Questions about CLEP

[QuotableKali1918]

I've recently graduated high school through homeschooling. I signed up for InstantCert today because my plan was always to CLEP out of as many courses I could.
I'm hoping I can CLEP out of all the core subjects so college will be easier, and mostly subjects I actually want to learn about.

But now I'm wondering if what courses I decide to take through InstantCert depend on my major/college.
I don't know what I'll choose as my major, but I know what subjects I like.
I also am unsure about what college I'm going to.

So does it really matter what CLEPs I choose to do right now?



Sorry if this was confusing. I am confused about the whole thing.

[mlwilliamsiv]

Hello QuotableKali and welcome to InstantCert!

In the vast majority of cases, your general education requirements will be the same, i.e., English, Humanities, Social Sciences, and et cetera. So in that case your safe to do some CLEPS right away.

However, there may be some CLEPS you should stay away from until you know which college you are going to. For example, most colleges will accept the English Composition CLEP to meet the English requirement but there are two versions of this exam. One is with essay and the other is without essay. Some colleges will accept only the CLEP with essay, and some colleges will only accept the CLEP without essay. Also, if you are not going to be enrolling into one of the "Big 3," most colleges grant credits only above a certain score.

Most of the colleges in the "Big 3" accept the ACE recommendation (American Council on Education) with a minimum score of 50 (with the exception of some of the foreign language exams which require different scores for different credits) to grant credit for a CLEP. Others require scores higher than the ACE recommendation.

My suggestion to you would be to pick 3 colleges/universities that you think you might want to enroll in and call each one individually. Ask about their "CLEP Policy." You should be able to get this information online without calling if it's posted online, or call the school's admissions office which should be able to provide you with this information.

Once you have a firm grasp of what their policies are, start taking exams. It doesn't make any sense to me for people to start taking CLEPS without taking the aforementioned steps. Why go take a CLEP, score a 51, and find out the college you wish to attend will only grant credit for a score of 60!!! You would just be out of a $70 CLEP fee plus any testing center fee you paid. Always be prepared. Do your homework first and then take your exams.

I myself am going for the BA in Communications although I'm not enrolled as of yet. If TESC is in your top 3 to attend, I can send you a sample degree plan which may be of some use to you. Then you can get a good idea of what you need to do to complete your degree. If you're not certain as to what you want to major in, I believe a BA (maybe in Liberal Studies or something to that effect) would be a good start. I started off shooting for the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and wound up changing my focus to the BA in Communications. Don't let the major thing trip you up. Just pick something to shoot for and go for it.

In summary, make sure you do your homework first. This is not going to be a daunting task, just make sure you have all of your ducts in a row. Make sure to get the Clep policies for the schools you're thinking about attending and start taking exams. Before you do that, make sure you know what testing center you will be taking exams at. Find out their schedule dates and et cetera.

This is all I have for now. If there is anything else I can assist you with I will be glad to help you. That's what we're here for, to help each other.

Good luck on your educational journey and welcome again to InstantCert.

From a loyal degree seeker,

Marshall

[QuotableKali1918]

Hello QuotableKali and welcome to InstantCert!

In the vast majority of cases, your general education requirements will be the same, i.e., English, Humanities, Social Sciences, and et cetera. So in that case your safe to do some CLEPS right away.

However, there may be some CLEPS you should stay away from until you know which college you are going to. For example, most colleges will accept the English Composition CLEP to meet the English requirement but there are two versions of this exam. One is with essay and the other is without essay. Some colleges will accept only the CLEP with essay, and some colleges will only accept the CLEP without essay. Also, if you are not going to be enrolling into one of the "Big 3," most colleges grant credits only above a certain score.

Most of the colleges in the "Big 3" accept the ACE recommendation (American Council on Education) with a minimum score of 50 (with the exception of some of the foreign language exams which require different scores for different credits) to grant credit for a CLEP. Others require scores higher than the ACE recommendation.

My suggestion to you would be to pick 3 colleges/universities that you think you might want to enroll in and call each one individually. Ask about their "CLEP Policy." You should be able to get this information online without calling if it's posted online, or call the school's admissions office which should be able to provide you with this information.

