Western Governors University (WGU) Readiness Assessment
The Western Governors University (WGU) Readiness Assessment is a pre-entrance exam that assesses a prospective student's preparedness for university-level coursework. This piece is intended to serve as a guide on what an individual can reasonably expect to encounter while taking this assessment.
Western Governors University (WGU) is an increasingly popular online school because it offers various features that appeal to adult learners. Some of these appealing features include very affordable tuition, nonprofit status, multiple choices of majors and concentrations, legitimate accreditation, and an innovative competency-based model that facilitates swift degree completion.
Since WGU is designed for the adult learner who already possesses some experience with coursework at the college level, prospective students are not required to take the traditional collegiate entrance exams such as the SAT or ACT. Instead, the school requires all applicants to take and pass the WGU Readiness Assessment, which is an unproctored online exam that assesses a potential student's academic preparedness for university-level coursework. This assessment should not be taken lightly because applicants who do not pass it will not be admitted. The WGU Readiness Assessment is broken up into four separate sections. Prospective students may start with any section they choose.
Language Test
The language portion is a multiple choice exam that determines the applicant's skill level in essential topics such as reading comprehension, grammatical usage and writing. The test taker will need to answer questions after reading paragraph-long passages, select the one grammatically correct sentence out of four or five selections, and know the difference between passive and active voice. This portion contained about 30 questions and had a two hour time limit.
Math Test
The math portion is a multiple choice exam that assesses the applicant's skill level in basic topics such as arithmetic, estimation, and graphs. The test contains several word problems and perhaps one or two elementary algebraic questions. The test taker will need to be familiar with topics such as fractions, decimals, percentages, probability, absolute value, integers, plotting lines on graphs, answering word problems, symbols, the order of operations, and prealgebra. This portion contained about 20 questions and had a two hour time limit.
Admissions Inventory
This portion has an assortment of questions to help assess whether online learning is a suitable option for the prospective student. Some people learn independently with ease while others desperately need the structure of a brick-and-mortar classroom with a professor directly in front of them for guidance. This section of the WGU Readiness Assessment assists in determining if the prospective student has the self-motivation, tools and prior experiences to perform satisfactorily in online learning.
Essay Exam
Prospective students must write an essay on a randomly selected topic. Since WGU's academic programs involve numerous essay submissions, this portion of the readiness assessment examines the applicant's writing skills. Essays with less than 200 words or more than 800 words are disallowed, so the test taker must carefully monitor this aspect while writing. It is permissible to type the paper elsewhere before pasting it onto the exam. The benefit of copying/pasting is that it allows the test taker to run a spell check and word count before submitting. WGU's website advises applicants to set aside up to one hour to type and submit their essays.
I just received my first call from an enrollment advisor. He sent me the email containing the steps to enrollment with the link to the assessments. I was a bit worried about it earlier, but commuters timely post set my mind at ease. It's nice to know that I will have company on my journey. I hope to have everything ready for a May 1st start. That is the date that I am eligible for education reimbursement from my employer. I can't wait. I love that I can work as fast as I want or take a break for a week to be with family and not be concerned about having an assignment deadline or the need to do a post before or at a certain time. I think this is a great fit for me.
I just received my first call from an enrollment advisor. He sent me the email containing the steps to enrollment with the link to the assessments. I was a bit worried about it earlier, but commuters timely post set my mind at ease. It's nice to know that I will have company on my journey. I hope to have everything ready for a May 1st start. That is the date that I am eligible for education reimbursement from my employer. I can't wait. I love that I can work as fast as I want or take a break for a week to be with family and not be concerned about having an assignment deadline or the need to do a post before or at a certain time. I think this is a great fit for me.
Congrats guys on getting in!! I'm currently enrolled in their RN to BSN. I took BioChem first and it was a ton of work, not necessarily hard but a lot of work, I have no idea how someone finished it in less than a week. I think one of the best parts of WGU is that it's at your own pace and my mentor is great as I;m sure they all are. Feel free to ask me any questions!
Congrats guys on getting in!! I'm currently enrolled in their RN to BSN. I took BioChem first and it was a ton of work, not necessarily hard but a lot of work, I have no idea how someone finished it in less than a week. I think one of the best parts of WGU is that it's at your own pace and my mentor is great as I;m sure they all are. Feel free to ask me any questions!
Biochem in less than a week = use the 20 day plan sped up, one task per day x 5 days. And make sure to watch the mentor videos and don't overthink it. It can be done! =) (I loved biochem - watching that goofy guy throw stuff around was awesome).
Congrats to all the new people!! One negative - if you buy anything from the student store it takes forrrrrrrrrrrrrrever. Grr. Still waiting for a sweatshirt and it's been over two weeks!
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I took BioChem first and it was a ton of work, not necessarily hard but a lot of work, I have no idea how someone finished it in less than a week.
Some people in the program are previous math or science majors, so a subject such as biochemistry would come as second nature to them.
Others (like me) struggle with these types of subjects, and therefore, need to study more diligently to grasp the material. And for me, 'grasping it' just takes longer.
An another note, has anyone taken the Foundations of College Mathematics course? If so, what was your impression of it?
Thankfully I didn't have to take the math class - if you don't get a response here, check on the WGU RN to BSN discussion forum on facebook. I am guessing someone has taken it over there! :)
As for biochem, a problem with it is that it's not just a science class, it's also a series of powerpoints that require graphic representations, drawings, models, etc. That can be challenging for someone who has never done a presentation before. (WGU does offer help and tutorials if you need them)..
For anyone who is taking it - your art is not important, as long as the graders can figure out what you mean. So make sure you label! =) (I had to take the physiology lab and OMG my drawings could have been done by a 4 year old just waking up from a nap).
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
I spoke to my enrollment counselor yesterday, who informed me that I've been provisionally accepted into the program. Now they're simply waiting for my official transcripts from three different schools to arrive so they can evaluate for transfer credits. If everything falls into place by the beginning of April, I'll be ready to go with a start date of May 1st.
I spoke to my enrollment counselor yesterday, who informed me that I've been provisionally accepted into the program. Now they're simply waiting for my official transcripts from three different schools to arrive so they can evaluate for transfer credits. If everything falls into place by the beginning of April, I'll be ready to go with a start date of May 1st.
Congrats! I received mine as well! I'm excited and nervous to start.
klone, MSN, RN
14,857 Posts
Sorry, can't answer your question - I'm in the "old" program and a preceptorship was not a required part of that program.