Success With CLEP Exams

This week I have to tell you about my experiences taking the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams.

My guidance counselor had told me when I re-entered college that I could choose to take some CLEP exams to get credit for some of the basic college courses that I needed to graduate.

I had been putting it off for months now, but I finally decided that it was silly not to try and take the exams. I am so happy that I did. I was able to CLEP four courses. Now I get credit for the courses and can use that time taking other classes on my long, long list of required courses. And the best part is that the CLEP exams are much cheaper than taking the actual course.

As a working adult college student, time is money, and by taking the CLEP exams, I saved both!

If you are unfamiliar with them you can contact your school and they can tell you if you are eligible to take them. I strongly recommend that you go for it.

With my four exams I developed a plan that really worked for me. I passed each test on the first try, so here's my plan, maybe it will work for you too.

1. Call the testing center and schedule an appointment for three weeks out.


2. Get study material for the course that you are going to CLEP. Either get a study guide online, or get a college textbook on the subject.


3. Get the official CLEP practice test either online, or at a library or book store.


4. Read and review one chapter a night in the textbook or study guide.


5. At the end of each week, do the practice test and see how well you did. You should improve after each of the three weeks.


6. Make flashcards from the study material and the practice test.


7. Review one last time before the test.

Each school sets their own requirements for the minimum score needed to pass the exam. In my case I needed to get 50 out of 80 right to pass. Using my study method, I was able to pass all four exams on the first try.

I strongly recommend that you give the CLEP exams a try. With a little effort on your part, you can save both time and money, two very important items to most college students.

Graduation A Time For Celebration

Last week I got to see some of my fellow college students graduate. It was fun to be able to celebrate the completion of their hard work and dedication to completing their college educations.

Many spoke to me of their uncertainty of leaving the academic life and begining their careers in the business world. It was then that I realized that they have the same fears that I did, but in reverse. I had feared re-entering academic life with my return to college after a 20+ year break, and they feared entering that working world that I was afraid to leave.

It makes me smile to think that everyone fears something. And what we really fear is the unknown. It so much easier to stay in our comfortable roles, whether it's being a student, or working at a certain job, we all find it far safer to stay put rather than take a chance on change.

How many times have we hesitated to make a change and when we finally make it, sometimes through circumstances outside our control, we find that we wondered why we didn't do it sooner. Yet we continue to fear change the next time it comes around.

I have read articles that say that change becomes easier the more times you have success through those changes. If that's the case, I hope that I remember those successful feelings when my next opportunity for change comes along.

And to the graduating seniors I say, congratulations! Take this time to celebrate your success and remember that graduation is just the beginning to the next successful step in your life!