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TESTS FOR COLLEGE CREDIT
TESTS FOR COLLEGE CREDIT
Some colleges offer the option of "validating" their courses – taking the final exam without having to sit in class or do the course work – while working toward a degree at those schools. There are also three widely-respected series of tests on many subjects by which you can earn college credit accepted by colleges and universities throughout the U.S.
The College Level Examination Program (widely known as CLEP) consists of a series of exams that test your college level knowledge gained through course work, independent study, cultural pursuits, travel, special interests, military service schools, and professional development. The American Council on Education (ACE) recommends the minimum score for awarding credit, but each college or university determines what scores you must attain for each test to count toward its degrees and how much credit from each test it will apply toward its degrees. CLEP General and Subject examinations are accepted for credit by more than 2,900 colleges and universities. These tests are owned by the College Board (Educational Testing Service).
Another series of tests is the DSST (formerly DANTES Subject Standardized Tests). The DSST program was inaugurated in the 1960s by DANTES – the Defense Agency for Non-Traditional Education Support – which is part of the Department of Defense. There are 37 different DSSTs, examinations on college subjects that are comparable to the final or end-of-course examinations in undergraduate courses. ACE recommends 3 semester hours of credit per test. Like CLEP tests, these exams are also accepted for credit by hundreds of colleges and universities. A number of years ago, a private company bought the rights to DSSTs and its successor corporation now administers the program.
The third series of exams for which you can earn college credit were created and are still administered by Excelsior College (formerly Regents College) in New York. The Excelsior College Examinations (known as ECEs) are used to meet specific college degree requirements of the Excelsior College degrees and are accepted for college credit by over 900 colleges and universities.
Thomas Edison State College (TESC) also has a series of almost seventy TECEP (Thomas Edison College Examination Program) tests available. These can be used to satisfy degree credit requirements at TESC and other schools and you can use tuition assistance to pay for them, even if you haven't been admitted to TESC as a student.
Finally, there are the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) subject tests. These tests are primarily used by graduate schools to screen applicants to their programs. However, some undergraduate schools also grant credit for scores on GRE subject tests. The GRE program is owned and administered by the Educational Testing Service.
CLEP tests, DSSTs, ECEs, and GREs are available to Coast Guard personnel free of charge.
DANTES Test Transcripts
If you've taken DANTES-sponsored tests (CLEP tests and DSSTs) and can't find your score reports, relax. You can get an official transcript showing scores on all DANTES-sponsored tests you've taken any time since 1974 for $20. (If you don't need an official transcript, your ESO can request an unofficial transcript for free.) Either way, you'll need to fill out all applicable information on the "Military Transcript Order Form" and submit it to your ESO.
Test Preparation Resources
A number of first-rate colleges and universities are now offering their courses to anyone who wants access to them free, via the Internet. These courses are NOT for credit, but they can be used to help study for CLEP tests, DSSTs, etc. as well as to supplement your instructor’s presentation and study materials for college courses you’re taking for credit.
These are not for-credit courses. But if you want to brush up on a particular subject or learn something in preparation for a test (e.g., CLEP test, DSST, GRE, etc.) this is a great option. Or if you’re home-schooling your children, these are excellent high-level courses.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has had courses available via its MIT Open Courseware web site. There are hundreds of subjects available here, not just engineering, architecture, science, and technology courses, but also humanities, arts, social science, health science, management, and other courses as well.
Along the same lines are Open Yale Courses, from Yale University, and courses from the University of California campuses at Berkeley and San Diego. iTunes U has courses from yet more schools such as Stanford University, and the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge.
And now the Indian Institute of Technology (that’s right from India – but even more selective than MIT) is offering courses via YouTube. The courses currently offered are in the areas of the sciences, management, and engineering.
Similarly, you can find “Free Online Courses from Great Universities” at openculture. The OpenCourseWare Consortium (“a collaboration of more than 200 higher education institutions and associated organizations from around the world creating a broad and deep body of open educational content using a shared model”) also offers hundreds of courses from institutions all over the world.
Also check out HippoCampus, Connexions, and Peterson's Online Academic Skills Course (OASC).
Yet another source is StraighterLine (NOT free), which is just now getting off the ground but may be the wave of the future. Not only can it help you prepare for tests, you can actually use its courses for credit through one of what it calls partner colleges. “Your credits will actually be awarded by a StraighterLine Partner College that you select. And, because all Partner Colleges are regionally accredited, credits earned can be used to either complete your degree at that college or be transferred to another college or university.”