WP002: The EN140 Exit Examination

WP002 is a two-part essay examination offered every semester on the Saturday morning before the last week of classes.  Students with documented learning disabilities who require special testing accommodations should contact Testing Services as early in the semester as possible.

The purpose of WP002 is three-fold:

1. WP002 is the required final examination for EN140, and counts as 5-15% of the student's course grade.  If a student does not take WP002, that student will receive a grade of "Incomplete" for EN140; the student may remove the Incomplete grade by taking WP002 at the end of the following semester.  If the student does not remove the Incomplete grade the following semester, the Incomplete will be changed to a grade of "F," pursuant to University policy.

2. WP002 is a formative assessment for the University's writing proficiency graduation requirement.  The student will receive feedback from the Writing Assessment Program regarding his or her development as a writer as they exit the University's composition sequence and advice on steps to take to successfully fulfill the writing proficiency requirement.

3. WP002 is an important institutional assessment tool that contributes to the evaluation of the courses in the composition sequence, the University Studies program, and the Writing in the Disciplines Program.

WP002 takes approximately two hours.  The first part of the examination is a 50-minute expository essay on a general knowledge topic.  The second part of the examination is a 70-minute argumentative essay on a topic related to the part one topic.  In part two, the student is provided with source material and asked to incorporate those sources into his or her essays.  Sample topics and responses are available here.

A student may request a make-up date for WP002 if a significant conflict precludes attendance at the Saturday morning examination.  The make-up exams are usually offered in the afternoon of the Tuesday and Wednesday of the last week of classes.  Make-ups may be granted for conflicts such as Southeast athletic events, National Guard or Reserve duty, major surgery or other medical procedures, etc.  Make-ups will not be granted for conflicts such as local social events, work conflicts, etc.

To request a make-up exam, the student must submit a written request to his or her instructor no later than the Wednesday before the scheduled Saturday examination.  The request must include the student's name, the student's ID number, the specific justification for the request, and the date on which the student wishes to take the make-up examination.  The instructor will initially approve or reject the request, and forward the request to the Writing Assessment Program, which will provide final approval or rejection.  The request must be received by the Writing Assessment Program no later than the Thursday before the scheduled examination.

The WP002 exams will be scored by trained faculty from across the campus during the beginning of finals week each semester.  Each part of the exam is scored holistically on a scale of 0-6; thus, the examination score ranges from 0-12.  After the Writing Assessment Program is finished scoring the exams, the exams are distributed to the instructors, who grade the exam as part of the student's course grade.