What are the CLEPs/DSSTs that require the least studying?

[mistae]

I'm trying to take an simple DSST/CLEP exam. I've taken freshman comp/english comp/ analyzing lit/ us history 2 CLEPs and here's to your health/personal finance DSSTs. I need one that is relatively simple in its questioning. Straight forward. No tricks. One that requires the least material to learn. Any suggestions?

[cookderosa]

I'm trying to take an simple DSST/CLEP exam. I've taken freshman comp/english comp/ analyzing lit/ us history 2 CLEPs and here's to your health/personal finance DSSTs. I need one that is re latively simple in its questioning. Straight forward. No tricks. One that requires the least material to learn. Any suggestions?

>>

Well, I think you are asking 2 different questions.
1. Which exams are straight forward without tricks (assuming you mean critical thinking and interpretation)? In that list I'd include any of the maths, Anthropology, and maybe Human Growth and Development.
2. Which exams require the least study time? That answer, unfortunately, is based 100% on whats already in your brain, how you learn, and your interests. (for example, I'm a crime show addict so learning criminal justice was easy and fun for me - for someone else, it may have been torture.) So, that's something you'll have to decide for yourself. I'd suggest looking closely at the exam outlines for CLEP and DSST. They tell you very clearly what you need to know and give you an idea of the depth.

[jackzack87]

there is no right answer. I found the Management style exams (HR management, Intro to Biz, Intro to Marketing, Org. Behavior) to be palatable. I did them all together, over a summer, and found that they overlapped quite a bit. I hear that Intro to Psych and Intro to Soc. are two of the "easier", if you will, exams, but first if I were you I'd do a little of the old soul searching and find what you like and what you want to learn. .

I'm trying to take an simple DSST/CLEP exam. I've taken freshman comp/english comp/ analyzing lit/ us history 2 CLEPs and here's to your health/personal finance DSSTs. I need one that is relatively simple in its questioning. Straight forward. No tricks. One that requires the least material to learn. Any suggestions?

[Ruddigore]

I'm trying to take an simple DSST/CLEP exam. I've taken freshman comp/english comp/ analyzing lit/ us history 2 CLEPs and here's to your health/personal finance DSSTs. I need one that is relatively simple in its questioning. Straight forward. No tricks. One that requires the least material to learn. Any suggestions?

Sounds like you are describing Sociology. Sure, it's not as "untricky" as math, but I found it asked questions that related understandably to the study materials. There aren't that many IC cards compared to other subjects either. Here's what I used:

• InstantCert – this is a great way to dive in, though it lacks a few details
  
• REA’s Sociology book – scored a 64% on the first exam and 86% on the second
  
• Peterson’s test available for printing (questions/answers) – scored a 74%
  
• CLEP Official questions – scored a 76%
  
• I looked over the second two online Peterson’s tests (the first one is the same as the printed one I took before) – I just looked through for questions I couldn’t answer
  
• A sociology textbook from my library – I skimmed through two or three chapters and looked at some of the charts – handy for statistical questions (“Which is a trend in the US...” etc.)
  

It's not something that you can study one night and take -- let alone take cold, but with some intense studying, you could get a great score on in two weeks (that's how long I spent on it, and I got my best score yet).

Mind you, this isn't a free ticket to 3 credits, but with some hard work, it comes rather close.

[MISin08]

I studied about 4 hours for Information Systems and Computer Applications, and it was really just a backup to make sure I didn't need more. This exam was like stealing candy from fish in a barrel while they begged me to take it. But to paraphrase cook, your mileage may vary.

Phillip

[crespii]

Sounds like you are describing Sociology. Sure, it's not as "untricky" as math, but I found it asked questions that related understandably to the study materials. There aren't that many IC cards compared to other subjects either. Here's what I used:

• InstantCert – this is a great way to dive in, though it lacks a few details
  
• REA’s Sociology book – scored a 64% on the first exam and 86% on the second
  
• Peterson’s test available for printing (questions/answers) – scored a 74%
  
• CLEP Official questions – scored a 76%
  
• I looked over the second two online Peterson’s tests (the first one is the same as the printed one I took before) – I just looked through for questions I couldn’t answer
  
• A sociology textbook from my library – I skimmed through two or three chapters and looked at some of the charts – handy for statistical questions (“Which is a trend in the US...” etc.)
  

It's not something that you can study one night and take -- let alone take cold, but with some intense studying, you could get a great score on in two weeks (that's how long I spent on it, and I got my best score yet).

Mind you, this isn't a free ticket to 3 credits, but with some hard work, it comes rather close.

---------------------------------------------------------------

I have been studying for this CLEP test for a month and my highest score to date, on the practice tests, 40% out of a 100%.

[Tasman]

It all depends on the individual. No 2 people are the same.

[mightymouse]

Study for Intro to Computing, Info Systems & Computer Apps, and Management Information Systems in that order. I did this and passed all 3, it has alot of overlapping information and truly not that difficult of subjects if you know how to use a computer.

3 birds 1 stone...

Also Technical Writing is very easy... almost free credits. I was at work and used the online technical writing link that everyone recommends on the specific feedback forum. 2-3 hours on the iphone looking at that site and I passed with a 49 "B" at Excelsior. Of course more time would have a better grade but that test was easy.

[perrik]

The tests which require the least studying are always the ones in the subjects you already know!

I put very minimal effort into studying for the Principles of Supervision, Introduction to Business, and Technical Writing DSSTs (about four hours for the first two combined, less than an hour for the third) and scored 66, 69, and 70 respectively. Someone who's been in the corporate world for years can hit or surpass those scores with little preparation. If you've never sat in a cubicle typing up memos and translating boss-speak, those tests require much more work to score well. It's all relative.

That said, the Technical Writing DSST is, as mightymouse pointed out, a breeze. If you just need a quick 3 credits, this is it. CLEP's Principles of Marketing looked pretty easy, but I stuck with DSSTs because I wanted grades for my transcript.

If you need to gather up a lot more credits, look for overlapping exams with significant crossover material. In addition to the aforementioned computer trio, I found four other good groupings.

Business: DSST Principles of Supervision, DSST Introduction to Business, DSST Human Resources Management, CLEP Principles of Management

Psychology: CLEP Introduction to Psychology, CLEP Introduction to Educational Psychology, DSST Organizational Behavior, DSST Foundations of Education

US History: CLEP US History I, CLEP US History II, DSST Civil War and Reconstruction

European History: CLEP Western Civilization II, DSST Western Europe Since 1945, DSST Rise & Fall of the Soviet Union, DSST A History of the Vietnam War (the Cold War stuff from European history applies here)

Okay, these groupings don't exactly require "little study", but there's enough duplication of material within each grouping to make studying more efficient.

[Kelsey]

I would say Sociology is pretty easy. When I first started taking CLEP and DSST tests, I passed the first CLEP I took and failed the next two! I was pretty discouraged and someone mentioned doing Sociology next. I'm sure glad I did. I think I scored a 65 on it with about 7 days of studying! The REA book is very thin compared to some of the others, so there's not as much material to memorize! Principles of Marketing and Principles of Management are others that are relatively simple. I scored high on those too! It just depends on what your strengths are. Hope everything works out well! ~Kelsey