DSST Management Information Systems Upper Level or Lower Level at Charter Oak?

[rabbitelf]

The MIS DSST is listed as lower level on the master exam list of Charter Oak. However, on the Wikia forum for Charter Oak degree plans, Kittenmittens lists this exam as upper level at Charter Oak.
Also, why does kittenmittens exclude the possibility of TECEPS on this degree plan? TECEPS have the advantage of being Pass/Fail, whereas Uexcels count as a grade. Also, some TECEPS are available on Instantcert.

[JTP]

It may have been a typo by Kitten, but COSC does not offer UL credit for the MIS DSST. They follow the exact credit recommendations from DSST: MIS DSST which recommends the test as lower level.

Quote from an advisor at COSC when I asked if the MIS DSST could substitute for ITE102: "I don’t believe the MIS exam is considered to be equivalent to the ITE 102 course and either way, it will be considered lower level. "

As far as the TECEPS being left out as possible credit options, you would have to ask Kitten about that. There is no reason why you couldn't use TECEP exams to earn credits for an IS degree at COSC.

[smf6824]

The MIS DSST is listed as lower level on the master exam list of Charter Oak. However, on the Wikia forum for Charter Oak degree plans, Kittenmittens lists this exam as upper level at Charter Oak.
Also, why does kittenmittens exclude the possibility of TECEPS on this degree plan? TECEPS have the advantage of being Pass/Fail, whereas Uexcels count as a grade. Also, some TECEPS are available on Instantcert.

TECEPS count as college credit, basically you test out of a course just like Uexcels. Charter Oak accepts credit from all regionally accredited colleges..... soo.....uummm...yea. At least you questioned this issue and my best advice is to always verify this with the school. Good Luck

[bluebooger]

I believe ACE and DSST both used used to list it as upper level credit
I think it was changed recently when DSST did a revamp of some of their exams

look at page 29 here and you'll see it's still listed as upper level in Excelsior's catalog
http://documents.excelsior.edu/document/...m-catalog/

that may be out of date and may not be what excelsior actually gives anymore
I don't know

[KittenMittens]

Yes, that was a mistake for MIS DSST - it is lower level. I will make the appropriate changes.

The plan is just a sample guide - something that worked well for me. You are welcome & encouraged to figure out how to modify the plan according to your individual needs. I don't think TECEPs are intrinsically worse or better than UExcels for the material they test - it's just that they are more tedious to go through because most of them require you to read a textbook where you can expect to read a long, time consuming, dry 500 -1000 page textbook (they typically take questions out of a specific edition of a certain textbook so most students typically recommend reading the entire textbook...) or to prepare by using a Saylor "course." Now you may be someone who enjoys reading lengthy tomes or taking a Saylor course, which doesn't guarantee you any credits, but I think most people are looking to get credits particularly upper level ones in the cheapest, quickest, & most convenient ways possible i.e. the path of least resistance. If that's not the case for you, & you think there's a particular TECEP exam you have a background in, or care to study for, or think is easy enough for you to pass, then that's fine too.

There are currently only 3 InstantCert subjects for TECEP versus 11 through UExcel (two of which are not worth taking for majority of students who probably lack the sufficient background i.e. Nursing + Quantitative Analysis), no practice exams for TECEPS, lack of student test taker data, little/no forum feedback for these exams which typically state that InstantCert TECEP flash cards are not enough & have to read the textbook. Many of the TECEP exams have a combination of short answer, multiple choice, & essays like TECEP Strategic Management versus UExcel exams which are all multiple choice w/ 4 answers each. For the sake of learning, writing essays, & short answers probably demonstrates your grasp of knowledge better than doing multiple choice exams, but w/ multiple choice exams you can get away w/ only being familiar w/ the subject, not having to memorize specific details or terminology, & using good test taking skills i.e. eliminating extreme answers & unlikely answer choices. Most importantly, after doing enough practice tests (each UExcel exam come w/ free sample questions + 2 or more practice tests you can take), you'll find that UExcel exams will repeat those practice questions in a similar manner or worded a little differently, + from reading enough feedback from students on the forum, you can figure out what topics tend to be tested quite commonly on the actual exam which is a powerful resource (i.e. "study this thing more than the other" or "the exam emphasizes X versus Y" kind of thing). Some people also have developed their own very relevant free mini-study guides on the InstantCert test forum which helps a lot too & nicer than reading a 500+ page tome imho.

