Upper Level credit granted at Columbia for some CLEP exams! 1st CLEP exam a success!

[ic1991]

Hello! First, I would like to say what a great site that I stumbled upon a few weeks ago!!! I have found so much information on this forum and all of the contributions have been extremely helpful!!! I appreciate all of the detailed information that has been contributed over the years, which made my first exam a success.

So, what prompted me to this site? Well, I wanted to find a way to knockout some credits toward my bachelor's degree at Columbia College. They grant "Upper Level" credit for a few of the CLEP exams including Principles of Marketing, so what did I have to lose?

Here is a link to view their conversion table if interested:
http://www.ccis.edu/offices/evaluations/...CLEPGE.pdf

What was my score? Well, I got a 54 and not the greatest, but a pass is a pass, right? I looked at the conversion table in my REA book and it appears a 54 is a "B", so I can't complain. Oh, I am now a Senior since I have passed this class

So, what was my method you ask?

First, I jumped right in and started off with IC. I will say this...for those that have zero Marketing experience/knowledge, I commend you for only using IC because I did not get much out of it, but I believe this was due to my lack of marketing knowledge. Up until this point, I had never taken a marketing class or studied the subject. Basically, I was starting from ground zero.

Second, I purchased "Pass Your Class" aka "Ace the CLEP" study material. I purchased this material because it was the only thing I could find that was downloadable and in PDF format (I wanted to read the study material from my iPad). I will say if you are thinking about buying this material, I would look elsewhere because it is not that great IMO and very unorganized and not worth the 35 bucks.

Third, I looked at the free-clep site, and while it was helpful, I did not enjoy going to several sites to view study material. I would rather pay to have everything right at my fingertips versus going to several sites. Of course, this is just my preference. Oh, I get easily distracted when I go from site-to-site and it does not work well when I am trying to digest the information.

Now, up to this point, I tried 3 different things and knew my options were becoming smaller. Fortunately, I noticed "REA" in one of the threads in this forum, which stands for "Research & Education Association" and there is an entire series dedicated to CLEP study material. It appears that so many talk about REA, but don't type it out and a newbie may not understand what he/she is referencing. It appears that all of the REA books are of high caliber and have excellent reviews. Even though there is not a PDF version, I went to Barnes & Noble and purchased the last paperback copy of the "Principles of Marketing" by "Research & Education Association".

Guess what? The REA Principles of Marketing was the ticket. I was able to grasp the material and it was easy to read/understand. Now, I bought the book on Saturday and studied for 4-6 hours on Saturday, Sunday and Monday and took the test Monday evening (tonight). I was able to read the book twice from cover to cover and took hand written notes each time through. After reviewing my hand written notes, I then would type anything that I did not retain into my laptop. This approach works best for me, as I know we all have different learning styles. Of course, I could have studied for another week; however, I felt that I would have lost some of the knowledge due to Thanksgiving and my travels associated with this holiday.

Now, I am not going to give up on IC. I plan to take several more exams, but if I have zero knowledge of a particular subject, I will study up on the material versus jumping right into IC. My background includes 12 years of project management with a software company.

At any rate, I hope this is helpful for some of the newcomers. Don't get discouraged if one study material does not work for you. Try something else and never, never give up! That is key!

Again, thanks for all of the great posts! You all rock!

ic1991 http://www.degreeforum.net/images/icons/icon7.gif

[P00057870]

Welcome and congratulations!

As you study many of the Specific Exam Forum postings you will see that although some people are confident with using just IC, others use it as one source and go further with either researching items on the Internet, getting books from public libraries, getting older versions of suggested text books, using Spark Notes, etc.

I think it is, as you found to be true for you, as much a matter of how much general knowledge you have of the subject matter you are studying. All of us have knowledge of some subjects but most of us are limited in that regard.

Good luck with your future endeavors and thanks for sharing that Columbia accepts CLEPS. Don't forget to check to see if they accept DSSTs and which ones, as they have quite a few tests that are generally accepted as upper level (UL) credits.

Judy

[NAP]

Congratulations on passing your first exam!

Each one will be a different experience in what is the best combination of study materials to use.

I'm sure you have figured out a lot of the abbreviations used on the forum already. For you and other new members, here is a thread with more:

http://www.degreeforum.net/general-educa...board.html

[irnbru]

Hi ic1991,

Brilliant first post. I guarantee you there will be people taking away the information you have brought to the party.

Does Columbia actually award graded credit for CLEPs? The reason for asking is that many colleges award credit but not a grade; instead the credit is awarded as pass/fail. Looking at the pdf of Columbia's minimum CLEP scores, there doesn't appear to be any mention of grades. The minimum passing score is much more familiar as an indication of pass/fail credit and is part of the 'a pass is a pass' mantra, here. Remember, the REA book's information on grades is a rough guide - your college itself sets its own policy for credit, grades and scores.

[ic1991]

Brilliant first post. I guarantee you there will be people taking away the information you have brought to the party.

Thanks irnbru! I wanted to share my story...I hope it inspires others to start working on their degree. I am only 30 hours away from the prize, so I will keep pressing forward

Does Columbia actually award graded credit for CLEPs? The reason for asking is that many colleges award credit but not a grade; instead the credit is awarded as pass/fail. Looking at the pdf of Columbia's minimum CLEP scores, there doesn't appear to be any mention of grades. The minimum passing score is much more familiar as an indication of pass/fail credit and is part of the 'a pass is a pass' mantra, here.

I am not sure, but I just emailed my advisor to ask. I will respond as soon as I hear.

Remember, the REA book's information on grades is a rough guide - your college itself sets its own policy for credit, grades and scores.

Thanks for the information...Very good to know.

I will report back once I hear from Columbia.

ic1991

[ic1991]

Welcome and congratulations!

As you study many of the Specific Exam Forum postings you will see that although some people are confident with using just IC, others use it as one source and go further with either researching items on the Internet, getting books from public libraries, getting older versions of suggested text books, using Spark Notes, etc.

I think it is, as you found to be true for you, as much a matter of how much general knowledge you have of the subject matter you are studying. All of us have knowledge of some subjects but most of us are limited in that regard.

Good luck with your future endeavors and thanks for sharing that Columbia accepts CLEPS. Don't forget to check to see if they accept DSSTs and which ones, as they have quite a few tests that are generally accepted as upper level (UL) credits.

Judy

Thanks Judy for the information, and yes, they do accept DSST's as well. Here is the link if someone is interested

http://www.ccis.edu/offices/evaluations/...DANTES.pdf

ic1991

[ic1991]

Congratulations on passing your first exam!

Each one will be a different experience in what is the best combination of study materials to use.

I'm sure you have figured out a lot of the abbreviations used on the forum already. For you and other new members, here is a thread with more:

http://www.degreeforum.net/general-educa...board.html

Thanks so much NAP! Also, I appreciate the additional information for new members. I will most assuredly look over the link for new members.

ic1991