General education courses, or “gen eds,” take up a lot of your coursework for a degree. They can feel tedious if the information is familiar, but you may have an option to test out of them.
Depending on the school, you may be able to test out of gen ed courses and earn credit without having to take the class. Find out more about testing out of classes and what options you have.
What Is “Testing Out” of a College Class?
Gen ed courses cover a broad range of subjects, including history, science, and math, to provide a well-rounded education and a foundation for more advanced coursework. You earn credits by proving you understand the subject, which can be done two ways:
- Attending the course and completing the assignments, quizzes, and tests.
- Passing an exam to provide mastery of the subject (“testing out”).
When you test out of a college class, you take one test that comprises the whole of learning in the class, bypassing the traditional course. This can be done with the College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exam.
CLEP Exams
Testing out is also known as credit by exam, which is commonly done with the CLEP exam. The CLEP exams have been in use for decades to help adults with work experience return to school while balancing their responsibilities to family or jobs.
You can earn credit by exam through CLEP, which offers 34 different subjects. Each credit by exam option tests for different things, but they all require a certain score to pass the test and earn college credit. The score can vary for each college or university, however, and they do have fees.
Other Credit by Exam Options
CLEP is the most common and familiar credit by exam, but there are others you may be able to use to gain credit for the knowledge you have:
DANTES Subject Standardized Test (DSST)
DSST exams are offered by the United States Department of Defense’s Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) Program. These college subject exams are eligible for all active service members and reservists, U.S. Coast Guard spouses, and Air Force civil service employees.
Like CLEP, the DSST features a series of exams that you can register for to demonstrate your mastery of a subject and earn college credit. They have fees for exams, but these are typically less than you’d pay for three college credits for a full course.
DSST is not as widely recognized and accepted as CLEP, but over 2,000 colleges and universities accept these scores.
Advanced Placement (AP)
AP courses and exams are common for advanced high school students to earn college credits before they graduate. These courses and exams are taken in high school and generally accepted by colleges and universities.
There’s no cost for AP courses in high school, but the exams are around $100 each. Colleges will usually accept credit for passing scores, but some schools have stipulations for scores and the credits awarded.
International Baccalaureate (IB)
IB exams are similar to AP exams in that they’re offered at the high school level as an opportunity for young students to earn credits toward college. Many colleges and universities offer credit for passing scores on the IB exams.
Some high schools charge for the IB exam fee, so make sure to check if your prospective schools will accept these exams for credit.
College-Specific Challenge Exams
It’s common for colleges to offer their own exams for credit, which is known as “challenging” a course. These are often specific to the college and may not transfer to other schools.
One of the benefits of challenge exams is that they can be for gen ed or degree-specific courses. For example, a bilingual student may be able to challenge a course that satisfies their foreign language requirement as a gen ed.
A working adult with experience in their degree field may have the option to challenge some of the courses based on their on-the-job knowledge. Note that this is different from earning college credits from internships and work experience.
Do All Colleges Accept Credit by Examination?
Not every school will accept credit by exam, and some may have their own rules. For example, some colleges require higher AP scores than the passing grade of 3, while others may only award partial credits for satisfactory test scores.
Check with your prospective schools to learn more about their credit by exam policies.
Benefits of Testing Out of College Courses
Testing out of college courses isn’t an easy way to earn credit. These exams are comprehensive and challenging, so you have to know the material well.
However, if you do have the ability to test out, there are numerous benefits:
Saving money: Exam fees are required for most credit by exam, but they’re often cheaper than paying for each credit hour of a full course. Depending on how many credits you test out of successfully, you can save hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Accelerate your degree: You can’t test out of an entire degree, but testing out of some classes can shorten your timeline to graduate.
Focus on degree-specific courses: Testing out of some gen eds can enable you to get to the advanced courses for your degree faster.
Looking for Another Way to Save on Your Gen Eds?
Testing out of college courses with credit by exam is a great way to save time and money on your degree while leveraging the knowledge you already have. But if testing isn’t an option for you, there are other ways to tackle your gen eds – including online gen eds with Sophia.
With self-paced courses covering a variety of gen ed subjects for college credit, you can move through the material fast to save time and money on your degree. However, like credit by exam, be sure to check with your prospective schools to ensure that they accept transfer courses for credit.
Ready to get started? Find your school and start your free trial today!