The nice things about the UExcels I've selected is that they've got very solid flash cards (not only are there flash cards, for the subjects I've selected, they are representative of the test material & prepare you very well), substantial data showing most people are passing the exams (look on http://www.InstantCert.com/college_list.php4 ) w/ ~95% rates, & the InstantCert forums show that people are finding the combination of doing InstantCert flash cards + UExcel flash cards + reading comments from the InstantCert test advice forum is enough to pass - & quite often/usually w/ a good grade too i.e. A or B. For the exams I mentioned in the wiki, w/ no business background, working full time (50 hours or so a week), 55, & having a family, I was able to complete about 70 credits in 6-8 months - & I was able to get all As & Bs on the exams (or passes on the DSSTs). I usually spent about about an hour or two organizing info about each exam: i.e. what people had to say about each exam, how useful InstantCert flash cards were for the subjects, and any other tricks or tips. I probably studied no more than 2-3 days before each exam, but up to a week beforehand. A combination of knowledge of InstantCert flash cards + student advice as to what was on the exams (which is typically lacking for TECEPs) + UExcel Official practice tests was enough imo to at least get a B in the exams & make me feel comfortable having no prior knowledge, & I am just an average test taker, nor do I/did I have any in-depth knowledge. You'll find that subjects like UExcel's "Human Resource Management" are far easier than exams like TECEP "Federal Income Taxation" where people recommend reading an IRS 500 pg tax guide to prepare :puke:.

Compared to reading a brief study guide & a couple practice exams, having to pour through a thick textbook every day for a few weeks before an exam w/ no practice exams or study materials is extremely arduous & tedious. Of course, you may not have to read a textbook for a TECEP if you have a sufficient background for a test, it's easy enough for you, or you're a good test taker, but I'm assuming you're the average person coming w/ a blank slate who doesn't have any advanced knowledge on any particular subject . There are some TECEPs that you can look into but you will have to search w/ a fine-toothed comb to figure out which ones they are for you.

Yes, the one downside of UExcels is that they are graded & TECEPs are pass/fail, but if you are interested in grad school down the road, they will want to see graded UL coursework o/w how do they know how you did? Do you want to have a transcript that shows most/all your entire collegiate history was pass/fail w/ no GPA? Most employers hardly/rarely care about GPA, but grad. schools do.

If you strive for at least a B average on the exams, & have an "A" mentality, you'll likely be fine. The UExcels mentioned are known for having a solid reputation for straightforwardly, quickly, & easily passing w/ a good grade w/ as little as a few hrs to a few days of prep.

The problem w/ the TECEPs that are available on InstantCert (I looked into TECEP Strategic Management) is that I found they are used by students more as a supplementary source of review than as a primary source & there is extremely little to no test-taker feedback. I don't think the TECEP InstantCert material is as good as the other exams for certain reasons i.e. far less people taking them so there's so less incentive for test prep companies to prepare products for. That's why you see CLEPS & DSSTs having ample review materials & UExcels having a little less, but still much more than what TECEP has. Also, more test taker feedback means more information that test prep companies have for making accurate, short, and concise study guides. For the exams I've listed in the wiki, the primary sources of prep are: InstantCert flash cards + practice exams + reviewing advice from the InstantCert then Google/Wikipedia and textbook last.

Exams like DSST Substance Abuse, DSST Business Ethics, Human Resource Management, Organizational Behavior, Labor Relations, Psychology of Adult & Aging have been said to be pretty straightforward w/out requiring any mathematical ability, or advanced knowledge - it just expects that the student is of reasonable/average intelligence & is motivated to at least study a few days before each exam.

Overall, it depends on your learning style - if you like thorough, in-depth learning through a textbooks then TECEPs are ok & you will have to check w/ the registrar of Charter Oak to see what/how each TECEP exam will transfer in but they should be fine. There are also some TECEPs that are straightforward typically lower level but you will have to figure out which ones those are for yourself & whether or not there are any equivalents through DSST or CLEPs.

Generally speaking the trend I've seen is that exams are easiest to hardest (for the average student): 1) CLEPS 2) DSST 3) UExcel 4) TECEP.

