Tag: College credit

Book Review: Homeschooling for College Credit by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa

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• • • • • • • ► Meet Jennifer Cook-DeRosa

I was doing college research on DegreeForum.net when I first learned about author Jennifer Cook-DeRosa. Because she was both a parent and someone who had earned a bachelor’s degree in social sciences using distance learning techniques, she had experience coaching her teens in earning college credit as well as taking credit-by-exam tests. (Cook-DeRosa has since gone on to earn her master’s degree.) I appreciated her regular posts pertaining to Thomas Edison State University, accreditation, and credit-by-exam tests such as CLEP.

In 2012, Cook-DeRosa published Homeschooling for College Credit. This 200-page book guides parents through implementing courses worth college credit into their high school students’ schedules. She begins the book by encouraging parents that teaching high school is doable and then lists some foundational, but critical, information about college courses.

• • • • • • • ► Transferring College Credits

One of the most memorable stories she shares is how the credits she earned for her AOS (Associate in Occupational Studies) in Culinary Arts did not transfer when she went back to college later in life. Not being able to transfer credits was one of my fears about distance learning, and Cook-DeRosa explains how to avoid this (see chapter 3).

Another helpful tool in Homeschooling for College Credit is her four-year high school planning templates. These are designed to schedule credit earning into your high schooler’s curriculum while meeting the requirements for high school at the same time. Essentially, they’re dual credit plans.

Later in the book Cook-DeRosa covers test resources, test-taking skills, making a high school transcript, paying for college, and taking your credit to a college. Also provided is a list of things she prefers in a college and ten colleges that meet those preferences.

• • • • • • • ► A Valuable Resource

Throughout the book, Cook-DeRosa’s experience as a parent of homeschooled children and as a distance learner give the reader plenty to absorb and put into use. Her love for learning, stretching the family’s dollar, and helping other parents jump-start their teen’s college education make this book a handy resource.

For more information about Homeschooling for College Credit, you can preview the book on Amazon.com and visit the Homeschooling for College Credit Facebook page, which is updated regularly with tips and distance learning news.

This is an unsponsored review to share a book I found helpful.

Black mortarboard from College Without the Campus

CLEP Official Study Guide

Product Review: CLEP Official Study Guide

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Sometimes the hardest part about taking a credit-by-exam test is finding the right materials to use to prepare. College Board, the creator of CLEP, has made this process easier by offering the CLEP Official Study Guide. This book gives students an overview of each of the 33 CLEP tests and also provides a nearly full-length practice test for each subject. Let’s get into the nitty-gritty details.

Annually updated

The official exam guide is published yearly and updated to match any changes that have been made to each test. Without having a copy of the past year’s edition to compare with the current edition, it can be tough to tell what (if any) changes have been made. Sometimes book reviewers will note changes on bookseller websites like Amazon, or you can check DegreeForum.net for posts related to changes. If you are using an older edition of the book, you can double-check the test description online to be sure nothing has changed (e.g. an online calculator is still part of the test).

If you are only planning to take one or two CLEP tests, you may prefer to buy the individual exam study guides. The individual guides feature the same information as is in the book. You may save a little money if you only need a guide for one test: the book retails for $24.99, while the individual exam guides cost $10.00 each.

Not a study guide?

An important note is that the CLEP Official Study Guide does not provide the material to use for studying. In this book CLEP offers suggestions on which textbooks and other resources to use. This information can also be found for free by selecting a specific exam at https://clep.collegeboard.org/exams. While you’re there, you can download the exam’s resource guide to view a small selection of free practice questions.

Is it worth it?

By now you may be wondering why this guide is worth purchasing. If CLEP offers textbook suggestions and practice questions online for free, why purchase this guide? What this book can give you is a more accurate practice test experience. With the longer practice tests, students can better gauge if they are ready to take the test and get a feeling for taking the actual test. Plus, the test questions are developed by CLEP, so although you won’t find the same questions on an actual test, they will be very similar.

When you’re looking for a handy resource to get you started on learning to take CLEP tests, the CLEP Official Study Guide is a great way to start! The guide is available at bookstores nationwide, Amazon.com, and at the CLEP website.

This is an unsponsored review to share one of my favorite CLEP products. 🙂

Door in Leavenworth, WA

Finding Your Way after High School

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I remember a most welcome discussion at Hollywood Video with a hilarious family friend in his late 30’s. He knew I was graduating from high school soon.

“What do you want to do next?” he asked.

“I don’t know for sure,” I replied.

“Well, that’s okay,” he said, suddenly becoming thoughtful. “I’m grown up and I still haven’t decided what I want to do!”

