06-28-2013, 09:06 PM
This thread was instrumental in helping me pass the CLEP Calculus Test. So I thought i'd pay it forward a bit.
I took the CLEP Calculus Exam this morning. Passing the test was pretty important for me, as a failing grade would have meant that I couldn't apply to Engineering programs this summer and would have had to wait an entire year.
So I was pretty nervous.
Even more of a curveball is that I originally had taught myself Calculus and taken classes like Differential equations, Vector Calculus, Infinite Series and Sequences, and Linear Algebra. All classes that have introductory Calculus as their prerequisite, so this was more of a formality.
Which leads me to my first point. This Calculus exam is unlike any final exam you'll see in a calculus level math class. Something I know from experience.
The material that CLEP wants you to learn is far more conceptual than anything you'll learn in a brick and mortar class. This is something that I liked. A lot. If you understand the material that CLEP tests you on, you will be able to get an A in Calculus at any college. This exam just goes places that is difficult for "normal" Calculus courses to go.
With that, I think that the CLEP-Calculus is unique. I don't think that you can do well on this exam by just picking up a Calculus textbook and doing problems. You won't get the correct immersion into the topic. Or at least not the perspective that CLEP wants you to find. Buy the REA CLEP Calculus Book. Buy the Practice exam on CLEPs website.
(or go to this link: http://papers.xtremepapers.com/CLEP/CLEP...0Guide.pdf )
Answering problems that are of the same mold that you'll see on the CLEP exam is vital. Which is why I don't believe being able to do problems in your ordinary Calculus textbook will be all that helpful. The CLEP thinks differently than your Calculus textbook, so you need to learn to think that way.
Preparing for the Exam:
As I said above, buy the REA CLEP textbook. It's worth it.
I used that (REA) and two CLEP study guides and passed with a 64. I should say that I was never able to pass any of the practice exams convincingly(CLEP and REA). The problems you'll see in the REA book are more difficult and take longer to solve than the ones you see on the actual exam. Even after going through the Practice exams more than once, I was never able to get a raw score of over 32 and was always struggling with finishing the exam on time.
The Exam
As for specific problems on the exam, someone else outlined that above and I found that to be very accurate. If you know how to do related rates and optimization problems, you'll save yourself a lot of time. Even though they are not a large part of the exam, they are quick to solve IF you know how to solve them.
Someone said that the related rates problem on the exam was about an oil tanker. It actually wasn't. Something minor, but there was something about an oil tanker.
As far as all of the other problems they stated, they were absolutely correct and all of the problems were on the exam.
Even though I struggled to finish the practice exams on time, I finished each section with time to spare. Enough that I was able to go over all of my marked answers and make sure they were answered correctly. Also, learn to use the Calculator. It helps.
One thing that threw me off was how the exam ended. They don't just tell you your score. They make you answer a survey that will probably take 3 years off of your life because of the built up anxiety. To top it off, my exam froze on question 5 of 6 of the survey and took 20 minutes to reset the system. Once I finally finished the survey, there's a drawn out pause on a blank screen that makes your heart scream for mercy.
This is the roughest part of the exam.
After that, it's fairly straightforward. You either passed or failed and you get handed a grade print off stating your grade and the exam you took.
Oh, and this might change between testing centers, but I was only allotted one sheet of scratch paper. This was difficult, but I worked around it.
Good luck! It's a tough exam, but it's doable.
I took the CLEP Calculus Exam this morning. Passing the test was pretty important for me, as a failing grade would have meant that I couldn't apply to Engineering programs this summer and would have had to wait an entire year.
So I was pretty nervous.
Even more of a curveball is that I originally had taught myself Calculus and taken classes like Differential equations, Vector Calculus, Infinite Series and Sequences, and Linear Algebra. All classes that have introductory Calculus as their prerequisite, so this was more of a formality.
Which leads me to my first point. This Calculus exam is unlike any final exam you'll see in a calculus level math class. Something I know from experience.
The material that CLEP wants you to learn is far more conceptual than anything you'll learn in a brick and mortar class. This is something that I liked. A lot. If you understand the material that CLEP tests you on, you will be able to get an A in Calculus at any college. This exam just goes places that is difficult for "normal" Calculus courses to go.
With that, I think that the CLEP-Calculus is unique. I don't think that you can do well on this exam by just picking up a Calculus textbook and doing problems. You won't get the correct immersion into the topic. Or at least not the perspective that CLEP wants you to find. Buy the REA CLEP Calculus Book. Buy the Practice exam on CLEPs website.
(or go to this link: http://papers.xtremepapers.com/CLEP/CLEP...0Guide.pdf )
Answering problems that are of the same mold that you'll see on the CLEP exam is vital. Which is why I don't believe being able to do problems in your ordinary Calculus textbook will be all that helpful. The CLEP thinks differently than your Calculus textbook, so you need to learn to think that way.
Preparing for the Exam:
As I said above, buy the REA CLEP textbook. It's worth it.
I used that (REA) and two CLEP study guides and passed with a 64. I should say that I was never able to pass any of the practice exams convincingly(CLEP and REA). The problems you'll see in the REA book are more difficult and take longer to solve than the ones you see on the actual exam. Even after going through the Practice exams more than once, I was never able to get a raw score of over 32 and was always struggling with finishing the exam on time.
The Exam
As for specific problems on the exam, someone else outlined that above and I found that to be very accurate. If you know how to do related rates and optimization problems, you'll save yourself a lot of time. Even though they are not a large part of the exam, they are quick to solve IF you know how to solve them.
Someone said that the related rates problem on the exam was about an oil tanker. It actually wasn't. Something minor, but there was something about an oil tanker.
As far as all of the other problems they stated, they were absolutely correct and all of the problems were on the exam.
Even though I struggled to finish the practice exams on time, I finished each section with time to spare. Enough that I was able to go over all of my marked answers and make sure they were answered correctly. Also, learn to use the Calculator. It helps.
One thing that threw me off was how the exam ended. They don't just tell you your score. They make you answer a survey that will probably take 3 years off of your life because of the built up anxiety. To top it off, my exam froze on question 5 of 6 of the survey and took 20 minutes to reset the system. Once I finally finished the survey, there's a drawn out pause on a blank screen that makes your heart scream for mercy.
This is the roughest part of the exam.
After that, it's fairly straightforward. You either passed or failed and you get handed a grade print off stating your grade and the exam you took.
Oh, and this might change between testing centers, but I was only allotted one sheet of scratch paper. This was difficult, but I worked around it.
Good luck! It's a tough exam, but it's doable.