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Try it nowNatalie is a teacher and holds an MA in English Education and is in progress on her PhD in psychology.
Harriet is very excited to be at college. It's her first year, and she's still trying to figure everything out. She knows she wants to be a political science major, but she's not sure what classes she's supposed to be taking.
To earn her bachelor's degree, Harriet will have to take two types of classes: general education and major classes. General education classes are those that are required for all students at the university, regardless of what their major is. Usually, general education requirements include a class or classes in subjects like English, math, science, and foreign language.
On the other hand, major classes are those that are required for students in a specific major. A political science major like Harriet might have to take a class in the history of American politics or one in international relations. Harriet's roommate Gina, on the other hand, is a math major. She'll have the same general education requirements as Harriet, but she won't have to take classes on American politics or international relations.
So Harriet and Gina and all the other students at their college have to fulfill certain general education requirements in order to graduate. But the good news is that there are ways to test out of general education requirements. Let's take a closer look at how Harriet can earn credit for her general education requirements without having to take more classes at her college.
Harriet really doesn't want to have to take all of the general education requirements that her college has. Who wants to spend a semester in calculus when she could be taking a class on the political discourse in Ancient Greece? Not to mention the fact that she has to pay for all her courses.
Harriet has another, cheaper option to taking general education courses. She can test out of the requirements. This involves just what it sounds like: Harriet will take a test and, if she passes it, the college will give her credit, and she won't have to take the class. Check out Study.com's list of online college courses that can earn you credit all online.
There are essentially three types of tests that Harriet can take to test out:
1. Tests given after a high school class. Tests, like the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB), involve taking an advanced class in high school, followed by a special test. Harriet, for example, took an AP U.S. History course in high school and took the AP test for U.S. History, which let her enter college with three credits of history in the bag.
2. Tests without a class. Tests, like the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), are similar to AP and IB exams. They come in a variety of subjects, and a passing grade often allows a student to get credit for a class without having to take it.
Unlike the AP and IB exams, though, the CLEP and similar exams do not involve taking a class first; instead, the student studies on her own. Further, while AP and IB exams are only taken by high school students, Harriet can take CLEP exams even when she's enrolled at college.
3. Tests given by the college. Competency exams are often given by an academic department to allow a student to test out of a subject. For example, Harriet took German in high school. She can take a competency exam given by the German department at her college in order to test out of the foreign language requirement.
Schools vary on how they deal with testing out of general education requirements, so it's always important to check with your school's registrar's office or your advisor to find out which tests are accepted and how you can test out. For example, Harriet's school might not offer competency exams or they might only accept certain exams.
Even if Harriet's school allows her to take tests, there are different ways that Harriet's exam scores could translate into her having to take fewer classes.
The ways that schools apply exam results have to do with both the general education requirements and also the number of credits or points that are required for a degree. For many schools, a bachelor's degree requires around 120 credits to complete, which includes both the general education courses and the major courses that a student takes. So, if Harriet has taken a test, how might her school apply those results to her general education requirements or to the total number of credits she needs?
There are three basic ways that her test results might be used by the school:
1. Fulfill requirements but no credits. Let's say that Harriet takes a CLEP exam in calculus to fulfill the math requirement at her school. Her school might then say, 'OK, you've fulfilled the math requirements and you don't have to take other math classes.' But does that mean that it's the exact same as if she'd taken a math class?
Well, not exactly. If she takes a math class, she'll have her math general education requirement fulfilled, plus she'll get three credits for the class, which means that she's closer to her required total of 120 credits to graduate. But if her school uses the exam to let her fulfill her requirements but does not give her any credits, she isn't any closer to the total of 120 credits to graduation.
2. Does not fulfill requirements but gets credits. The opposite scenario is true, too. Harriet's school could say, 'Hey, we'll give you three credits for this exam, but you still have to take a math class to fulfill your general education requirements.' In that case, she's closer to the 120 credits she needs but no closer to fulfilling her general education requirements.
3. Fulfill requirements and gets credits. The best-case scenario, of course, is for Harriet's school to say to her, 'We'll give you credit and let you fulfill the math requirements.' That way, she's done with the math general education requirement and closer to the 120 credits she needs.
Of course, Harriet can't control which one her school does, and policies vary from school to school. But even if she doesn't get both credits and requirements fulfilled, she might find that taking the test is still a good idea for her. The important thing is that Harriet knows ahead of time what her school's policy on testing out is so that she can make an informed decision.
College can be expensive and time consuming. One option to lower college costs is to test out of general education requirements. Tests given after a high school class, tests given without a class, and tests given by the college are all types of exams that students can take for college credit. However, there are varying ways that a college can apply the credits earned in exams, including allowing the test to fulfill general education requirements or not and granting credit hours or not.
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How to Choose a College: Guidance Counseling7 chapters | 46 lessons
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