Basic Skills Assessment

  • The Florida Legislature mandates that each student enrolled in a certificate/diploma program must meet the required minimum academic skills levels in mathematics, language, and reading in order to receive a Certificate of Completion or an Applied Technology Diploma. The statute requires that all students be assessed before or within the first six weeks of enrollment in a career education program. Charlotte Technical College strongly recommends that an assessment be done before registering for a career education program. Standard assessment tools include ACT, SAT, CASAS Goals 900, and the TABE.  This score is used to determine which programs you are currently prepared to enter or to identify areas in which you may need to improve.

    • Test scores must be no more than two years old at the beginning of a student’s program. The Basic Skills Assessment is given by the Technical Colleges for a nominal charge.
    • If a student has previously earned an associate’s degree or higher from an accredited institution or has recently graduated from a Florida public school with a standard high school diploma, basic skills testing may not be required.
    • By providing all post-high school educational transcripts to the admissions staff, the need for basic skills assessment can be determined. A counselor will review the basic skills assessments or documentation at the time of registration.

    Need to know where to start? See the

    Do you still have questions about the Basic Skills Test? See the

    Specific scores are required for application to certain programs or in order to successfully complete a program (see individual program pages). In an effort to avoid overwhelming students enrolled in career classes, we recommend that students complete testing and upgrading prior to career enrollment.

    You may not be required to take the basic skills test if you attended a Florida public high school all 4 years and graduated from a Florida public high school in 2007 or later with a standard diploma, passed the GED 2014, if you are active-duty U.S. military, or you have earned a college degree. Meet with the student services to see if you qualify for the exemption.

    Please visit our school store and pay the $20 testing fee on the day of testing. Bring your receipt to the testing center.

    Please call 941-255-7500 ext. 1744 to schedule your test.

    Testing starts at 8:00 AM

    Basic Skills Test Skills Remediation

    Remediation for career classes requires enrollment in the Adult Career Center.

    • The tuition is $45 per semester – you must register with the Adult Career Center at 941-255-7500 Ext. 1679.
    • Instruction is individualized per each student’s results.