Placement Information

The department offers three courses as starting points on your chemistry journey at Middlebury College: 

• CHEM 0102 Foundations in Chemistry, a half-credit course focused on foundational chemical concepts and problem-solving skills
• CHEM 0105 General Chemistry, a full-semester course with lab that provides the background needed to launch into an array of 200-level intermediate courses; and
• CHEM 0107 Advanced General Chemistry, a full-semester course with lab that provides a more advanced dive into a broader set of topics than CHEM 0105. 

Students may not receive credit for both CHEM 0105 and 0107. The CHEM 0102 major/minor requirement is automatically waived for students who begin their study of chemistry in CHEM 0105 or 0107.

AP Comparisons 

Most students must take the chemistry placement test to determine the appropriate course to start in. Students who have earned AP Chemistry scores of 2 or higher or have completed IB Chemistry (SL or HL) do not need to take the placement test and should use this table to determine their appropriate first course.

Who Should Take the Placement Exam

All students wishing to take chemistry are required to take the chemistry placement test, except for those who have earned AP Chemistry scores of 2 or higher or have completed IB Chemistry (SL or HL).

When to Take the Placement Exam

For students who have already begun their studies at Middlebury, you may take the exam at any time, but plan on taking it at least one week before course registration to allow for processing.

Online Exam instructions 

Read carefully and completely before you begin:

1. Verify that your computer meets the minimum technology requirements (see below).

     a. Set aside ~30 minutes for the online exam
     b. You may use a calculator

2. Activate your Middlebury user account. If you have already activated your account, proceed to the next step. If you have not activated your account, open your web browser and enter this URL: go.middlebury.edu/activate, then follow the on-screen instructions provided.

3. Login to Canvas. Open your web browser and enter the URL: https://middlebury.instructure.com/enroll/FK3JH3

Note: If you are not already logged in, you will be taken to a login screen. When prompted, enter your Middlebury College username (first part of your e-mail address) and password to proceed to the exam.

4. Enroll in the exam. You will arrive at the enrollment screen. It indicates the name of the exam that you will be taking with the heading, Enroll in____Placement Exam. Click once on the Enroll in Course button at the upper right corner of the screen to continue. The screen will change to indicate that you have successfully enrolled, and two buttons, Go to your Dashboard and Go to the Course, will appear.

5. Complete the exam. Click once on the Go to the Course button at the top right. A screen with the exam name and instructions will appear. Read the instructions completely, then click where indicated to begin.

6. Log out. After completing the exam, click once on the Account icon in the left sidebar. Then click once on the grey Logout button that appears in the slide-out menu.9. After you have completed the exam, consult the following table to interpret your results:

For chemistry- or placement-related questions, contact the Chemistry Department Chair, Professor Molly Costanza-Robinson, at mcostanz@middlebury.edu.  

Technical Requirements

1. An Internet connection with web access and a speed of at least 512kbps
2. A computer that meets these minimum specifications (tablets and mobile devices are not recommended)
   • Operating System: Windows 7 and newer, Mac OS X 10.6 and newer, or Linux Chrome OS
   • Computer Speed and Processor (use a computer 5 years old or newer when possible): 1GB of RAM, 2GHz processor
   • Supported Browsers: Chrome 52 and 53, Firefox 48 and 49 (Extended Releases are not supported), or Safari 9 and 10 (Macintosh only). Internet Explorer is not recommended for placement exams.

For technical questions about the exam: Contact the Technology Helpdesk, 802-443-2200 or helpdesk@middlebury.edu