Taking InstantCert to the Big Time

[lrgaul]

[SIZE="2"][COLOR="Navy"]I have a new idea for this that I think could be very promising.

There has been a fairly recent explosion of "degree completion programs" in many areas. In fact, I am a student in one of these programs, which are specifically geared towards adult learners. They are usually offered by traditional B&Ms and typically require that a prospective student has already completed somewhere between 30 and 60 credits of college coursework at the time that he or she enrolls.

These degree completion programs offer a wide variety of majors and students are set to complete between 35 and 45 credits to complete their major. Because of the fact that these programs are designed specifically for students who want to complete their degrees, these schools typically have very flexible CLEP and DANTES acceptance policies. Furthermore, they actually encourage students to take these exams for any additional credits they may need to earn in order to meet graduation requirements. 120 credits is the most common requirement.

It seems like these universities could be a great target market for IC. I know that they are advising their students to take CLEP and/or DANTES exams to complete their degrees.

I start my first face-to-face class at St. Mary's next week and I plan to tell my whole class about IC since it is very likely that I will be meeting a whole bunch of people who are very interested in passing a few CLEPs![/COLOR][/SIZE]

[alissaroot]

I agree that the problem may lie with the popularity of CLEP and DSST exams more than with Instantcert itself. No one I know believes me that a degree can be earned this way, or even that they could test out of credits with a few weeks or even days of effort. I stumbled on to this site by way of bain4weeks.com and clepmaniac.com. What most influenced me to join was clepmaniac, because of the testimonial that was there, I'm not sure it's there anymore, though. And most people who read bain4weeks thinks it's somehow a scam or that guy must have already been a friggin genius or something. Plus, the testing fees are expensive for civilians,so many people could not afford to take that many exams in one month.

So, the most convincing thing for me was testimonials, myspace would probably be very helpful in getting testimonials out there. Especially from people who have been out of school a long time. I was so scared I would fail my first CLEP and get discouraged that I took 2 the first day, figuring I'd fail one and pass the other. (I passed both).

Even after one has decided to take the plunge and try a CLEP, it's very difficult to tell which sites are scams and which are really trying to help. I only spend money on instantcert and amazon.com, when I have to order exam guides that are not at my local library. Convincing people to spend money on information is tough, especially considering how much free info is out there. Plus, who didn't see Good Will Hunting? Rather, Good Will Hunting may be a good argument in favor of testing out, actually.

So, linking up with any sites that provide info on CLEPs or DSSTs might ultimately lead others stumbling onto this site, the same way it did me. Increasing the popularity of CLEPs and DSSTs will increase the popularity of this site.

[soupbone]

It's me again resurrecting an old thread but I also have a suggestion or two.

Add Natural Sciences Clep and an LSAT Prep section...I think the LSAT section wouldn't be that difficult. Add a few logic games (all 8 types) and give multiple examples of how to break each one down. Reading comprehension can just be an extension of the A&IL course. cheersmate

*EDIT* Just realized there is no A&IL course AND to be honest in reading comprehension you either have it or you don't. I still think that with all the LSAT prep sites IC could offer some form of it. You guys do such a great job with Clep/Dantes that I know you could put together a quality product.

[alissaroot]

I stumbled on to this site by way of bain4weeks.com and clepmaniac.com.

I'm glad you resurrected this, just so I can correct this bit of info I have here. clepmaniac is now just an ad site, I was thinking of degreewiz.net, which no longer exists, but thanks to barcotta I found the testimonial I was thinking of when I wrote this: About Me
I love this guy. He was the one who finally inspired me to take the plunge and that is how I found my way here.

[ghar6701]

I am Hanan Gharfeh. I would like to cancel my membership or account as of 03/31/10. Thanks, Hanan Gharfeh

[Basket Weaver]

I am Hanan Gharfeh. I would like to cancel my membership or account as of 03/31/10. Thanks, Hanan Gharfeh

This is not the area to cancel one's account. Please do so via the IC website, not the forum. If you have trouble doing so, please PM me and I'll insure it is taken care of. Thank You.

[CLEP101]

Just thought I'd throw this out there--I know we have a lot of bright, accomplished members with great ideas...

Any ideas for how to get more sales? Ideas like businesses, industries, websites to partner with, places to advertise, pricing/packaging strategy....anything!

Right now we rely on search engines and word of mouth, which has been very successful, but limited.

Hey Steve,
I did my part to spread the word about InstantCert and am still going. I was interviewed by the "Morning Calm" News paper here in Korea after the Education officer found out I had taken 18 CLEP and DSST Exams. He said he had never met anyone that had taken so many and passed them all, and gotten a degree because of that.

If my fellow IC forum members want to read the article go to the following link:
Welcome to Korea, U.S. Army IMCOM-K News, Photos, Videos, Employment
It is on the April 16th paper at the bottom of Page 6 and 7. I'll keep spreading the word as much as I can at the different bases I go to.

[alleycat]

I just read the article they wrote about you and your experience. I am so glad that this sort of information is getting out to people. Congrats :patriot:

[Elinor]

Okay, I've been here for a little while now, and I have a couple of suggestions.

Someone earlier mentioned a few sample questions; I think that would be great. I wished there were some before I signed up, actually. I had enough friends already on here though, and with the money-back guarantee, I figured it was a pretty good idea.

T-shirts. Yeah, I know. It sounds kinda fluffy after all the other suggestions on here, and I have no idea of the initial cost of that either. Still, I have a couple of t-shirts from businesses/organizations I support, and I almost always get questions about the businesses when I wear them. Just a thought.

Blog buttons. I'm a blogger, and I know there are probably more CLEP-ing bloggers on here. Probably some that get quite a few hits on their blog (I don't, but my blog wouldn't interest most folks. ). If you had a grab button, maybe that take you to the order form that automatically adds your associates id #, then those of us who have blogs could add that. I don't think it would be too difficult to create something like that. Again, just an idea.