What should I tell all them college students?

[CLEP43]

This is what I always tell people when they ask me what I'm doing for college, or where' I'm going for college.

The conversation will typically look like this:

"So where are you going to college?"

Me: "I'm CLEPing out of college, do you know what CLEPs are?"

"No," (sometimes, the answer is yes)

Me: "I like to think of CLEPs as just taking the final test at the end of a class. Study on my own at my own pace, and just go take the CLEP."

99.9% of the time, I get a really positive answer. Most people, especially older will usually say "Wow, I wish I could have done that, or known about that!" And for the yougner people, they sometimes understand. If I get negative feedback, I think it's just because they wish they could do it too

[Ace_King]

I keep it simple.

"Where are you attending college?"

Me: "Oh, a state college in New Jersey, however I am taking Online classes to finish up"

"Oh that's cool your from NJ?"

Me: "Nope, but my family is! "

Pretty much around there.

[dcan]

there ya go. There's this group, then the rest of the world.

Number of higher education institutions in the United States: 5,758

Number that don't take CLEPs: 31

That's 0.005% of all schools.

So yeah, literally, the rest of the world.

Source: Higher education in the United States - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[ryoder]

Get your big 3 degree fast and then get a masters somewhere else. Nobody cares about the bachelors once you have an MBA or a PhD or a MS.
That was my plan anyway but I ended up getting an MBA at an unknown RA private online school.

[Lyanne]

I usually say something non-specific like I'm a student, or I'm in school. If they ask which college I say Thomas Edison State although I don't tell them that I'm technically not enrolled yet. (I don't have a job so there is no issue with people checking up on me)
if they ask further, like what campus do you go to, or is it online...I say, "it's an Independent Study program. I learn at my own pace then take the final exam."
Most people are pretty impressed and say they could never do that.

[burbuja0512]

This is what I always tell people when they ask me what I'm doing for college, or where' I'm going for college.

The conversation will typically look like this:

"So where are you going to college?"

Me: "I'm CLEPing out of college, do you know what CLEPs are?"

"No," (sometimes, the answer is yes)

Me: "I like to think of CLEPs as just taking the final test at the end of a class. Study on my own at my own pace, and just go take the CLEP."

99.9% of the time, I get a really positive answer. Most people, especially older will usually say "Wow, I wish I could have done that, or known about that!" And for the yougner people, they sometimes understand. If I get negative feedback, I think it's just because they wish they could do it too

This is almost exactly how I've explained it to people that I've shared with. Showing up on the last day of class and passing the final exam to get full credit for a class is something that people can relate to. It also highlights the fact that you're not just "testing out," but you also are learning the subject even if you didn't have to do a ton of homework!

Even then, I still have found it easiest to limit details unless you're talking to someone you trust and/or who may be interested in a similar program. In the biz world, things are so competitive and cutthroat. The last thing I want to do is give anyone an unfounded reason to think I'm not as qualified as I really am. Of course, my MBA program wasn't easy to get into and working on it really invalidates any potential questions about the BS, but still...

[swimnsun2]

I can totally relate to almost all of these examples! Like anything in life some people will support and you others will not. The most common responses I recieve are:

Huh?

or

oh, thats great but I want to get a degree from a known "university".( this makes me laugh because our local university does not have a football team, which makes it far less known outside of the state to the general population.)

or

I get a super supportive answer because that person can totally related to paying off student loans or making other sacrifies from their life for school, and they are really happy for me.

and once in a blue moon, I meet a fellow "clepper" who upon learning that we are going similar routes we immediatley start comparing notes, scores and everything inbetween.*instant friend*

[drewthedude]

I'll be honest guys, I don't see what the big deal is, in the mind of the snooty types. I've taken numerous college classes online, and lots of accredited military classroom training, which required TONS of research and writing, and I still think CLEPS are harder to pass. You literally have to learn WAY more to pass a CLEP than you do to get through most RA accredited college classes. If given a chance I'd MUCH rather go through a class than have to learn a hard CLEP subject like say, science or math.

So, forget what the "my dad paid for my awesome four years of binge drinking and class sleeping" crowd thinks - I guarantee a mature TESC grad has a way better chance of getting hired than a 22 year old wet behind the ears top tier grad. If you can do a good well known school while you're a teenager, great. Do so. But for the rest of us, I'd say we're way ahead of the power curb.