Summer Writing Assessment

The Summer 2024 Writing Assessment will open in July 2024.

About the Assessment

All new Whitman students are expected to complete the Summer Writing Assessment online as part of the registration process. Students compose a 250-word writing sample in response to a prompt, and Whitman writing faculty review each sample, at least twice, in an anonymized evaluation process. 

You’ve been admitted to Whitman, so we recognize that you’re already a capable writer. The assessment’s goal is to determine how each student will fulfill the college’s requirement in writing proficiency in a manner that best prepares them to write skillfully at the college level.

Some students will have transfer or equivalency credit that fulfills this college requirement—please take the Summer Writing Assessment even if you expect to have these credits! Many students will join the Writing Program of the Rhetoric, Writing and Public Discourse (RWPD) department by enrolling in RWPD 170. 

RWPD 170 supports entering students and strengthens their writing skills for success across Whitman’s academic programs. Students will join an award-winning program taught by faculty dedicated to teaching, writing, student relationships, and first-year students in particular. Historical data shows students who take RWPD 170 double their improvement in college-level writing skills in comparison with students who do not take RWPD 170. 

Students who do not complete the Summer Writing Assessment will be designated as not having started the College’s requirement in writing proficiency. 

Note: Reminders and instructions for the Summer Writing Assessment will be sent to your Whitman email.

Accommodations

If you need accommodations for any of the placement exams, please get in touch with the Academic Resource Center by email at dss@whitman.edu.