diff --git a/.github/workflows/tests.yml b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
index 3543c0b65..2dc794be0 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/tests.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/tests.yml
@@ -15,14 +15,14 @@ jobs:
         with:
           python-version: "3.9"
 
-      - name: Install pytest
-        run: |
-          pip install --upgrade pytest
-
       - name: Install dependencies
         run: |
           pip install -r requirements-tests.txt
 
+      - name: set pythonpath
+        run: |
+          echo "PYTHONPATH=src/axolotl" >> $GITHUB_ENV
+
       - name: Run tests
         run: |
           pytest tests/
diff --git a/requirements-tests.txt b/requirements-tests.txt
index e58c194df..ad24d3588 100644
--- a/requirements-tests.txt
+++ b/requirements-tests.txt
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+pytest
+# this is a stripped down version so it doesn't try to install some of the things like xformers or others that may require compilation
 peft @ git+https://github.com/huggingface/peft.git
 transformers @ git+https://github.com/huggingface/transformers.git
 bitsandbytes>=0.39.0