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Summary of Placement Guidelines

Standardized test scores are useful as a preliminary placement tool, but they should not be viewed as definitive. The passage of time for students of a year or more between math classes can significantly erode their significance. View these test scores as a starting point in the placement process, not as the final word. Note that these recommendations are based on AP exam results from 2019 or earlier – the complications of the pandemic make more recent exams less useful for placement purposes.

  • MAT100: For students whose highest SAT math score is below 670 or ACT math scores below 28.
  • MAT103: Math SAT ≥ 670 OR ACT math > 30 OR a score of 4 (or lower) on the AB exam OR a score of 3 (or lower) on the BC exam
  • MAT104/175: score of 5 on the AB exam OR 4 on the BC exam OR 6 on the IB Math HL exam OR B on the British A levels
  • MAT201/202: score of 5 on the BC exam OR 7 on the IB Math HL exam OR A on the British A levels
  • MAT203/204: score of 5 on the BC exam AND SAT math 750 or higher, together with a strong interest in math and/or physics.
  • MAT215/214: Normally 5 on the BC exam and SAT 750 or higher together with a very strong interest in and aptitude for mathematics.  In rare cases, 5 on the AB exam and SAT math 750 or higher:  consult placement officer.
  • MAT216: For students with substantial prior experience with university-level proof based math courses together with a very strong interest in and aptitude for mathematics.

 

Advanced Placement Credit

For those students who would like Advanced Placement credit for calculus courses taken in high school, the Mathematics Department plans to offer an in-person Math Credit Certification exam on August 30, 2021 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., and again on August 31 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. Students must sign up for this exam by noon on July 30 – more information on this process will be available as part of the Freshman Orientation packet. Students can also receive credit for up to two calculus courses by successfully completing the next course in the sequence in the fall of their freshman year (e.g. credit for MAT103 by completing MAT104; credit for MAT103 and MAT104 by completing MAT201).

Contacts

Ana Menezes

Undergraduate Placement Officer
amenezes@math.princeton.edu

Keep in Mind

  • An AB exam score of 5 is comparable to a C in MAT103. 
  • A BC exam score of 5 is comparable to a C in MAT104. 
  • MAT104 is significantly harder than MAT103, and MAT201 is significantly harder than MAT104. 
  • It is easy to switch courses during drop/add. If undecided, start in the more ambitious course, and switch down if necessary.