A: Off-campus college is a method of gaining college-level education with a focus on self-directed learning. This method can be used to earn part or all of a degree. Course requirements can be completed through credit-by-exam testing, online courses, a demonstration of life experience (like prior learning assessment), and free or open classes (such as massive open online courses).
A: For your first CLEP test, choosing a subject you enjoy is always a good idea. Also, choosing a test in which you learn and practice skills that you will be using later is handy. I will risk throwing out a few specific CLEP titles, but do consider other CLEP titles that play to your strengths.
Analyzing and Interpreting Literature– Do you enjoy reading and answering questions about what you read? You might find this a breezy way to earn three credits.
College Composition– Enjoy writing essays? If you know how to coherently put your thoughts on paper or you want to develop this skill, taking this test first or early in college will strengthen your prose for other writing assignments throughout college. If writing is not your strong point, this would still be an okay first test; just allow yourself plenty of time to prepare. College Composition is a six-credit test.
Language tests– While I strongly feel that a language test is not the best first test for those who are just learning a language, a language test can be the perfect first test for fluent speakers. You can earn up to nine credits.
Principles of Management– Since I haven’t taken this test, I mention it based only on reviews I’ve read. Not surprisingly, it seems to be an easier test for students with management experience or background. The test is worth three credits.
To continue the FAQs straight from chapter 14 of College Without the Campus, here is #30:
A: Besides the MOOC websites and MOOC aggregators listed under “Massive Open Online Course” in chapter 6, here are a few additional websites listing free courses and resources:
http://www.collegeaffordabilityguide.org/college-for-free/moocs-that-offer-credit-by-exam/
http://www.opencourselibrary.org/
You can find additional resources on this page: Resources
A: Yes! CLEP and DSST’s test creators even offer textbook suggestions. The College Board’s textbook examples are located online in the Study Resources for each exam. DSST textbook resources are listed on the test’s Fact Sheet.
Because most CLEP and DSST tests cover general education, many commonly-available textbooks for the test’s topic will cover the same material as the test. You can compare the textbook’s content outline with the content of the CLEP/DSST test to determine if the textbook is suitable study material.
For CLEP Study Resources, visit https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam and choose your exam. Then click “Additional Study Resources.” The following link shows the resources for the American Government exam: https://clep.collegeboard.org/exam/american-government/resources
DSST Fact Sheets are available from this page: http://getcollegecredit.com/exam_fact_sheets