Take a look at these:

DSST
DSST Business Ethics & Society DSST
DSST The Substance Abuse DSST Exam
DSST Management Information Systems DSST

UExcel
UExcel Psychology Of Adulthood & Aging ECE
UExcel Human Resource Management ECE Exam
UExcel Labor Relations ECE
UExcel Organizational Behavior ECE

TECEPs
TECEP Operations Management
TECEP Public Relations Thought & Practice
TECEP Strategic Management

Would you rather take an exam knowing that when 282 people were polled, all of them reported a 100% pass rate (DSST Business Ethics & Society), 80 people polled 96% passed w/ the majority receiving at least a B & typically an A ( UExcel Psychology Of Adulthood & Aging ), or that w/ only of 1 or 2 people taking a TECEP, 100% passed. With more test taker feedback/input, there is more for a prospective test taker to get an idea of how hard an exam is, & to get an idea of what the trend is. That's why websites like ratemyprofessors.com exist & InstantCert.com which help you choose what the best instructor (one major criteria being that they're not a poor grader/have poor feedback), & what exams will give you the best chances of passing & succeeding.

[KittenMittens]

From: Frequently Asked Questions of 123collegedegree.com

"So why doesn't everybody just go out and buy the recommended books, study, and then take the exam?

Costs, laziness, and fear. You would have to go and buy every textbook or reference, which could be $100+ per book. Then you would have to comb through the material of each book and bounce it against the content guide, ensuring you are studying the correct material. Besides, we all would much rather have the quick and easy way to do it....

In fact, this is what InstantCert essentially does: researches the different recommended textbooks and other books and, based on the exam's content outline, provides detailed notes of what they think will be covered on the exam and nothing more. That's why their study guides are generally very accurate. iStudySmart uses a similar method, but they go a few steps further and make YOU go through the textbook and take the notes. Their courses are designed to walk you though it so that you're not completely on your own. I highly recommend these two sources to help you expedite your studies."

From: Simple study guides for the college credit exams

What are my different options to study for the exams?

1) Not study at all. Some people may feel they already know all that is necessary for the exam and therefore do not study at all. This is usually not recommended unless you really feel that you are pretty knowledgable in the exam subject area. For example, people who speak spanish fluently should be able to ace the CLEP Spanish exam.

2) You can buy related textbooks. This is usually the preferred way to study for the exams. The textbook is what you would normally use in a classroom setting. However, this requires a lot of additional costs to find the correct textbook to study for. Then you would have to take the time to go through each textbook and figure out what parts would be most relevant to the exam. I created a booklist that is a compiled reference list of recommended textbooks that would offer you the most in passing the exams.

3) You can get study guides or "cliff notes". This is what everybody wants: the quick and easy way to study the main points of what will be covered on the test. But a similar problem still arises: which ones are best for each exam? There are literally 1000's of them on the market. Some are really good, and some are not so good. You can go through the trial and error process like I did, or you can use the materials recommended below or in the degree plan.

What makes InstantCert Academy so great?

To put it bluntly, InstantCert cuts though all the fat and gives you the meat of what you need to know to successfully pass the credit-by-examination exams (CLEP, DSST, ECE, TECEP, etc.). Over 3,000 US colleges and universities accept credit-by-examination in one form or another. They've made it as simple as possible.

Instantcert vs iStudySmart...

iStudySmart takes a very in-depth approach in covering the material that will be on the test. It is highly recommended ONLY if you either cannot find the study guide in instantcert or recommended textbook as outlined in my BS Roadmap. Or, perhaps you did purchase the recommended textbook, but need additional guidance in picking out what topics to concentrate on to ace the exam. Their study guides cost $139-189 a piece. Compared to InstantCert Academy's $20/month.

[I]For those of us on a budget, or simply want a simple, effective study guide for the test, InstantCert does the trick. However, iStudySmart takes a more "hands-on-book" approach. If there is no instantcert guide for an exam that you want to take, or there is an InstantCert guide but you are having a hard time grasping the concepts, then the iStudySmart guides should provide you with what you need.

Why do you promote instantcert so much?

It allowed me to complete an AAS in Electromechanical Studies and a BS in General Business degree requirements from Excelsior College* in 6 months by providing the study material necessary for me to ace the CLEP, DSST, ECE, and TECEP exams in record time.

Could I still pass the CLEP, DSST, ECE, etc. with out an instantcert/iStudySmart membership?

Yes, you could. But can you afford $100+ for EACH recommended textbook? Do you have time to spend months diving into a completely unfamiliar topic? Only to be studying the wrong information? Probably not.[/I]