THEA (Texas Higher Education Assessment)

WHY DO STUDENTS HAVE TO TAKE THE TEXAS SUCCESS INITIATIVE EXAMS?
It is state law. The Texas Success Initiative is a provision in Senate Bill 286. The Texas Success Initiative requires institutions of higher education to assess the academic skills of each entering undergraduate student to determine the student’s readiness to enroll in freshman-level academic coursework. The law requires students to be assessed in the areas of mathematics, reading, and writing.

 

Exemptions are as follows:

Students shall be exempt from the requirements of the Success Initiative who meet or exceed the following criteria:
(note: some of the exemptions are full and others are partial exemptions only)

· ACT - composite score of 23 with a minimum of 19 on both the English and Mathematics tests. If a student has a combined score of 23 with a minimum of 19 in only one and not both content areas, the student will be exempt in only one area and will be required to take a TSI exam in the other area. (ACT score exemptions are valid for 5 years from the date of test.) Note that the English test covers the TSI areas of reading and writing and the Mathematics test covers the TSI area of mathematics.

· SAT - combined verbal and mathematics score of 1070 with a minimum score of 500 on verbal and/or mathematics tests. If a student has a combined score of 1070 with a minimum of 500 in only one and not both content areas, the student will be exempt in only one area and will be required to take a TSI exam in the other area. (SAT score exemptions are valid for 5 years from the date of the test.) Note that the verbal test covers the TSI areas of reading and writing and the mathematics test covers the TSI area of mathematics.

· TAKS (exit-level) – 2200 in mathematics and/or 2200 in English/Language Arts (ELA) with a subscore of at least 3. Students who do not meet the exemption criteria in all areas will need to take a TSI approved exam in the areas they did not meet the exemption criteria. Note that the English/Language test covers the TSI areas of reading and writing and the mathematics test covers the TSI area of mathematics. (Valid for 3 years.)

· TAAS (exit-level) - a minimum scaled score 1770 on the writing test, a Texas Learning Index (TLI) of 86 on the mathematics test and 89 on the reading test. (TAAS scores are valid for exemption purposes for 3 years)

· A student who has graduated with an associate or baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution of higher education.

· A student who transfers to UTSA from a private or independent institution of higher education or an accredited out-of-state institution of higher education and who has satisfactorily completed college-level coursework as determined by this institution.

· A student who has previously attended any Texas public institution of higher education and has been determined to have meet readiness standards at that institution. A student who is serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States, the Texas National Guard, or as a member of a reserve component for at least a three-year period preceding enrollment.

· A student who on or after August 1, 1990 was honorably discharged, retired or released from active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard or service as a member of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States.

· A student who is non-degree seeking.

REGISTRATION

THEA registration bulletins are available at three locations: 1) the Testing Services Office in the Business Service Annex, Room 1.01.12, located on West Campus off of Margaret Tobin; 2) the Visitor’s Center on the first floor of the Business Building; and 3) the Downtown Testing Services Office on the first floor of the Buena Vista Building, Room 1.302. Bulletins must be mailed in with payment to NES in Austin by the postmarked deadline for each test date.

 

INTERNET REGISTRATION

Examinees are now able to register through the Internet for the six regularly-scheduled Saturday test dates. This service is provided in addition to mail-in and phone registration. Internet registration can be accessed through the THEA Website at www.thea.nesinc.com.

 

DATES

 

The standardized testing dates for 2006– 2007 at UTSA are listed below:

2007-2008 Test Dates	Regular Deadlines	Late Registration Deadlines
October 13, 2007	September 14, 2007	October 3, 2007
February 23, 2008	January 25, 2008	February 13, 2008
April 19, 2008	March 21, 2008	April 9, 2008
June 21, 2008	May 23, 2008	June 11, 2008
July 26, 2008	June 27, 2008	July 16, 2008

 

COST

The regular test fee is $29.00.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Visit their website at www.thea.nesinc.com

A practice test can be found at this website: http://www.thea.nesinc.com/practice.htm

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