Traditional higher education doesn't offer many shortcuts. But, for more than 20 years, Eastern Michigan has been giving students and non-students alike a chance to get a jump on their academic requirements — and save a lot of time and money in the process.
Through its Academic Advising Center, EMU offers College Level Exam Program (CLEP) tests in subjects ranging from math, English and composition to foreign language, history, business and law.
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TESTING TIME: Norsell Perry, an Eastern Michigan
University senior from Detroit, looks through the
CLEP Web site as she studies the College Level Exam
Program (CLEP) Study Guide. While Perry only
provided an illustration, EMU offers CLEP tests in a
variety of subjects to allow high school students the
opportunity to test out of first-year college courses.
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For a fee of $65 per test (plus an additional $10 for essays), students who think they have college-level proficiency in one of the CLEP subjects can attempt to test out of first-year classes. Most tests are worth three credits, though a score of 63 or better on the 80-question chemistry test nets a whopping seven credit hours. That would save an in-state student $1,282 in tuition — $3,946 if they're coming from out-of-state.
The tests are predominantly multiple choice, but tough enough to weed out those who don't know the material. Anyone who thinks they can fake their way through and pass would do better to save their $65 or invest $25 of it in the CLEP Official Study Guide, a comprehensive book that includes samples of all 34 CLEP tests.
"The CLEP is an excellent way to get credit if you know the subject area," said CLEP administrator Candice Fayaz. "Some people do just buy the text and study for them."
Eastern Michigan gives credit for 28 different CLEP tests, though Fayaz said most students just take one or two. The university has offered the tests since the 1980s, but just recently lifted its limit on the number of alternative credit hours a student can earn. Alternative credits include those earned through CLEP tests, advanced placement tests and credit by exam awarded by departments.
CLEP is a national program, so a test taken at EMU can be used anywhere and EMU, likewise, accepts CLEP scores from all over the country. The university gets about 100 test applications a year, though not everyone who takes a CLEP test at EMU will end up enrolling here.
For more information on CLEP testing schedules, policies and procedures, go to http://www.emich.edu/aac/clep.htm on the Academic Advising Web site. The Official CLEP study guide is available at http://www.collegeboard.com.
