CLEP vs AP

[dfrecore]

All of the above. If you are a high school student able to take AP courses/exams, then you should. My son is taking 3 AP courses this year, and will be testing for all of them. Then, since AP Physics 1 and AP European History don't have matching CLEP exams, he's out of luck if he doesn't pass. But he'll still get the benefits of the higher GPA. For AP Psych, if he doesn't pass, he'll take the CLEP in the summer because I think he'd easily pass after the AP course (and will take Modern States just in case, and then it will be free).

But, AP is a harder test because it's not all multiple choice - lots of essays to write even in the math and science exams. CLEP is all multiple choice.

Also, AP is on school campuses during the day, which means that not just anyone can go take them - you have to get permission from the school in order to do so, and many (MOST?) will not allow it. So it's not even an option for most people.

And, AP offers exams that don't exist in the CLEP world - Spanish Lit, Latin, Italian, European History, Art History, Music Theory, etc.

Some schools pay for your AP exams - my son's school will not only pay 50% for some of them, but they get $100 for every one that they pass (it's a non-profit foundation that pays, not the school itself). There are a lot of low-income students, so it's a way (I think) for them to encourage kids to take the exams that might not otherwise.

So really, it's not a flat "should I take an AP or CLEP exam" since it won't apply to everyone or every subject evenly. Lots of pros with AP.