CLEP score??? Bewildered . . .

[Harriet Vane]

We are new to the whole CLEP process. Please help us. :)

 

Dd scored 63 on her Spanish CLEP this morning. According to the handy-dandy chart in the book, that's a respectable score but not a high score. Is it good enough to hang onto and proudly put on her student resume? Or should she study more and try again in a few months?

 

If this were AP I would understand better. With the AP, a 4 or 5 are desirable and a 3 is not bad but not great. If that 3 is in a subject area that is immediately pertinent to the student's desired major, studying and trying for a better score is the best thing to do. How does the CLEP scoring compare?

 

Thanks!

[regentrude]

It depends what she wants with the score.

Universities have policies that state how high a CLEP score needs to be for them to award credit. Our university for example gives credit for certain courses if the CLEP score is 59 or higher. So, the score might be sufficient for her to receive credit for certain Spanish courses - if the university she goes to accepts CLEP at all. Our school does not accept CLEP exams for any foreign languages; credit by examination is awarded for passing a specific exam through the language department.

So, in short: ask the college.

 

ETA: Just saw that our school also has the policy:"An examination may not be repeated in an attempt to earn credit."

 

I am not familiar with the admissions process, but from reading on this board I am under the impression that admissions people do not care much for CLEP.

[jpklehm]

It depends what she wants with the score.

Universities have policies that state how high a CLEP score needs to be for them to award credit. Our university for example gives credit for certain courses if the CLEP score is 59 or higher. So, the score might be sufficient for her to receive credit for certain Spanish courses - if the university she goes to accepts CLEP at all. Our school does not accept CLEP exams for any foreign languages; credit by examination is awarded for passing a specific exam through the language department.

So, in short: ask the college.

 

ETA: Just saw that our school also has the policy:"An examination may not be repeated in an attempt to earn credit."

 

I am not familiar with the admissions process, but from reading on this board I am under the impression that admissions people do not care much for CLEP.

 

What if our goal is to validate and add weight to the transcript, not so much for earning course credit? Would CLEP be a fine alternative to AP, then?

 

I'm just wondering.

 

Thanks.

[Harriet Vane]

What if our goal is to validate and add weight to the transcript, not so much for earning course credit? Would CLEP be a fine alternative to AP, then?

 

I'm just wondering.

 

Thanks.

 

I'm wondering this as well.

[Melissa B]

I think it is fine for validation. If I were to compare the two scores:

 

AP 3 = CLEP 50

[Harriet Vane]

I think it is fine for validation. If I were to compare the two scores:

 

AP 3 = CLEP 50

 

So a score of 62 is like getting an AP 4? Or lower?

 

Thank you.

[Murphy101]

I can tell you what I do.

 

I note the high school course like this in columns:

 

*Western Civilizations I Honors (CLEP score 63) Grade % 1 credit GPA 0.00

 

Then down in the testing info at the bottom

 

* Testing report available upon request

Or

* See attached CLEP transcript

 

 

ETA: If it helps to know, that score combined with their satisfactorly completed course at home in the subject would get my teen a grade of 93% and 3.7 GPA for the 1 credit high school course.

 

 

Some schools or degrees will accept them for credit and some won't, leaving it has mommy validation. This covers me either way.

Edited June 6, 2012 by Martha

[Melissa B]

So a score of 62 is like getting an AP 4? Or lower?

 

Thank you.

 

 

I'm using the Florida state system (University of Florida to be exact) as that is the system my kids will be using. In Spanish a CLEP 50 will give you 3 credits of Spanish and a 63 will give you 6 credits. For AP testing a 3 will give you 3 credits and a 4 will give you 6 credits.

Edited June 6, 2012 by Melissa B

[creekland]

 

If this were AP I would understand better. With the AP, a 4 or 5 are desirable and a 3 is not bad but not great.

 

Thanks!

 

Just thought I'd mention... if I were trying for any sort of competitive school, I don't think I'd list a 3 even if the school gives credit for it. I think I'd rewrite the transcript to just show a "basic" course taken - not an AP version.

 

But that's just me... YMMV

 

I've no experience with CLEP.

[PeterPan]

May I be nosy and ask a question? Did she do any of the prep tests for that CLEP exam and how did her actual score compare? I'm just beginning to explore this whole world of CLEP and wondered how that tends to work out for people...

[Leanna Tomlinson]

May I be nosy and ask a question? Did she do any of the prep tests for that CLEP exam and how did her actual score compare? I'm just beginning to explore this whole world of CLEP and wondered how that tends to work out for people...

 

I'll tell you our experience. The predictor was different for different CLEP tests.

 

For science and math CLEPs the prep tests scores my kids got were lower that their actual final scores by at least 5 points.

 

For history (both US I and II) the prep test scores matched what my kids received on the CLEP.

 

My dc have taken US history I & II after doing TOG for 3 or 4 years. With almost no review they passed with mid to high 60's.

 

Dd did not pass the Chemistry CLEP after Apologia regular and advanced Chemistry. Her score was a 63 and the cut-off at her college was a 65. She did very well in college chemistry.

 

Ds passed the Calculus CLEP with a 69. This was after 2 years in Chalkdust Calculus with a tutor. (I can take NO credit myself.)

[southcarolinamom]

My son's experience with CLEP exams last year was like this:

 

He finished 12th grade at the end of Feb. 2011, and immediately started studying for CLEP exams. That was only AFTER he picked the college he wanted to attend, and was accepted. He knew he wanted to major in nursing, and he had the list of required classes for his major. We went through the list together and picked out the 7 CLEP exams that would match some of his general ed requirements:

 

History of Civ I and II

English Literature

Analyzing and Interpreting Literature

Human Growth & Development (for nursing)

Intro to Sociology

General Psychology

 

I put together a monthly calendar for him, and each day he practiced with that particular CLEP study guide. We also practiced with Peterson's free on-line practice tests. (We realized that his test prep books were a bit harder than the actual tests themselves.) He scored between a 57 and 73, depending on the exam. His college accepted any score above a 50, so in less than 5 months he earned 21 college credits toward his major! As each test costs $100, it was well worth his time and energy to take the CLEP tests.

 

If your child is highly self-motivated and plans to attend college, I would recommend CLEP exams. They aren't for everyone, but they sure do save time later!

[PeterPan]

Leanna, Missy--Thanks, those are interesting stories! And yes, that's exactly the kind of calculation we're making, that dd could do some CLEP to get rid of the general ed classes and get on to the stuff she really wants. :)

[Harriet Vane]

May I be nosy and ask a question? Did she do any of the prep tests for that CLEP exam and how did her actual score compare? I'm just beginning to explore this whole world of CLEP and wondered how that tends to work out for people...

 

She did work from a CLEP prep book and did prep tests both from the book and in class with her instructor. Her CLEP score was a lot higher than her practice exam score, and she felt that the practice exams were harder than the real thing. This was for the Spanish CLEP.

[MomsintheGarden]

Our two oldest children have each taken several CLEPs for credit. The match between the practice test score depends a lot on the student, the subject, and the practice book. We tend to use the REI books, and their tests are fairly good indicators of actual scores.

 

We have never used CLEP scores for transcript validation. Most college admissions offices are well-versed in interpreting AP and IB scores, but not CLEP. I believe that is because CLEPs have usually been taken by non-traditional students trying to receive credit when going back to school. High schools do not teach CLEP courses, although sometimes there is a lot of overlap between certain AP and CLEP subjects.

 

Just my $0.02, fwiw.

 

GardenMom

[AmyontheFarm]

We just signed with CollegePlus! so I'm interested in this conversation! :bigear: