CLEP vs StraighterLine

[NAP]

almost 3000 colleges award credit for a passing CLEP score, SL is accepted about about 20 colleges.

Good point. I didn't realize it was that extreme. I thought ACE approval would help more.

I have thought many times that we need a "do not try this at home"-type warning posted on this site. Some of our favorite topics like SL, ALEKS, FEMA, GRE (just at COSC now), even CLEPs like A&I Lit often work well at the Big 3, but require diligence (written policies) and care when trying to use them everywhere else. I don't like to see students wasting their time and money when these (and some college courses!) will not transfer and be accepted for their degrees.

[Ace_King]

I remember when Straighterline just offered like 5 courses. Now they are offering a lot more than 5. It's crazy how big Straighterline is now. I support Straighterline 100%. Don't get me wrong, I support CLEPS and testing out but Straighterline is not bad at all. The pace Straighterline is going one day they will have enough courses for at least an associates or even a bachelors through one or more partner colleges they are associated with.

[OE800_85]

The growth of straighterline has been incredible. They're a very new business. I see their ads everywhere, and I imagine they're growing fast. I think they're more appealing tot he average student, since most people aren't driven enough to "do it all alone" like you would with testing out. It's cool to see this way of getting credits.

If I could go back, I'd sign up for straighterline in the summer, kill it on there and get my first year done, and then spend my first year partying (wait a minute...I already did that, minus the straighterline, oops)

[NAP]

I hope these options will grow in popularity and acceptance. I'd like to think we are starting to see the future of education and increased access to educational opportunities.

In the meantime, I just want people who are trying to transfer non-traditional credits to more traditional programs to be careful and make sure that they will work for their degree plans.

[sanantone]

Straighterline courses are guaranteed to transfer to the 20 or so partner colleges, but many more schools will accept them based on ACE recommendations. Just be sure to ask your school ahead of time. Still, CLEPs have much more acceptance, even at schools that normally don't accept ACE-approved courses. I find taking CLEPs and DSSTs to be much faster.

According to student reports to Straighterline, these schools have accepted their courses.
http://www.straighterline.com/credit-tra...chools.cfm

Sort of off-topic, I found out that the University of Texas actually recommends Straighterline courses to complete nursing prerequisites for their alternate-entry MSN and PhD programs. They will also accept University of Phoenix courses. Although I don't like UoP, I just thought I'd rub it in for those who continuously claim that UoP courses do not transfer to most schools. Texas A&M even has UoP courses in its database of transfer courses.

[CLEP_enthusiast]

almost 3000 colleges award credit for a passing CLEP score, SL is accepted about about 20 colleges.

A lot less schools accept ACE credit then CLEP, but I don't think it's as a little as 20. If you go by the ACE credit list there's about 200-300 on the list, if I had to guess. But I agree that CLEP is better than SL in a number of ways. It's portable, the credit follows you wherever you go and every school has a policy on CLEP. It's equivalent to AP credit, but AP is held in a slightly higher regard, and it's the standard in high school's across the country for getting students credit for college.

Not to mention, all the CLEP exams are based on finals you'd find at your local college/university. I took the College Algebra CLEP and I can testify to this. I'm not even tempted to try SL at $100 a month, I think that's quite steep considering they aren't accredited and there's no guarantee you'll get credit, you have to look into every step of the way yourself, otherwise you have nothing to show for your money. This can also happen with Aleks/test credit in general, so always ask an adviser to contact your credit evaluator and get word from them that Aleks or CLEP will get you credit.

CLEP > SL, if were talking solely the number of places it is accepted.

Another note on ACE credit, I have received credit for College Algebra and Trig from my school, but when I graduate depending on my university's policy that I transfer too I may only get the credit hour for the college algebra(Articulation agreement), it's listed on my degree progress sheet as my math fulfillment, I got credit for trig afterwards so that's listed as an elective.

[OE800_85]

That's why straighterline has the partner college system. If you attend one of those schools you're essentially guaranteed credit for your work done there. They'll try their best to get you credit at others, but who knows. The breadth of courses available at either is quite similar, so I guess it comes down to personal preference.

