Course Placement Information

Access the up-to-date international baccalaurate information by visiting Muhlenberg.edu/IB.

Students considering a major in the natural sciences or coursework for health professions* need to take the chemistry placement exam to be eligible to enroll in CHM 100 Introductory Chemistry or CHM 103 General Chemistry I. The exam is part of a comprehensive assessment used to make a placement recommendation.  Although the choice is ultimately the students’, please strongly encourage your advisees to roster the recommended course,as they are far more likely to have a successful experience. CHM 100 is only offered in the Fall.

Students who start in CHM 100 can take CHM 103 in the Spring semester of their first year. Some students then take CHM 104 General Chemistry II in their sophomore year and take the Organic Chemistry sequence in their junior year; others take CHM 104 in the summer and complete Organic Chemistry in their sophomore year.

* Please see course recommendations for students interested in Health Professions.

Access the up-to-date iCollege Board Advanced Placement Exam Awards (AP) information by visiting Muhlenberg.edu/AP.

The Department of Mathematics & Computer Science administers an online mathematics placement test to all students. Advisors will receive placement information for their advisees based on the results of this test and responses to a questionnaire. Guidelines for the selection of math courses follow.

I. Health Professions/Biology (PreMeds)
Students should enroll in MTH 121: Calculus I, MTH 122: Calculus II, or MTH 223: Calculus III no later than the Spring term of the first year. MTH 122: Calculus II or MTH 119: Statistical Analysis should be enrolled in the following semester.

II. Other Science Students
Well-prepared students intending to major in math, physics, computer science, or chemistry should enroll in MTH 121: Calculus I the first semester, followed by MTH 122: Calculus II the second semester.

Students should consider taking a precalculus course at another institution prior to taking Calculus I if necessary. (Note that a course in precalculus does not transfer to Muhlenberg College.)

III. Social Science Students
Students intending to major in economics may enroll in MTH 121: Calculus I. Poorly prepared students may wish to take a precalculus course at another institution prior to taking Calculus I. (Note that a course in precalculus does not transfer to Muhlenberg College.)

Students considering a major in Psychology should enroll in MTH 119: Statistical Analysis or MTH 121: Calculus I.

Other social science majors may take MTH 119: Statistical Analysis, MTH 121: Calculus I, or MTH 101: Topics in Mathematics. Consult with your advisor.

IV. Humanities Students
Students considering a major in English, Art, Music, Dance, Theatre, Language, Philosophy, Religion, etc. may enroll in MTH 101: Topics in Mathematics, MTH 119: Statistical Analysis, MTH 121: Calculus I, or Computer Science I. The reasoning skills requirement is also met by PHL 110: Principles of Reasoning and Argument and PHL 211: Formal Logic.

Note: An uncommitted student whose interests do not include mathematics could be well advised to postpone the reasoning (RG) requirement until a major is determined.

Second Language course assignment:

1) Students electing to begin the study of a new language should enroll in Language 101: Elementary I. Students who have studied a language for fewer than 2 years may also enroll in the Language 101: Elementary I course, but they still need to take a placement test in that language to confirm that 101 is the correct placement. If they have studied a language in high school that we offer, they should also take the placement exam in that language, whether they are continuing in that language or not.

2) ALL students electing to continue the second language they already studied in high school MUST take the appropriate PLACEMENT EXAMINATION. Appropriate course assignment—based on a student’s past language experience, including the scores below—is determined by the Department. Advisors may not change placement without departmental approval. Students may not change their placement without consultation with the professor of their language course at the start of the semester, followed by confirmation by the Department Chair.

*Please note: placement does not change regardless of when the student takes their language course, so we highly recommend that students start their language study within the first 2 years at Muhlenberg.

3) Students who have taken any college-level courses in a second language at another institution must have the official transcript sent to the Registrar for those courses to count for credit. They must also take a placement test if they plan to continue studies in that language at Muhlenberg.

* Please note: Courses are credited towards completion of the second language requirement only once the Registrar receives the transcript.

4) Students scoring 4 and above on an Advanced Placement language test are exempt from the second-language requirement. They will receive credit for Language 204: Intermediate II with the Advanced Placement test. They may enroll in: Language 301 if they choose and when available. Exemption is only official when the official transcript has been sent to the Registrar by the College Board.

5) Students with very high placement scores who place into Language 204: Intermediate II may be invited by the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures to take the exemption test for possible exemption from the L2 requirement or placement into Language 301 or other advanced courses. This test will be given during August Orientation weekend. Only those students who are invited by the Department to take the exemption test can do so.

To view the transfer courses material, navigate to the Academic Policies and Procedures webpage on Muhlenberg College catalog and select the "Transfer Courses" link from the listing near the top of the webpage.

I. Science Majors, Pre-Health Students, and Pre-Engineering Students

* Pre-Health students or those considering a major in the natural sciences should take CHM 103: General Chemistry I or CHM 100: Introductory Chemistry, depending on placement/recommendation.  The following are indicators used to recommend that a student take CHM 100 in the fall semester prior to taking CHM 103:  MSAT score < 600, MACT < 27, low chemistry placement score and/or low confidence in taking a college-level chemistry course, math placement lower than Calculus I.  Levels and grades in high school science and mathematics courses are also considered.

Note that if students take CHM 100 in the fall, they can take CHM 103 in the spring semester of their first year.  They need to complete CHM 104 (General Chemistry II) prior to taking Organic Chemistry, and some upper-level biology courses (CHM 104 can be taken concurrently with BIO 175).  One option is to take CHM 104 over the summer to complete Organic in the sophmore year.

II. NonScience Majors

ATH 211: Human Evolution - This course introduces students to the scientific concepts, principles, methods and research pertaining to human biological evolution, with a particular focus on the study of the fossil and artifactual remains of human ancestors.

BIO 100-149: Concepts of Biology (some with Lab as indicated) - Varied topics
such as Biology of Birds and Biodiversity.

CHM – Any Chemistry course, except 103 and 104.

PHY 100-109: Physics for Life – Physics for Life is a collection of courses that introduce students to the concepts of physics and physical science. Through in-depth study of simple physical systems, students gain direct experience with the process of science. Each course in this collection concentrates on one or more topics, as noted in the course titles below.

PHY 101 Circuits, Science, and the World
PHY 102 Theory to Tech
PHY 103 Heat, Buoyancy and Climate Change
PHY 104 Light, Color, and Electric Circuits

PHY 111: Introduction to Astronomy - A study of the structure, motions and evolution of the bodies of the physical universe.