Florida’s Developmental Education Exemption

Do you know whether you are “EXEMPT” from college-readiness placement testing and developmental education course requirements in reading, writing, and mathematics?

In 2013, Florida Senate bill SB1720 resulted in major legislative changes to Florida Statute 1008.30(4)(a) and State Board of Education Rule 6A-10.0315.

We at Broward College care deeply about your success! So, if you think you may qualify to be classified as EXEMPT from placement testing and developmental education requirements, it is vital to your future as a successful Broward College Seahawk that you complete the following three-step process:

STEP 1: Please carefully review the information below to learn more about (a) your rights as a Florida public college student and, most importantly, (b) the many new options & opportunities Broward College has created to help you enhance your communication and computational skills in preparation for the demands of college-level coursework.

STEP 2: Then, if you believe you may be EXEMPT, please immediately schedule an appointment to meet with a Broward College Academic Advisor . Our professional Academic Advisors are best equipped to assess your exemption status… to inform you of your varied developmental education and college readiness options… to evaluate your college readiness level… and to then provide you with personalized recommendations regarding which resources may be in your best academic interest, based upon your past educational history and current career/educational goals.

STEP 3: Even if you are EXEMPT from the placement testing requirement, you have the legal right to request to take — at absolutely no cost/obligation to you! — the Florida Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (PERT), offered at all of our campus Testing Centers. We at Broward College strongly encourage you to do so. That way, you will have a more accurate measurement of your current level of college academic readiness so that you can better determine whether you should choose a developmental education option and, if so, which one(s). Also, regardless of your exemption status, your PERT score is a useful tool to help you choose the right level (and combination) of college courses for you to take during your first several semesters.

Yes, Broward College’s Office of Continuing Education provides a wide variety of refresher options, including:

  • EDI0753 Start Smart Integrated Reading/Writing Boot Camp
  • EDI0754 Start Smart Mathematics Boot Camp
  • EDI0339 Algebra Refresher Online Course
  • EDI0534 P.E.R.T. Test Prep

Additionally, Broward College received a $300,000 State of Florida grant to develop a college-readiness game-based massive open online course (MOOC). This free, self-paced MOOC is entitled College Foundations: Reading, Writing, and Math​ and is available for you to take at almost any time.

You are EXEMPT if you

  • entered 9th grade in a Florida public or charter high school during the 2003-2004 school year or thereafter AND earned a Florida standard high school diploma;

OR

  • are serving as an active duty member of any branch of the United States Armed Services;

OR

  • possess test scores (SAT, ACT, CPT, PERT, or FCAT 2.0) not more than two years old that meet or exceed the Florida statewide minimum score​ requirement [Note: To request scores from the College Board be sent to Broward College, use the school code 01500];

OR

  • have successfully completed developmental education course requirements in writing, reading, and mathematics;

OR

  • completed college-level English Composition and Mathematics courses with a grade of 'C' or better at a regionally accredited college or university.

You are NON-EXEMPT if you

  • earned a Florida public high school Certificate of Completion (state code W8A or W53);

OR

  • began 9th grade in a private school or non-Florida high school then moved to Florida and entered a Florida public high school;

OR

  • earned a high school equivalency diploma or GED;

OR

OR

  • graduated from a private high school;

OR

  • graduated from an out-of-state high school;

OR

  • graduated from a Florida public high school prior to 2007;

OR

  • are a prospective dual enrollment student;

OR