The College-Level Examination Program® (CLEP®) is a computer-based prior-learning assessment that allows examinees the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of knowledge and skills necessary to earn postsecondary course credit in higher education. Currently, there are 33 exams in five subject areas: composition and literature, world languages,…

Prior learning assessment (PLA) is the process of evaluating learning, regardless of when or where the learning occurred, and, if the learning is at the college level, awarding college credit to the possessor of that learning. This article provides an overview of the PLA program at a large public U.S. institution and presents the findings of the…

General biology courses (for majors) are often transferred from one institution to another. These courses must prepare students for upper division courses in biology. In Colorado, a Biology Transfer Articulation Agreement that includes general biology has been created across the state. An evaluation was conducted of course grades in two upper…

Students (N = 114) who achieved enough credit through College Level Examinations to advance approximately one year were tracked for a three-year period. They saved time and money, and did not neglect advanced study in areas from which they were exempted. Their grades in advanced courses were higher than those of a control group. (Author)

The author presents critical comments on a paper by John Siegfried, in which Siegfried reports on a controlled experiment to determine whether the educational experience of being a proctor is sufficiently valuable to justify awarding academic credit. Siegfried argues that a semester of proctoring teaches a student more than a one-semester,…

In the two studies reported, students who wrote the CLEP and students who did not were compared in grade point average, graduate rate, and rate of progress. For both studies, the CLEP students performed at least as well as non-CLEP on all but one measure. (Author/LBH)

The College Board's Spanish Listening-Reading Test, designed to measure student ability and knowledge, is required of all students with previous knowledge of Spanish, however acquired, who have no college credit in Spanish and who intend to enroll in University of Texas, Austin, Spanish course. With satisfactory performance on the test, eligible…

The Web-based standard setting (WBSS) system described in Harvey and Way (1999) provides an online, Internet-based alternative for testing programs that use onsite judgmental standard setting studies to set their cut scores. Standard setting studies using the WBSS system were compared to similar onsite studies of two exams in the College-Level…

In the late spring of 1972, the Chancellor's Office agreed to support a summer study to be undertaken by a committee of the California English Council, to investigate equivalency testing in the area of English and to recommend an appropriate program for use by the California State University and Colleges. This report is the result of that study:…

Since the 1974 California State University and Colleges Freshman English Equivalency Examination was a repeat of the 1973 examination, the report contained in this document should be viewed as a supplement to the 1973 report. The test was administered in May 1974 to 3,639 students with 1,036 receiving proficiency credit. Once again, it consisted…

A student's age, sex, aspiration, and ability were related to successful performance (50th percentile or higher) on the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) general examinations. Previous college credits and attendance status, as measured, did not seem to be important factors. Of the variables investigated, ability, as measured by the American…

A random sample of 100 students who had participated in the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) at DeKalb Community College (Georgia) was compared with 100 non-CLEP students on factors of Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores, grade point average, academic units earned, and age. CLEP students averaged a SAT verbal score of 560 and 490 on math…

This study sought to investigate the educational outcomes of the College-Level Examination Program® (CLEP®) for students who earned credit through CLEP compared to those students who earned comparable credit through the Advanced Placement Program® (AP®) and through traditional course enrollment. In order to evaluate the short- and long-term…

Approximately three years after a sample of vocational education teachers in Florida took the General Examinations, College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), the impact of the use of CLEP scores by teachers (392) in their professional development was assessed. Indicators of professional growth were teaching rank, salary, and degree status.…

During summer 1975, Cochise College surveyed 150 (96 responded) community colleges in the six regional accrediting associations to determine their practices in granting credit for non-traditional learning experiences. The study had four objectives: to compare the practices of the North Central association, to which Cochise College belongs, with…