Texas Success Initiative Assessment (TSIA)

Prairie View A&M University will use the state approved TSI Assessment as the campus assessment tool for TSI. Before students are allowed to enroll at PVAMU they must have valid documentation on file for an exemption or they must have taken an appropriate placement test PRIOR to registering for New Student orientation and/or enrolling in any college level classes.

What Does TSI Mean For Me?

All incoming students who enroll in a Texas public institution are required to take the TSI Assessment to determine their readiness in the general areas of reading, writing and mathematics college level work. Based on how you perform, you may either be enrolled in a college-level course or be placed in the appropriate developmental course or intervention to prepare you for success in college-level courses.

Do I Have To Take The TSI Assessment?

Not all incoming students need to take the TSI Assessment. Several exemptions can be used to satisfy the TSI requirement. Qualifying for a TSI Assessment exemption means that you can enroll in any entry-level college course without restrictions.

If you have a question please contact us at (936) 261-3610 or via email at tsi@pvamu.edu.

Student(s) who have taken PLA exams and receive a satisfactory score of those exams, could be consider college-ready for the TSI. At Prairie View A&M University, students can receive credit from the following PLA programs:

• Advance Placement (AP)
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• DANTES Subject Standardized Test (DSST)
• International Baccalaureate (IB)

Students will need to review the PLA website at www.pvamu.edu/pla for more information on sending PLA exam transcripts to the Office of Testing Services and how to have those credits articulated in the system. Once articulated the student will need to contact the TSI office to have their TSI status updated.

If you have already taken the TSI assessment at another Texas institution, you need to complete the Cross Institutional Reporting Form so the TSI office can retrieve the scores from the other institution’s Accuplacer system.

If you have completed a certificate from the Texas College Bridge program, you need to complete the Texas College Bridge Certificate Form so the TSI Office can retrieve your certificate from GreenLight Credential.

If you have taken dual credit courses in high school, you must submit your official college transcripts to the Office of Admissions and they must be uploaded in the system before your TSI status can be updated by the TSI office.

Prairie View A&M University does not accept scores from students or institutions. ALL scores must be verified by the TSI Office before they go in the system.

If you have a question please contact us at (936) 261-3610 or via email at tsi@pvamu.edu.

All students entering PVAMU must complete the assessment test unless they meet one of the approved exemptions. A test exemption is a criteria that excuses you from taking the assessment test. These exemptions are from the Texas Administrative Code, Title 19, Part 1, Chapter 4, Subchapter C, Rule §4.54. Student must have valid documentation for a placement test exemption (see below) on file with the University Admissions Office.

TSI Assessment Exemptions Graph

Texas College Bridge

• Certificates must be sent through GreenLight Credentials to PVAMU’s TSI Office.

Dual Credit/Transfer Courses

• Official college transcripts must be received and processed by PVAMU’s Undergraduate Admissions Office.
• Must have a “C” or higher in the Freshman Composition or College Level Math course

Holds a Degree or Certificate

• Associate or Bachelor’s degree
• Certificate program of 1 year or less (level-one certificates, 42 or fewer semester credit hours or the equivalent) at a public junior college, a public technical institute, or a public state college)

Military

• Serving on active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States, Texas National Guard, or a member of the reserve component of the armed forces of the United States and has been serving for at least 3 years preceding enrollment. A letter from the commanding officer is needed.
• Student who on or after August 1, 1990, was honorably dischared, retired, or released from active duty as a member of the armed forces of the United States or the Texas National Guard or services as a member of the reserve component of the armed forces of the United States. A DD214 is needed.

If you have a question please contact the TSI Office at (936) 261-3610 or via email at tsi@pvamu.edu.

The TSI Hold is a hold that delays registration for the upcoming semester. If a student has not either passed the TSI Assessment or successfully completed the co-requisite courses then this hold will remain on your account for every semester that these actions are not completed. All incoming and current students must contact their advisor in order to have the hold removed. Information on who your advisor is can be found on the Academic Advising Services’ Meet Our Advisors webpage.

To view this hold, you can log into PV Place, click on Panthertracks, go to “Student and Financial Aid”, click “Student Records”, then “View Holds” to know your final TSI status.

• On the View Holds screen, you may or may not see a TSI Hold.
  • If there is no TSI Hold, you are college-ready in all three areas (Math, Reading, and Writing) and can STOP
  • If there is a TSI Hold, the description can help identify your TSI Status:
    • TSI Hold New Student – no exemptions or TSI scores have been submitted for all three areas
    • Initial Test Required – partial exemptions or TSI scores have already been received in at least one area. Additional TSI tests or exemptions are still needed.
    • Requirement Not Met – TSI scores have been received and processed in all three areas.

If a student would like a copy of their TSI results, they can obtain them through one of the following three options:

1. Have a copy emailed to you by Accuplacer by going to https://studentportal.accuplacer.org/#/studentisr,click on “Your ACCUPLACER or TSIA2 Score Report” section, then fill out the “Find your Test Results” boxes. Then click “Search“, and if they are in the system, you can have a copy of the results emailed to the email address associated with your Accuplacer account.
2. Student can go to their PV portal, sign in, and click on “Panthertracks”. Go to the “Student Tab”, then “Student Records”, and then “View Test Scores”.

If a student is transferring to another institution: the student should contact the Testing Services office (Testing or Assessment center) at the other institution and have them pull their TSI scores through Cross Institutional Reporting in Accuplacer.

If a student took the TSIA at another institution: the student should contact the Testing or Assessment center at that institution to ask how they can retrieve a physical copy of their scores.

Passing TSIA 2.0 Scores (After January 11, 2021)

Passing TSIA 1.0 Scores (Before January 11, 2021)

Non-Passing TSI Scores

Students who did not pass the TSI Assessment in one or more sections will be instructed to enroll in developmental co-requisite courses. These courses allow students to take college-level English or Math courses along with a 1-credit developmental course that aims to support students in their college English or Math course. With a final grade of “C” or higher in the college-level course, a student’s TSI status will be marked as complete and they will be able to enroll in courses that required a passing TSI status in that section.

If you have a question please contact us at (936) 261-3610 or via email at tsi@pvamu.edu.

Questions about TSI Holds or Restrictions; Dual Credit; Texas College Bridge; or submission of the Dual Credit, Texas College Bridge, and/or Cross Institutional Reporting (CIR) form contact

TSI Office
Phone: (936) 261-3610
Email: TSI@pvamu.edu

Questions about TSIA 2.0 testing or PLA Credit (AP, CLEP, DSST, or IB) contact

Office of Testing Services
Phone: (936) 261-3627
Email: aetesting@pvamu.edu