Placement Test
What is the placement test?
It is an
online test that assesses whether a student meets the prerequisite for LING 570
series (i.e., LING 570-573). The test consists of the following four parts:
- Formal language,
formal grammar, and finite state machines: This part tests your knowledge
on topics such as regular expression, regular grammar, context-free
grammar, context-free language, finite state automata, and finite state
transducer.
- Probability
and calculus: This part tests your knowledge on probability
(e.g., random variables, Bayes’
rule, independence and conditional independence, Bernoulli distribution,
Chain rule) and calculus (e.g., derivative, partial derivative, gradient, finding optimal solutions of a function).
- Programming:
This part assesses whether you have sufficient experience with
programming. You will be asked to write short programs (which you can test
on your computer). You can choose to program in one of the following
languages: C/C++, Java, Perl, or Python. You should also be familiar with
the usage of pattern matching in the programming language of your choice
and issues such as the time/space complexity of an algorithm.
- Unix,
algorithm, data structure, and linguistics basics: Topics include common Unix commands,
common data structures (e.g., array, stack, queue, hash table, binary
tree, sorting algorithms, time/space complexity of an algorithm), and
linguistics basics (part-of-speech tags, syntactic structure).
How
long is the test?
Each part
lasts 1.5 hours except that the one for Probability and Calculus is 2.5 hours. Once you start, you CANNOT stop the timer and you need to submit
your answers before the time runs out. So choose a time that you won’t be
interrupted.
You can take
each part separately.
Is
the test a closed book exam?
Yes. During
the test, you CANNOT use your note file, textbooks, or Internet search engine.
However, you can use a calculator or your computer. You must complete the test
by yourself. The
purpose of the placement exam is to help you find out if you need additional
preparation before beginning the core CLMS coursework.
When
should I take the test?
LING 570 is
offered in the fall and the CompLing fundamentals
refresher course is offered in the summer. You should take the test between May 1 and June 1 of the year you intend to first enroll in the 570 series.
If you want to take the test before May 1, you can send a request to
phoneme@uw.edu from your UW email address.
Remember that you can take each
test only once, so do it after you have reviewed the relevant material
.
How do I take the test?
The
url for the test is https://canvas.uw.edu. Canvas will require you to use your
UWNetID to log in. In order to take the test you will need to have your UWNetID. Since the test is available between May 1 and June 1, we recommending getting your UWNetID by May 1.
When you log in to Canvas, you should select "CLMS Placement 2024" from the Dashboard. The
four placement test sections will all be available from that page.
Your tests will be graded by June 15. Based on the test results, we will also send you recommendation about how to best prepare for the ling570 series.
If you have trouble getting UWNetID or accessing the tests at Canvas, please contact Joyce at phoneme at uw.edu.
How can you prepare for the test?
This test is meant to assess your current knowledge. If you've never studied these topics (with the exception of the linux/unix OS), you are better off taking classes in preparation rather than trying to do self-study. If you have taken classes in these topics and would like to know what to review, here are some recommendations:
- Formal language, formal grammar, and finite state machines: Hopcroft and Ullmans' Introduction to Automata Theory, Languages and Computation, especially chapters 2-7, Sipser's Introduction to the Theory of Computation, part one.
- Probability and Calculus: For probability,
Lipschutz
and Schiller's Schaum's Outline of Introduction to Probability
and Statistics, Chapters 1-5; Devore's Probability and
Statistics for Engineering and the Sciences, Chapters 1-4;
and/or DeGroot and Schervish's Probabilty and Statistics, 3rd
Edition. For calculus, focus on derivative, partial derivative,
and gradient. Also, given a function, learn how one can find the optional
solutions by taking the derivative and second derivative of a function.
- Data structures and algorithms: Introduction to Algorithms by Thomas Cormen
- Unix: There are many good unix tutorials
on the web. This one from
Surrey looks good. It is easiest to learn, of course, if you
have access to a unix/linux system to try the commands out on.
The unix portion of the placement exam is the main exception to
the rule that your preparation should only be review: We believe
this material can effectively be learned from self-study.
- Linguistics: For a general introduction to linguistics, we recommend O'Grady et al's Contemporary Linguistics. Chapters 1-2 of Sag Wasow and Bender's Syntactic Theory: A Formal Introduction (the text for Ling 566) can also be helpful.
What will happen after your test?
Your test
will be graded and you will receive an email
telling you your grade is ready. After you have finished all the four parts of
the test, you will receive a recommendation from the CLMS faculty about the
next step. Here are some of the possible
recommendations:
- You have passed the test and
met the prerequisite for the LING 570 series.
- You are missing only a small
amount of background information, which we think you can make up with
self-study.
- You have done reasonably well
but miss certain knowledge required for the series, and should take the
summer refresher course that starts in July.
- You are missing some crucial pieces
that are essential for the series, and should take prerequisite courses
such as CSE 373 (Data structures and algorithms) and MATH/STAT 394 (Probability
).
Important dates:
- May 1: Get your UWNetId if you don't have one
- May 1 - June 1: Take the test
- June 15: Your test is graded and feedback is provided
- Mid-July: Ling473 (the refresher course) starts
- Late Sept: Ling570 starts
If you want to take the test before May 1, you can send a request to phoneme@uw.edu from your UW email address.