Freshmen, sophomores and juniors will be able to thank seniors for a day off next month.

On Feb. 18, Missouri Southern seniors will be taking a state-issued assessment test that’s required for graduation.

“Every institution in the state has to test their students,” said Dr. Delores Honey, assistant vice president for assessment and institutional research. “It’s a measure of our instruction and our academic research.”

Missouri Southern began testing its seniors in 1987.

“We began assessing students before it was required by the state,” Honey said.

The test, which will feature general education questions, will be taken by 600-700 students in a morning and afternoon session.

“We use these tests to improve curriculum,” she said.

Honey said Southern used to use longer and more depth tests for seniors. In the beginning, the general assessment test took two to three hours to take. In the past few years, however, school officials have been using a general academic profile test from Educational Testing Services. These tests take less than an hour.

“We wanted to help students and shorten the test,” she said. “I think they appreciate the shorter one.”

Jeannie Archie, senior sociology major, said she’s happy to take the assessment exam.

“They use the scores to show improvement,” Archie said. “I want to go to an institution that values education.”

As far as convenience goes, taking the University’s test isn’t a big problem.

“It’s not really a big deal,” Archie said.

Archie said she’s not going to worry about whether or not the exam is difficult.

“I’m not going to study,” she said. “I know what I need to know now, so I’ll be OK.”

The exam also includes a University survey.

“We’re trying to find out what we’ve done in terms of how we’ve structured our curriculum,” Honey said. “It’s valuable information.”

Including the general assessment exam, seniors will also be required to fulfill their individual department requirements. Some departments are having students take another test. Others are asking seniors to submit portfolios.

Seniors should be receiving an information packet in the mail by the first week of February. Test takers will have the option of either a 9 a.m. or a 1 p.m. testing period. Students who are unable to make it to campus the day of the test will be offered a make-up exam on Feb. 26.

“I think students need to understand that because of the assessment, we’ve improved our curriculum,” Honey said.