A few questions for the pros...

[marfund]

I am very excited about testing out of classes. I have some questions for the pro's. On average, if someone has around 25 credits already, how long would it take them to test out of the rest of the required credit hours at excelsior or any of the clep/dsst friendly colleges for that matter.

[Yanji]

Welcome to our little community!

There really is no "normal" amount of time required to test out. I did 96 credits of tests (including a few SL courses) in just over a month while others may take years. However, I have business experience and already earned a degree from a good B&M in the UK so I am not a typical case. In fact, there is no typical case. It all depends on:

• How many credits you currently have
  
• What kind of degree you intend to get
  
• Your level of experience/knowledge in the subject
  
• How good you are at taking tests
  
• How fast you can afford to go (both financially and in terms of time... testing is expensive if you're not in the military)
  

Depending on where you live and how many credits you need, TESC/EC may not be the best choice for you at all! (although they will be the fastest if you pretty much know everything related to the degree you want) You may be better served going to a test-friendly university in your own state. Empire State College, Kansas State and Wyoming are all CLEP/DSST and transfer friendly, as well as being reasonably affordable. If you provide more information on your background and your interests, I'm sure people will be able to better answer your question both in terms of expected timeline and suitable school/degree choices.

[seanmathews]

That depends on many factors..

The degree you choose to pursue
The school you commit to and what they accept/require
How much free time you have, and if you can afford the test fee's at any given time
How well you study & retain knowledge (everyone has their own comfortable speed for taking these tests) some study anywhere from 1 week to 3 weeks to pass tests, some shorter and some longer.
also depends on which tests you have to take and their difficulty.
and depends on your background, if you're already experienced in a certain field, tests relating to that may be a lot easier and quicker.

My advice.. Figure out which tests you need, and start studying and testing. You'll be able to find out how long it takes you personally to feel comfortable with the material.

Oh, and I would highly recommend signing up with InstantCert and getting access to specific feedback section. Its Priceless.

[rebel100]

What they said......and don't leave charter oak out. I believe they are the most cost effective choice of the big 3.

[marfund]

Okay so my next question is, how do I determine what test I need to take. Is there some guide or worksheet I can follow. I'm pretty much leaning toward Excelsior.

Thanks for all the great advice

Interesting, I think I may be Instacerts latest customer.

Yanji, how do I determine how many CLEP's/DSST's Kanas State will take?

[cookderosa]

Okay so my next question is, how do I determine what test I need to take. Is there some guide or worksheet I can follow. I'm pretty much leaning toward Excelsior.

Thanks for all the great advice

Interesting, I think I may be Instacerts latest customer.

Yanji, how do I determine how many CLEP's/DSST's Kanas State will take?

Every college has a written CLEP policy. If you can't find it on their website, call the college and have an representative email it to you. Written- not verbal- is what you need in hand.

Secondly, every college has degree requirements. They will generally be spelled out on their website. Find the degree you're interested in and look at the requirements. Have in one hand the CLEP policy, and the degree requirements in your other hand.

If the college accepts CLEP College Algebra for credit, and your degree requires College Algebra, that's a match. Go down the lists and see what you can match up easily and obviously. Sometimes the names will be the same (like college algebra, chemistry, US History) and other times not.

Be sure to know the maximum allowable transfer credit and credit by exam cap. Sometimes these numbers are inside one number. For instance, it could say "max 30 transfer credits" and that could mean that your CLEP is a part of that 30. That is NOT ALWAYS THE CASE, so be sure to check. The best policy for you with a lot of transfer credit, is if they allow transfer and exam credit separately. It is unlikely that any college will allow you to transfer in more than 3 years of transfer credit + CLEP exams combined (90 credits). The only exceptions of regionally accredited colleges in the United States are known as the big three They are: TESC-COSC-EC.

[sanantone]

What are you looking to major in? TESC is the best choice for testing out of psychology, business administration, and social science. Excelsior and COSC offer some majors/concentrations that aren't offered by TESC. The best school also depends on who will accept more of your credits. TESC is the most liberal in giving upper level credits and Excelsior will consider accepting credit from nationally accredited schools while TESC will not (unless they are ACE-approved). Excelsior is the better school for getting credit for IT certifications. COSC is the only one left of the Big 3 that gives credit for subject GRE tests. COSC and TESC accept FEMAs directly and they are free. Excelsior requires them to be transcribed by a community college and they charge around $77 per credit hour.

[brucet3]

I am very excited about testing out of classes. I have some questions for the pro's. On average, if someone has around 25 credits already, how long would it take them to test out of the rest of the required credit hours at excelsior or any of the clep/dsst friendly colleges for that matter.

While not representative of a normal student, I started Oct. 1st, with 18 usable college credits. My last CLEP/DSST's are this week and next week and I'll be done.

I haven't slept in 4 months, and I believe I now have ADHD to add to my OCD. When I found this forum a light clicked on in my head and I knew what I had to do. I spent the month of Sept planning and plotting. Asking questions on the forum and lurking in general. I spent Oct on a Aleks/Straighterline binge. I began CLEP/DSST in Nov, with one test every 3 weeks. and Jan I began classes at TESC and will be done with everything in time to graduate in June.

Its important to come up with a solid plan, that's realistic and achievable. Then once you execute your plan, you review and tweak it weekly or more (daily, thank you OCD) following the path of least resistance when it comes to credits.

Or at least that's what I did.

[NAP]

Okay so my next question is, how do I determine what test I need to take. Is there some guide or worksheet I can follow. I'm pretty much leaning toward Excelsior.

Thanks for all the great advice

......

For Excelsior, you will want the latest catalog and Student Guide to Credit by Exam. You can download them here:


School Catalogs - excelsior.edu


Also, check the Program pages for more up-to-date info:

Excelsior College Program Descriptions - excelsior.edu

[cookderosa]

While not representative of a normal student, I started Oct. 1st, with 18 usable college credits. My last CLEP/DSST's are this week and next week and I'll be done.

I haven't slept in 4 months, and I believe I now have ADHD to add to my OCD. When I found this forum a light clicked on in my head and I knew what I had to do. I spent the month of Sept planning and plotting. Asking questions on the forum and lurking in general. I spent Oct on a Aleks/Straighterline binge. I began CLEP/DSST in Nov, with one test every 3 weeks. and Jan I began classes at TESC and will be done with everything in time to graduate in June.

Its important to come up with a solid plan, that's realistic and achievable. Then once you execute your plan, you review and tweak it weekly or more (daily, thank you OCD) following the path of least resistance when it comes to credits.

Or at least that's what I did.

I'm afraid that's probably true. This forum is dangerous for people who have hints of OCD, ADHD, and are type-A. Don't say I didn't warn you lol!