[cookderosa]

I hope these options will grow in popularity and acceptance. I'd like to think we are starting to see the future of education and increased access to educational opportunities.

In the meantime, I just want people who are trying to transfer non-traditional credits to more traditional programs to be careful and make sure that they will work for their degree plans.

Yes, this is what it all boils down to. HERE you have the vast majority of members using the big 3 for their degree, but in the real world, the vast majority never consider even one CLEP exam, distance learning, or many of the work-arounds available to those who look for them. I know when I answer a question I try not to assume that the poster is applying to one of the big 3, even though many people will still end up there once they hang around and drink a little of the kool-aid LOL

[cookderosa]

A lot less schools accept ACE credit then CLEP, but I don't think it's as a little as 20. If you go by the ACE credit list there's about 200-300 on the list, if I had to guess. But I agree that CLEP is better than SL in a number of ways. It's portable, the credit follows you wherever you go and every school has a policy on CLEP. It's equivalent to AP credit, but AP is held in a slightly higher regard, and it's the standard in high school's across the country for getting students credit for college.

Not to mention, all the CLEP exams are based on finals you'd find at your local college/university. I took the College Algebra CLEP and I can testify to this. I'm not even tempted to try SL at $100 a month, I think that's quite steep considering they aren't accredited and there's no guarantee you'll get credit, you have to look into every step of the way yourself, otherwise you have nothing to show for your money. This can also happen with Aleks/test credit in general, so always ask an adviser to contact your credit evaluator and get word from them that Aleks or CLEP will get you credit.

CLEP > SL, if were talking solely the number of places it is accepted.

Another note on ACE credit, I have received credit for College Algebra and Trig from my school, but when I graduate depending on my university's policy that I transfer too I may only get the credit hour for the college algebra(Articulation agreement), it's listed on my degree progress sheet as my math fulfillment, I got credit for trig afterwards so that's listed as an elective.

I think that's an over-simplified understanding of how ACE works. Colleges that "accept ACE" don't do so in the same way as the big-3. The big 3 generally have a blanket policy (we accept all CLEP, all DSST, all ACE, etc) but colleges generally don't behave this way. For instance, there are ACE evaluated restaurant association credits that I'm very familiar with. These credits, like many ACE credits, are not liberal arts evaluated they are industry credits (aka free elective in big 3 speak) and so even if the college accepts the credit, the program generally decides if they count toward the degree. So, for instance, our college accepts ACE credit, but when you get down to it we do not award any credit for a course in our trade (culinary/restaurant) program so there is nothing gained. You could take a course, and have it on your transcript, but it doesn't remove anything from what you have to complete. The student simply graduates with extra credit. Big whoop.

A valid point, however, is you can always ask. Certainly if they've never heard of ACE you'll have your work cut out for you and, accepting ACE for elective credit is much more likely than for liberal arts/general education credit especially when the exams are not proctored. This type of credit isn't going to fly at a tightly monitored public school, but probably MORE LIKELY if you are attending a private college.

Lastly, SL has partner agreements, so the only guarantee is within that agreement. Also, if you spend some time at their site, you'll see that NOT ALL PARTNER COLLEGES accept all SL courses, some of the partner schools only accept one or two SL courses- the others do NOT transfer.

So, not to be snippy, but I still stand by my original assessment of ~20

[CLEP_enthusiast]

I like to think of them as nontraditional means of credit, any state university in the US just about will grant a student up to 30 credit hours of test credit for CLEP. This information is there for anybody who reads their college course catalog and policies.

It's like teachers always say in school, "Read the directions first!". College is the same way, but they don't give you the directions you have to have the initiative to find them.

Yes, this is what it all boils down to. HERE you have the vast majority of members using the big 3 for their degree, but in the real world, the vast majority never consider even one CLEP exam, distance learning, or many of the work-arounds available to those who look for them. I know when I answer a question I try not to assume that the poster is applying to one of the big 3, even though many people will still end up there once they hang around and drink a little of the kool-aid LOL