The Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) must be met by every student at CSULB in accordance with Executive Order 665. If students transfer to CSULB as graduates of another CSU, they have already met the requirement. Otherwise, CSULB undergraduate students must attempt the GWAR by the time they have reached 65 units. Transfer and graduate students must attempt the GWAR in their first semester of enrollment.
The current GWAR Policy at CSULB stipulates general options for meeting the requirement. Specifically, the GWAR at CSULB can be met in the following ways:
| Scoring 11 or above on the CSULB Writing Proficiency Exam (WPE) |
| Scoring 4 or above on the analytical essay of the GRE or GMAT |
| Completing a required pathway of writing intensive courses, and earning a passing score on a 4500-word minimum portfolio in a GWAR certified course (students must first take the WPE, a diagnostic test of writing, to determine required coursework) |
Students who are required to meet the GWAR at CSULB must first attempt the WPE. The WPE is a diagnostic test of writing administered by Testing, Evaluation & Assessment in the Division of Student Services. Results determine if further coursework in intensive writing is required; this applies to students who score lower than 11 out of 18 on the WPE. Though the WPE is not a pass/fail exam, pass rates below refer to students who earned a score of 11 or higher.
The following tables contain WPE pass rates for the 2011-2012 academic year, and portfolio results from fall 2005 to spring 2012. For more information concerning the GWAR, please visit the GWAR website or contact Dr. Linda Sarbo, CSULB GWAR Coordinator.
| WPE Pass Rates from September 2011-July 2012 | |||
| Cohort |
# Test Takers |
# Pass |
% Pass |
Native English Speakers |
5492 |
5256 |
95.7 |
Non-native English Speakers |
2196 |
1552 |
70.7 |
College |
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The Arts |
927 |
814 |
87.8 |
Business Administration |
998 |
844 |
84.6 |
Education |
277 |
258 |
91.0 |
Engineering |
906 |
695 |
76.7 |
Heath & Human Services |
1549 |
1408 |
91.0 |
Liberal Arts |
2134 |
1997 |
93.6 |
Natural Sciences & Mathematics |
633 |
557 |
88.0 |
Note: self reported membership in cohort and college; cases may be missing Total number of students attempting the WPE in 2011-2012=7,688 with a pass rate of 88.6% |
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WPE Pass Rates from September 2011-July 2012 by College and Native versus Non-Native English Speakers |
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| College | % Pass Among Native English Speakers |
% Pass Among Non-native English Speakers |
| The Arts | 96.7 |
59.6 |
| Business Administration | 95.1 |
63.0 |
| Education | 95.3 |
88.2 |
| Engineering | 91.0 |
56.8 |
| Health & Human Services | 96.1 |
77.6 |
| Liberal Arts | 96.6 |
82.3 |
| Natural Sciences & Mathematics | 96.9 |
69.6 |
WPE Pass Rates for September 2011-July 2012 by College and Native versus Non-Native English Speakers with Numbers of Students Included |
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College |
# Native ENGL |
% Pass Native ENGL |
# Non-native ENGL |
% Pass Non-native ENGL |
| The Arts | 704 |
96.7 |
223 |
59.6 |
| Business Administration | 671 |
95.1 |
327 |
63.0 |
| Education | 192 |
95.3 |
85 |
88.2 |
| Engineering | 529 |
91.0 |
377 |
56.8 |
| Health & Human Services | 1115 |
96.1 |
434 |
77.6 |
| Liberal Arts | 1682 |
96.6 |
452 |
82.3 |
| Natural Sciences & Mathematics | 426 |
96.9 |
207 |
69.6 |
Portfolio Results
Students who score below 11 on the WPE must take a GWAR-Certified course and complete a 4500 word minimum portfolio. Portfolios are evaluated by instructors of the GWAR-certified courses and additional readers, if necessary, who have been trained in using the portfolio rubric. Portfolio results from fall 2005 to spring 2012 are given in the table below:
| Portfolio Results from Fall 2005-Spring 2012 | |||
# Students Submitting Portfolios |
# Pass |
% Pass | |
Fall 2005 |
22 |
19 |
86.4 |
Spring 2006 |
44 |
41 |
93.2 |
Summer 2006 |
19 |
15 |
78.9 |
Fall 2006 |
62 |
61 |
98.4 |
Spring 2007 |
82 |
78 |
95.1 |
Summer 2007 |
76 |
76 |
100.0 |
Fall 2007 |
127 |
122 |
96.1 |
Spring 2008 |
261 |
257 |
98.5 |
Summer 2008 |
74 |
74 |
100.0 |
Fall 2008 |
218 |
195 |
89.4 |
Spring 2009 |
185 |
175 |
94.6 |
Summer 2009 |
70 |
65 |
92.9 |
Fall 2009 |
186 |
183 |
98.4 |
Spring 2010 |
182 |
175 |
96.2 |
Summer 2010 |
79 |
76 |
96.2 |
Fall 2010 |
213 |
209 |
98.1 |
Spring 2011 |
355 |
344 |
96.9 |
Summer 2011 |
158 |
153 |
96.8 |
Fall 2011 |
356 |
342 |
96.1 |
Spring 2012 |
432 |
415 |
96.1 |
Total |
3,170 |
3,075 |
97.0 |
