Taking more than one CLEP at once

[WaltzJump413]

One more question...sorry, I'm a CLEP rookie

I just got the Official CLEP guide from the library. I decided to take the Humanities practice quiz just for fun (I've been studying US History II). I got a much better score than I did on the US History II practice quiz (I had studied for Humanities last summer but never took it due to issues with not yet having the proper ID for admission to the test center.) I own a couple books with practice material for CLEP Humanities.

Would it be worthwhile to keep studying for US History II but also brush up a little on Humanities and take them both on one day? Is it fine to take two tests on the same day? I did take the SAT this year, so I know what a LOOONG testing day looks like. Just wondering what would be the best plan.

[EI2HCB]

It all depends, You can take more than one test per day many people on this forum do. The U.S History II test is supposed to be difficult I'm supposed to be studying for it at the moment ... It also depends on were you go to school. Excelsior views U.S History as a social science while humanities can give you six credits in the Humanities section of your degree which would mean it is done and dusted. If you are trying to do U.S History II for a humanities course then you may run into difficulty. The Humanities CLEP covers a huge amount of data which means you have to know a lot to pass it. I intend to use instantcert exam specific pages along with their study notes and do my Humanities in a single exam setting because its so large a period of world information to cover. If you have to travel 50 miles to get to a CLEP center then this is also a factor mine is down the road seven miles so not too far away. If you fail you can re-sit in about six months which isn't bad although failure isn't something I will even remotely consider. Either I know the material or I don't plus the $95 I can't afford to lose. Remember each exam is only 90 minutes so that's not a lot of time, with the new process of applying for CLEP in the seat exam time is now supposed to be reduced, we'll see.

[WaltzJump413]

Thanks!
I'm not sure yet what school I'll chose, so I'm working on some generally accepted exams...and then I'll go from there.

[EI2HCB]

Have you chosen your major yet? You want to be careful that you don't duplicate certain CLEPs which are similar, it depends on your college Excelsior has certain restrictions that way depending on your major particularly with natural science CLEP and biology. You should set out a degree plan and see what you might need especially if you have college credits from elsewhere. There are pro's and cons for all the schools listed here but feel free to ask me or some of the others here for advice, its worth more than you pay for it I'm studying business at Excelsior so that's were my experience is at, you'll find great people here with sound advice for the most part. Have you taken U.S History 1 yet? in not you'll find College Credit for Less a brief starter introduction to some free resources

[BGSU_Alum_86]

Many times the limitation (if any) of how many exams you can take in one day is set by the test center. CLEP and DSST do not set any limits. I would suggest double-checking with your test center if you are not certain of their policy.

[WaltzJump413]

EI2HCB--No, I actually haven't chosen my major. I will look at the resource you suggested. I think from what I've looked at that I could count History II (haven't taken it yet) as a history credit and Humanities as a humanities credit/elective... but I'm not even sure if I want to do a Big 3 degree, another online degree, or an onsite school...

BGSU_Alum_86--I will check on the policy for multiples

Thanks for your help!

[EI2HCB]

Here's the thing, If you choose to go to a B&M (brick and mortar) college. You need to find out what the CLEP policy is for the schools you want to go to. You might have to dig deep on their webpages, you also have to find out if they'll allow you to skip classes or will you have to take other classes to get your degree there. My local University NIU takes a max of 60 CLEP credits I think the local Christian College takes 30 credits or its the other way round. I recommend you do an evaluation of what your interests are and compatible careers and then focus on what you'd like to do from there. Then set out and get an education that will benefit you in both ways. If your religious Crown Financial Ministries sells one for $100 but you'll also find some for free or close to free online if you look. That way you'll have a goal to shoot at. There's an old Hebrew proverb that says without a vision the people perish. We all need goals if we are going to accomplish anything worthwhile. It is difficult to wade through learning all the Presidents if you don't know what your end goal is. Once you've decided then you can focus on what courses will allow you to get your degree at the least cost as its not wise to spend more than you have to. You can still work towards getting a lot of CLEPs done in the meantime. Sometimes the subjects you choose will open your mind to ideas you never thought about which might spark your interest into something you'll enjoy.

[WaltzJump413]

Good thoughts. At this point, I am trying to work towards CLEPs that are generally accepted at colleges (both B&M and online) while trying to figure out what exactly I want to study (based on my interests, like you said). The CLEP policies can definitely be confusing! I am a Christian and have the Life Purpose Planning book (some material in it is similar to Crown's). I should work more on that...

[KingdomUnshaken12:28]

Hi WaltzJump - I recently had a similar occurrence while studying for the CLEP College Mathematics and ended up taking Analyzing and Interpreting Literature on the same day, and passed both. If you think you are ready for both of them and don't mind testing for three hours, and as long as they won't overlap, than I would give it a shot! I scheduled my math one first, since it was harder and wanted to be fresh for it. As an added bonus, some testing centers will even combine the site fee if you take more than one the same day. Hope they go well for you!

[WaltzJump413]

Thanks KingdomUnshaken! I will look into if my center would combine the site fee...that would be nice. And I like your idea of taking the harder one first. Congratulations on passing those two tests on the same day, BTW. It's good to know that the same thing has happened to others.