The WPST is a test of your writing abilities. You will be given an hour and a half to write one essay to demonstrate whether you write well enough to enroll in a WP course. A very modest performance will get you through because the WPST is a screening test rather than a final competence indicator.

The subject is always one that requires no specialized information beyond common sense experience of life, and you are asked to say something substantial about the subject. Merely generating correct sentences and giving back the question-restating what the question supplies-is not enough. You must develop and sustain a main idea throughout the essay.

WP is an upper division course, in any department, designated as a Writing Proficiency course by the University Writing Committee. In a WP course, students are expected to write as an integral part of learning course content and preparing for their careers. A grade of C- or higher in the WP course indicates that the department endorses the writing competence of the student receiving the grade.