Test hard UL exams before Easy exams?

[durandtheman]

Hi All,
I'm curious if anyone else has attempted the strategy for taking tests that I may try.

I'm on my last test to receive my AS from Excelsior and am curious about the future tests I need to take.

Has anyone taken their upper-level tests first with the expectation of possibly taking them again after the 6-month wait? I'm debating whether I should start out my path to my BS-BA by taking all the UL tests first, the ones where I KNOW they are difficult and seeing if I can pass with short-term studying, get a feel for the test, and as I'm completing the easier tests over the 6 month period study again for the UL test and retake them after the 6 months.

I know that there are those with the easy-hard-medium strategy of taking tests. Has that been successful?

I know that it could be considered a "waste" of money doing so, however at this point I'm looking at my opportunity costs, so paying less for a degree as opposed to one at a local institution, including time, is still worth it for me.

Any tips or ideas would be helpful, I do feel like I will take advantage of this when I can.

Thanks in advance!

[ryoder]

My advice is to over study and enjoy the learning process. Read the REA books cover to cover and then do all the exams and then do instantcert. Some of these exams build on each other so knocking the ball out of the park on the first w pays dividends later on. If you get into an MBA program you will have such a huge advantage having already studied the material well.

Plus the management oriented exams aree subjective and don't require a lot of computation so you can enjoy just soaking up the wealth of knowledge available to you.

I was able to do very well in my masters level business ethics, strategic knowledge studies, history of management thought and hr management classes because of my study practices and desire to not just pass but pass cleps with a comfortable margin.

[studyingathome]

I think it's good to start with an easier test or two to familiarize yourself with the testing process. It took my brother and I several CLEP tests before we got the hang of how much to study, what to study, what to memorize, what was probably a waste of time, etc. (though I never quite figured out DSST, I could pretty much tell when I was ready for a CLEP). We allowed longer study time for more difficult tests. Near the end of our history CLEPs when they started overlapping a lot (SS & H, Humanities following US I & 2 and Western Ci. 1 & 2), we studied for shorter time.

You don't want to get stuck at the end failing a UL test and then having to wait to graduate. So your strategy might not be a bad idea...
Allison

[burbuja0512]

I also eased my way into the tests. I started with the ones that interested me the most, regardless of level. I felt like the test taking practice was invaluable and helped me pass the tougher ones that I took towards the end.

Also, if you fail a test and don't have 6 months to wait, it's not the end of the world. There are other options depending on the test. Principles of Finance was my absolute worst test. I hated it and thought I was going to fail. Had I failed, I would have taken a class. I just didn't understand it and didn't like it and was very lucky to have passed.

I didn't pass macroecon, which isn't one of the tough ones. I just got overconfident and skipped on the studying. Thank goodness for Straighterline!!

[durandtheman]

Thanks guys.

I've already taken 2 CLEPs and a DSST, i was just curious of others testing strategies.

I think I will stick with testing what I have the most knowledge in at the moment regardless of difficulty. Studying Marketing / Management / Accounting has definitely got me thinking of taking all business related DSST and CLEPs first since it sounds like a lot of the info is carried over, then filling out the rest of the tests/classes.

Thanks for all the tips. It will definitely make for a fun summer ahead!