
Students in a Continuing Education (evening) program will be unable to add a French course to their schedule without having taken this test.
If you are a returning student and are not sure if you need to take this test or not, please check to see if you have a result (under Placement Test in your My Dawson). If you do not have a result, you must take the test.
All students in a DEC program are required to successfully complete two (2) credit-level French courses.
If you do not know French, you will have to work your way up through our mise-à-niveau French courses. For some students this can mean an extra three or four classes before being eligible for their first credit-level French course.
It is strongly advised that students begin taking these courses as soon as possible in order to not delay their graduation.
Unfortunately, you are still required to take your French Placement Test. If you do not complete the online French Placement Test during the availability period, you will not be able to finalize your internet registration for the upcoming semester.
The test evaluates students’ grammar, vocabulary, and comprehension skills.
Only admitted and confirmed students will have access to the test in their My Dawson account.
Students who are required to take this test, are sent an email with instructions and the required access code 2-3 business days before the test becomes available.
We are currently not giving out exemptions to this test as students are required to have a result in the system or they will not be able to register for their Block B French.
Results
Results can be found under the Placement Test tab in your My Dawson account.
If your English and/or French placement results are not available at the expected time, please check again in a day or two. If the problem persists, please send an e-mail to the Placement Test Coordinator at placementtest@dawsoncollege.qc.ca. Please make sure to include your full name and student number in your email.
It is your responsibility to contact the Placement Test Coordinator if your results are unavailable at the expected time. Please allow for a 24-48 hour turnaround time for a reply. Placement test results are required in order to register online for the upcoming semester, please notify the coordinator as soon as possible if your results are not showing up in the portal.
