CLEP (College Level Examination Program) was introduced in 1967 as a credit-by-examination program for individuals such as adult students, nontraditional learners, and military service members.
Similar to how the Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) exams enable high school students to earn college credit for knowledge obtained in high school, the CLEP examinations are designed to enable adult candidates to receive college credit for knowledge acquired outside of the traditional college classroom.
Those who take CLEP exams are typically students at universities or community colleges. Credit earned though CLEP exams is intended to fulfil course prerequisites or flesh out a candidate's transcript with additional credits to be applied toward graduation. Taking CLEP examinations by themselves does not grant any sort of college degree; the earned credits must be applied to the candidate's transcript at an institution of higher learning.
There are CLEP examination in five main subject areas: History & Social Sciences; Composition & Literature; Science & Mathematics; Business; and World Languages. Within those five categories, there are a total of thirty-three subject examinations which cover courses a typical university freshman or sophomore might take.[4]
History & Social Sciences is the largest category, with twelve exams spanning subjects from microeconomics to educational psychology to the history of the United States. Composition & Literature includes six examinations such as College Composition and Analyzing and Interpreting Literature. Science & Mathematics includes seven examinations in science areas such as biology and chemistry and mathematics areas such as algebra and calculus. Business covers five subjects, including topics such as accounting, management, and marketing. World Languages covers the introductory levels of three languages: French, German, and Spanish.
The College Board reports that each CLEP exam is worth between 3 and 12 college credits, but the specific number of credits granted for successfully completing a given exam depends on the policies and guidelines of the candidate's institution of higher learning.
In general, the exams contain about 100 multiple choice questions with 90 minutes allotted to complete. Depending on the test, some might require more than just the standard multiple choice format. For example, the College Composition CLEP test also requires two essays in addition to multiple choice items
CLEP Tests (and Credits):
Business
Financial Accounting 3 Business Law, Introductory 3 Information Systems and Computer Applications 3 Management, Principles of 3 Marketing, Principles of 3
Composition and Literature
American Literature 6 Analyzing and Interpreting Literature 3 College Composition 6 College Composition Modular 3/6 English Literature 6 Humanities 3
Foreign Languages
French Language, Level 1 6 French Language, Level 2 12 German Language, Level 1 6 German Language, Level 2 12 Spanish Language, Level 1 6 Spanish Language, Level 2 12
History and Social Sciences
American Government 3 Educational Psychology, Introduction to 3 History of the United States I: Early Colonization to 1877 3 History of the United States II: 1865 to Present 3 Human Growth and Development 3 Macroeconomics, Principles of 3 Microeconomics, Principles of 3 Psychology, Introductory 3 Social Sciences and History 6 Sociology, Introductory 3 Western Civilization I: Ancient Near East to 1648 3 Western Civilization II: 1648 to Present 3
Science and Mathematics
Biology 6 Calculus 4 Chemistry 6 College Algebra 3 College Mathematics 6 Precalculus 3 Natural Sciences 6
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