His words encouraged me. I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know what my life’s focus would look like in terms of a career.

Start with the end goal—where do you see yourself?

I always admired those students who knew, in high school or earlier, what they wanted to do as a career. They had discovered a passion or found a cause that they wanted to devote themselves to. I, on the other hand, liked many different fields and could see my life going in several directions.

When it came to college I wanted to leave some options open. This is why I chose to take CLEP tests during my freshman year of college: I could explore the various disciplines typical of general education courses to improve my skills and knowledge without going into debt. However, another option would have been to job shadow in several fields.

Find the professionals. How did they get there?

When students job shadow or intern, they are able to preview what the day-to-day in their potential career is like. After I read There Is Life After College, I realized that viewing job goals from the end result would help students reach those goals.

Let’s say I want to be an electrician. Because my dad is a licensed journeyman electrician, I have a go-to source of someone who can tell me exactly how he achieved the skills for this certification and also this job. When I begin with the end in mind, I can plan for the experiences I’ll need to be successful.

Dealing with uncertainty: If you don’t know what you want to do

It’s great when you do know which career you will pursue. But if you still have several options on the table, you may want to try out a few jobs in different career fields to see which you enjoy the most.

Many of my peers were interested in nursing. I have friends who chose nursing school after interning at a hospital. I also have friends who volunteered at a hospital or began nursing courses and found it wasn’t for them. By testing the water in a certain career, you’re making progress toward the end goal of learning where you thrive. You’re also giving yourself the opportunity to change your mind while the risk and cost is low. You may have to try various things and take more time to reach your goal, but you are more likely arrive at the right destination.

Make choices to reduce stress.

The most frustrating parts of high school and college is the uncertainty. Even if you know exactly which career you want to choose, you may not know how to get there. Add to that the pressure to not fall behind peers or disappoint parents, and this time of transition may be quite scary. During this time it’s a good idea to try things. Try things that leave your options open, that encourage you to keep learning and growing without saddling yourself with debt. Perhaps you’ll:

  • enroll in a college course during high school,
  • take a CLEP or DSST test,
  • do a short-term internship,
  • volunteer for a few months,
  • take a job,
  • and/or travel.

All these things can help you build your experiences before you narrow your options and spend the majority of your time pursuing one. With your eye on the endgame, you can reduce stress, gain experience, bolster your résumé and learn more about yourself to prepare for a job you love. And when you love your job, you won’t have to work a day in your life.

Resource Books For CLEP Tests

How to Earn College Credit with CLEP

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Previously I posted “Introduction to CLEP tests for Parents of High School Students” which broaches this topic for parents’ benefit. Here I’ll share tips for someone who wants to try credit-by-exam testing themselves.

Winter break is coming to a close, and now it’s the final semester or second-to-last quarter of this school year. As you look over your schedule for the rest of the year and calculate the number of credits you plan to earn, you might be thinking you’d like to earn a few extra credits and jump ahead for the coming year. Then someone mentions CLEP tests. For about $100 or roughly the cost of two video games, you could earn 3-9 credits. That’s 3-9 credits closer to graduating.

As you ponder this option, you may have a few questions. Will my college accept these credits? Check your college’s website. If there is a search bar handy, try searching for “CLEP” or “transfer credit.” College policy for credit-by-exam tests is typically available in one of the college catalogs. Once you’ve found this information, check the fine print: is there a limit to how many credits you can transfer? a cut-off grade (such as junior status) when you can no longer transfer credit?

If you can apply credit-by-exam tests to your degree, the next step is to verify there is a test that matches a course you need to complete. Credit-by-exam tests can be excellent candidates to fill free elective and general education course credits. For more information about how to fit a credit-by-exam test to your degree plan, see “Where Will My First CLEP Test Fit into My Degree Plan?” (page 33) and Chapter 11: “How to Make a Degree Plan” in College Without the Campus. You might also peruse DegreeForum.net.

Now you’re ready to begin studying.  Questions about textbooks? A Google search will get you started, as will a visit to https://clep.collegeboard.org/  I highly recommend CLEP Official Study Guide for practice tests, and you may be able to borrow materials from the library or from friends who have previously taken a similar course. One of the best parts of studying for a credit-by-exam test is that you are in charge of your schedule. You can decide how much to study and when to take the test. Perhaps you want to study for the test during the remainder of the school year and then take the test. Or, maybe you’ll knock it out in a couple weeks. The choice is yours.

Will credit-by-exam tests work for you? After a visit to your college’s website to see if they will accept transferred test credit, you might decide to give CLEP a try. By testing out 😉 a new method of earning credit, you can save time and money.