CLEPS and this site

[Banta]

Hello all,

I'm getting ready to take my first CLEPs in a little while (aiming for the College Mathematics and Humanities to start), and I'm wondering how well do the questions on this site represent the difficulty of the CLEPs? If it's at all comparable, then I feel I'm in pretty good shape.

I have the "Cracking the CLEPS" and the CLEPS general advice book(can't recall exactly what it's called) on order right now and they should be arriving shortly.

Also, on the advice of a member of this board (you know who you are!), I'm wondering whether anyone here is going the all test route with Excelsior College and more specifically, aiming for a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. If so, anything you could tell me about your process would be of great help. I have a general outline of tests that I want to take, but I want to make sure that it fits the all the requirements.

Thanks in advance to all who reply!

~Terry

[snazzlefrag]

Originally Posted by Banta

Hello all,

I'm getting ready to take my first CLEPs in a little while (aiming for the College Mathematics and Humanities to start), and I'm wondering how well do the questions on this site represent the difficulty of the CLEPs? If it's at all comparable, then I feel I'm in pretty good shape.

I have the "Cracking the CLEPS" and the CLEPS general advice book(can't recall exactly what it's called) on order right now and they should be arriving shortly.

Also, on the advice of a member of this board (you know who you are!), I'm wondering whether anyone here is going the all test route with Excelsior College and more specifically, aiming for a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. If so, anything you could tell me about your process would be of great help. I have a general outline of tests that I want to take, but I want to make sure that it fits the all the requirements.

Thanks in advance to all who reply!

~Terry

Hi Banta,

Welcome to the board.

I am planning on getting a Psychology degree from Excelsior via testing out. I am not enrolled yet, so my degree plan might need to be adjusted once I do.

I am taking all my general ed exams first, and then I will enroll before I begin working on my major so that I don't make any bad choices.

With that disclaimer out of the way, here are the Psych exams (and other required exams) I have either already taken, or plan on taking:

Required to Graduate from Excelsior:
ECE Information Literacy
TECEP English Composition I (Written English Requirement)

Note: Any English Comp credits from an RA school will do. CLEP English Comp does not fulfill WER at Excelsior.)

Required Core Courses for Psychology Major:
CLEP Intro to Psych
DANTES Principles of Statistics
ECE Research Methods in Psychology

Additional Requisites and Electives for Psychology Major:
ECE Foundations of Gerentology (Category H)
ECE Psychology of Adulthood & Aging
ECE Abnormal Psychology (Category J)
ECE Social Psychology (Category G)
ECE Organizational Behavior
CLEP Human Growth & Development
CLEP Intro to Educational Psychology (Category L)

Total Psych Major: 30 Credits

Hope that helps,
Snazzlefrag

[Banta]

Hey Snazzlefrag,

Thanks for your reply.

Do you plan on taking the GRE in Psychology at some point? Because as I understand it, taking that will virtually satisfy all the requirements for a major in Psychology. Even so, I still plan on taking a bunch of Psychology related courses to get my upper level credits (GRE gives you 30 credits if you score in the 80 percentile, 18 upper level credits/12 lower level credits) :

ECE Research Methods in Psychology
ECE Abnormal Psychology
ECE Social Psychology
ECE Lifespan Developmental Psychology
ECE Organizational Behavior
CLEP Intro to Psych
CLEP Intro to Educational Psych
DANTES Fundementals of Counseling
DANTES Principles of Statistics

Then, if I understand this correctly, all I have to do when I combine that with a GRE is fulfill general ed requirements and then take enough tests to get to 120 credits. Does this sound right to you? You might not have the answer, but I figured I'd ask.

Also... I'm having a tough time figuring out what exactly the difference is in a B.S. in Psychology and a B.A. I read on some website that a BA is more for someone who has an interest in Psychology, but doesn't plan on getting their masters. I do plan on getting my Masters, for my intention is to become a counselor. Do you have any idea what the difference is in course selection in getting a BA in Psychology and a BS in Psychology from Excelsior? I've read the difference on their site many times, but it doesn't really seem like anything tangible from what I can figure, with the only difference being that the BS allows you to pick more courses from outside the Sciences and Arts field.

~Terry

[ShotoJuku]

Originally Posted by Banta

Hello all,

I'm getting ready to take my first CLEPs in a little while (aiming for the College Mathematics and Humanities to start), and I'm wondering how well do the questions on this site represent the difficulty of the CLEPs? If it's at all comparable, then I feel I'm in pretty good shape.

Thanks in advance to all who reply!

~Terry

Hey Terry - Welcome to the IC group!

To answer your question - the flashcards are pretty much designed to give you as much information as possible that you can absorb and then be able to use on your exams giving you a high potential for "recall" on many if not most, or even all of the questions. It is by far the greatest study tool around. Good Luck!!

[snazzlefrag]

Originally Posted by ShotoJuku

Hey Terry - Welcome to the IC group!

To answer your question - the flashcards are pretty much designed to give you as much information as possible that you can absorb and then be able to use on your exams giving you a high potential for "recall" on many if not most, or even all of the questions. It is by far the greatest study tool around. Good Luck!!

I absolutely agree!

In most cases, Instantcert alone is enough to pass. In other cases, it is helpful to study from one or two other sources as well. If you read the board (or just ask), you will find out which exams you need additional resources for.

Regarding BA and BS:
At Excelsior, the only difference between a BA and a BS is the distribution of your credits.

For a BS, you can apply up to 60 business/professional credits (upper or lower credit), and your depth requirements can be fulfilled using either arts & science OR business/professional subjects.

For a BA, you can only apply 30 business/professional credits (all of which are counted as LOWER credit), and both your depth requirements must be fulfilled using arts & science type subjects.

Basically, the BS allows for far more flexibility in applying the various CLEP/DANTES credits towards your degree.

Regarding the GRE PSychology:
Passing with, I think, an 83% percentile score will earn you all 30 credits needed for a major in Psychology. You will still need to have fulfilled all other requirements for this major.

Caution: If you have already taken some Psychology courses, your GRE credits will NOT duplicate them. Eg, If you have already passed Intro to Psychology CLEP, you will only earn 27 credits for your GRE. If you have also already passed Abnormal Psychology, you will only earn 24 credits for your GRE...and so on. Any excess GRE credits CANNOT then be applied as elective credits.

Hope that makes sense!
Snazzlefrag

[Banta]

Caution: If you have already taken some Psychology courses, your GRE credits will NOT duplicate them. Eg, If you have already passed Intro to Psychology CLEP, you will only earn 27 credits for your GRE. If you have also already passed Abnormal Psychology, you will only earn 24 credits for your GRE...and so on. Any excess GRE credits CANNOT then be applied as elective credits.

Hope that makes sense!
Snazzlefrag

I'm glad you told me that. I never would have guessed that.

So, are you saying if I take the GRE in Psychology and get all 30 credits, that I don't have to take the tests that you outlined in your first post (with the exception of Statistics, I'd imagine) and in fact, taking those tests wouldn't add any credit?

[snazzlefrag]

Originally Posted by Banta

I'm glad you told me that. I never would have guessed that.

So, are you saying if I take the GRE in Psychology and get all 30 credits, that I don't have to take the tests that you outlined in your first post (with the exception of Statistics, I'd imagine) and in fact, taking those tests wouldn't add any credit?

That's correct...it is "either/or"..not both.