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I am considering taking a couple of CLEP tests. English Composition II and either Algebra or College Math. It has been years since I was in college, but I have been working as a legislative proofreader for 15 years and I think my math skills could be brought up to speed. Are the tests difficult? I'm hoping to complete the Associate of Arts degree plan I started in the 80s, as cheaply and efficiently as possible.
Thanks
CLEPs are a great way to go, especially for someone in your situation. I took the Spanish one and even though I thought I failed it, I ended up passing. It wasn't difficult. I just wasn't that proficient in Spanish and went into the test unprepared. It was a 90-minute multiple choice test that got me out of 8 credit hours. And it cost $44 back in 2000. There are CLEP study aids you can check out at the library to prepare, and I highly endorse taking CLEPs as a way of saving money. It also sounds like you already have the requisite skills that would be taught in English Composition II and Algebra anyway, so I'd definitely advise you to take the tests.
I took 4 of them many years ago. Fairly easy. The most challenging was Analysis and Interpretation of Literature, IMO.
LOL. People often regard this as the easiest, but I think it's because it doesn't really require any study. You just have to be good at understanding Middle and Early Modern English. I scored pretty high, but I didn't think it was as easy as many people make it out to be. I ran out of time before I got a chance to answer all of the questions.
The ease of the tests will be based on your background. People of various backgrounds will often find some of the business CLEPs or DSSTs, like management and marketing, to be very easy. The computer CLEPs and DSSTs are easy for those who use computers all the time. Everything else depends. I found the CLEPs and DSSTs in most of the social sciences to be easy, but I had already taken courses in psychology and have a strong interest in the social sciences. I also have a strong interest in the life sciences and found the Biology CLEP to be easy. A lot of people think that the Astronomy DSST is easy, but I thought it was hard. It had too much physics for my liking, but at least I passed. The only CLEP I failed was for chemistry. It's a difficult test, but I think the book I studied from was a poor choice.
As someone else mentioned, you can use free sources like the Khan Academy to study. You can check out books from the library, but it's best to find ones that are specifically made from CLEP or at least AP or the SAT Subject Tests. Education-portal.com has made many videos specifically for CLEP and other tests. I watched videos from Learner.org for two of the tests I took. I also paid $20 a month for Instantcert.com. Their flashcards were extremely helpful; I passed most of the tests by only using those. Many people like to buy used REA books. This website is extremely helpful for the newbie. Free Clep Prep.com
If you are not certain of your abilities, definitely either find a copy of the CLEP Official Study Guide at a local library (it doesn't really matter which edition) or make the $10 purchase of the study guide on the CLEP website. These study guides contain a practice test that will reflect the material covered on the real exam.
I believe others are asking whether you have taken the following steps:
* verifiy that your college grants credit for passing CLEP exams (it looks like they do)
* verify that your college will grant you credit for a specific CLEP exam (the registrar's office is the best point of contact for this as they would know what courses you already took so that there would not be any duplication or whether a department head needs to grant prior approval, etc.)
I used to work for a couple of Universities on Army Posts. Both schools would accept up to 30 credits of CLEPs and this was great for the Soldiers since CLEPs were administered at the ed center and were free for AD students.
At the time family members were able to take the tests for $20 (this was a LONG time ago!).
This was a time saver since many of the credits could be applied to electives, but we did accept ENG 100, 101 and other basic courses.
The real issue that I have found is not whether the college accepts CLEP credits. Its what specific requirements must be completed for you to earn the degree you wish. If you seek a degree in a STEM field, you'll likely find out that virtually every course you take will be set in stone. There will also be an assumption that your math abilities allow you to begin the program on a Calculus level.
CLEP credits may not be much help if they don't apply specifically to the courses you have to complete for your major.
CLEP can help with placement into those higher level classes.
Yes, I took three or four CLEP courses way back in the dinosaur era of the 1980s. They counted for basic general studies prereqs at my private (obscure) four-year liberal arts school. I got an English degree, if that matters.
I have no idea why CLEP seems to have fallen out of favor; until this post, I thought it had been eliminated and supplanted by AP courses, which I hear about constantly.
Glad to know it's still around -- it was a great way to start college as essentially a sophomore. I'll put it back on my radar screen for my kids, who are 9 and 12....
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