Once you have a firm grasp of what their policies are, start taking exams. It doesn't make any sense to me for people to start taking CLEPS without taking the aforementioned steps. Why go take a CLEP, score a 51, and find out the college you wish to attend will only grant credit for a score of 60!!! You would just be out of a $70 CLEP fee plus any testing center fee you paid. Always be prepared. Do your homework first and then take your exams.

I myself am going for the BA in Communications although I'm not enrolled as of yet. If TESC is in your top 3 to attend, I can send you a sample degree plan which may be of some use to you. Then you can get a good idea of what you need to do to complete your degree. If you're not certain as to what you want to major in, I believe a BA (maybe in Liberal Studies or something to that effect) would be a good start. I started off shooting for the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and wound up changing my focus to the BA in Communications. Don't let the major thing trip you up. Just pick something to shoot for and go for it.

In summary, make sure you do your homework first. This is not going to be a daunting task, just make sure you have all of your ducts in a row. Make sure to get the Clep policies for the schools you're thinking about attending and start taking exams. Before you do that, make sure you know what testing center you will be taking exams at. Find out their schedule dates and et cetera.

This is all I have for now. If there is anything else I can assist you with I will be glad to help you. That's what we're here for, to help each other.

Good luck on your educational journey and welcome again to InstantCert.

From a loyal degree seeker,

Marshall

Thank you!
That was very informative, and I will be sure to check out college's CLEP policies and such.

That was very helpful, thanks!

[Ronny]

Most colleges accept at least some CLEP exams with high scores. Most of the elite colleges don't accept any CLEP credits whereas most State Universities accept at least some. The better state schools tend to require higher scores than 50 to receive credit for a class. Almost all schools have limits about which exams they accept and how many classes you can CLEP out of. Look at the websites of the colleges you're interested in and search out their policies regarding the granting of CLEP credits.

[QuotableKali1918]

Most colleges accept at least some CLEP exams with high scores. Most of the elite colleges don't accept any CLEP credits whereas most State Universities accept at least some. The better state schools tend to require higher scores than 50 to receive credit for a class. Almost all schools have limits about which exams they accept and how many classes you can CLEP out of. Look at the websites of the colleges you're interested in and search out their policies regarding the granting of CLEP credits.

Thanks. I did look online and they said they didn't accept CLEP credits.

[QuotableKali1918]

So basically I need to ask the college I want to go to what their CLEP policy is for my major and then take those exams?
I'm confused.

[DetroitSki]

If I were u, I'd just go with one of the Big 3. That way you can test out of the maximum number of courses. If there is a course u want to take u can always just register for the one course at a local school.

Big 3 is the way to go!

You'll be done with your degree in no time. Took me less than a year.

[QuotableKali1918]

If I were u, I'd just go with one of the Big 3. That way you can test out of the maximum number of courses. If there is a course u want to take u can always just register for the one course at a local school.

Big 3 is the way to go!

You'll be done with your degree in no time. Took me less than a year.

Okay thanks. The big 3 are like online colleges right? Do I still need a major for one of those?

[Ronny]

Okay thanks. The big 3 are like online colleges right? Do I still need a major for one of those?

The "Big 3" are not online schools, although you can now take a some classes that way. They predate online education by quite a bit. The "Big 3" are the nations 3 assessment colleges which offer no physical classes and accept 100% transfer credit to grant a degree, no residency requirement. There's a huge area of this forum devoted to the discussion of these schools and always helpful members here that can help you with questions regarding them.

[QuotableKali1918]

The "Big 3" are not online schools, although you can now take a some classes that way. They predate online education by quite a bit. The "Big 3" are the nations 3 assessment colleges which offer no physical classes and accept 100% transfer credit to grant a degree, no residency requirement. There's a huge area of this forum devoted to the discussion of these schools and always helpful members here that can help you with questions regarding them.

So, at a Big 3 I could CLEP out of everything and get a degree? Lol that's awesome.