Ok, I got the following email today … I knew it was coming …. I just didn’t want to admit it!  I haven’t taken a statistics course since … ummm … uhhh … 1989???  Well, I’m not sure I’ll do extremely well – I’m already signed up for 704!

(edited for length and content)
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Dear Fall 2010 Incoming Doctoral Students:

As mentioned in my first welcome email last month, the SPP faculty have created a statistics placement exam for all incoming doctoral students.  This exam will test your familiarity with concepts crucial for success in PUBP804 (Multivariate Statistical Analysis).

Students wishing to be exempted from PUBP704 (Statistical Methods for Policy Analysis) must take this exam online between Friday, May 21 at 8am Eastern Daylight Savings Time and Wednesday, June 2, 2010 by 11:59pm Eastern Daylight Savings Time.  Should you choose not to take the placement exam, you must register for PUBP704 as a pre-requisite.  Students who take the exam and perform well will be exempted from PUBP704.

Once you begin the exam (on a day of your choice between May 21st and June 2nd), you will have two hours total to complete the exam.

Should you be required to take PUBP704, you must register for PUBP704-001.   Do not register for any other section of PUBP704.  The CRN for this course is 71688, but I will need to give you permission before you can register (the course is currently controlled so that no one can register without permission).

By Friday, May 21, you should be able to log into Blackboard (see the attached instructions) and view the link to the exam (although not the exam itself).  Please try logging in on Friday, and let me know if you have any difficulty doing so.  If you have not yet confirmed your enrollment in the program, you will not be able to log in to Blackboard.

Please email me by Thursday and let me know whether you plan to take the exam.  If you choose not to take the exam, you must register for PUBP704 this fall.