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mariB
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| Posted: Feb 21 2008 at 6:14am | IP Logged
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Have any of you ever done these? Did you do them on your own or online?
If you did them on your own, how did your child study for the AP exam?
Thanks!
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StephanieA
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We have never taken an AP exam because the college my sons attend accept CLEP as well as AP. CLEP you can take anytime at the college. AP would have to be coordinated with our school system which is anything but homeschool-friendly 
I have had 3 boys who have take various CLEPs to get out of classes at the college level....biology, English lit, political science, etc. They study on their own and I usually buy or borrow a CLEP book for a final going over. Some colleges do not accept CLEP, but even if son #3 doesn't use it, it looks decent on a college transcript that they passed a college course in high school.
Blessings,
Stephanie
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mariB
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| Posted: Feb 27 2008 at 5:02am | IP Logged
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I'll look into the CLEPs then! Thank you, Stephanie!
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websterm
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| Posted: March 11 2008 at 8:33am | IP Logged
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I am new to ALL of this... homeschool and AP and CLEP. I am wondering more about the AP classes. My 13 yr old has always been in gifted classes. I am bringing her home next year to homeschool, and I am not sure where to start with AP or CLEP. Any further suggestions or thoughts with AP or CLEP?
Much Thanks!
Marcia
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StephanieA
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| Posted: March 11 2008 at 7:07pm | IP Logged
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AP tests must be taken in April or May. There are specific times and places to take them. They are also more acceptable, but many college who take AP also take CLEP (or some of them). CLEP tests can be taken anytime at a university or community college testing center.
We pick college texts and study from them after taking that class with a high school text. Then study with a study guide for 2 weeks or so. Some CLEPS require less study than others. The best book to buy is the official CLEP book. It is only about $15 and has practice tests for all CLEPS. It gives you a good idea if you are prepared to pass.
Blessings,
Stephanie
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MacBeth
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| Posted: March 11 2008 at 11:04pm | IP Logged
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Check the college board website, which my list the APs that are accepted for the college your kids are interested in attending. Some don't take any APs, no matter how good the scores. Others want different scores in different subjects. Many private schools don't take CLEPs at all, we discovered. All of this info is available, and if it isn't, call the colleges themselves.
We decided not to take the AP exams (even in music) as most conservatories have their own set of exams either for entrance or for placement.
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mariB
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| Posted: March 12 2008 at 7:21am | IP Logged
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Thanks so much for letting us know more about the APs and CLEPs, MacBeth.
I was stressing about it when relatives came to visit and said their daughters had skipped a whole semester in college due to AP courses. I started researching about APs and was thinking, "Oh, boy...not another thing to think about!"
I'll take a look at the CLEP review book at the bookstore. Right now we are prepping for the SAT, trying to get through home schooling, and other overwhelming activities outside of school.
I know some people have mentioned the CLEP here and how it was useful for them. Maybe it's not all that necessary?
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StephanieA
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| Posted: March 12 2008 at 8:29am | IP Logged
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Most better schools (and many private schools) do not accept CLEP and very few APs, if any, as Macbeth mentioned. To me, CLEP would be used at state universities to get out of indoctrination classes 
Plus,I wouldn't CLEP or AP out of subjects that the student is going to study in college. Colleges don't recommend it and some don't accept it anyway, like Macbeth said. Students need to start at a truly college level at the beginning for a solid foundation. Scoring a "3" on an AP is equivalent to getting an "C" in the class. Not quite stellar if that is going to be your degree. A "50" on the CLEP is a "C" and passing.
The ONLY reason I have the boys CLEP is to get out of classes I don't want them taking at our secular university (if by mid high school, I have a good inclination that they are headed there) and a testing opportunity (but that is VERY secondary). If they were going to a great Catholic college, I would want them to start at the bottom up and get the info. However, I don't want them
reading and discussing the trash in Literature Analysis that the local univerisity dishes out. (I know what they read in this particular required course, because my sister-in-law has taught there.) Also the political science is less than great there. My father-in-law was a professor in that department for 25 years. I would rather oversee a high school class in government with a Catholic overview, then prepare them for a CLEP for the last month or so.
Many kids come into college with up to a semester or year ahead. Again what is education? If the college is there to truly educate (like some of our wonderful Catholic colleges....then I would want the child to experience it fully). But some college classes don't educate, but indotrinate, and if you can avoid them, I'm all for that.
Certainly DON'T worry about it. You'll never have a perfect situation. My oldest will be a college senior in the fall and I didn't forsee a science degree all through high school. I couldn't get the kid to do science. So I had him study and CLEPed out of biology.
Guess what....his degree will be in Biochemistry. Go figure! So he didn't even use his CLEP for the class it was designed for and took the required bio classes for his degree. I will likely not worry about CLEPs with #4 since she will most likely end up at a Catholic liberal arts college. She loves English, history, etc. and our local university is not a great place to study those subjects.
Blessings,
Stephanie
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Mary G
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| Posted: March 12 2008 at 8:42am | IP Logged
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One other benefit to having your kids take the CLEP/AP tests (especially in light of the fact that more and more colleges don't seem to be taking the scores to waive classes ) is for you to be able to show how much your student has learned -- that they can compete successfully in an objective, test-setting against others in "real" school .... this might be just the noodge the college needs to accept your homeschooled student!
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ALmom
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| Posted: March 26 2008 at 6:30pm | IP Logged
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Ok, some colleges want AP test scores for a certain number of subjects. (These will accept SAT II tests from homeschoolers). We were unable to get access to AP testing here. A school is "certified" when offering AP courses and these schools then offer AP testing. You are not required to take the AP course in order to take the AP test, you can go on-line and request information about the closest places offering AP testing. You contact these schools as early as possible and request permission for your child to test with their students. These schools are not, however, required to make the testing available to anyone outside of their school. We actually attempted to take a few AP tests in English for some of the reasons the other mom listed. We could not find a school willing to let us test with them - not even another homeschool cover.
One of the problem with some of the state Universities is that the graduation requirements are now being set up assuming that students come in with lots of credit in core courses. It makes it very, very difficult to finish everything without exceeding maximum credit hours - especially when a number of courses are only offered Fall/Spring. It is workable if you are in a standard degree program, but it is near impossible if you are in something like music. Some of the requirements are a bit insane. Not being able to access AP testing coupled with an advising system that leaves a lot to be desired (the music professors are great but know little about academic requirements and no one else in the University seems to know about music requirements) is costing us essentially an extra semester. She is going to simply have to take a full load for the summer to get academic prerequisites out of the way. These courses either repeat what she had in high school or they use questionable material from a politically correct point of view. However, we have no choice.
The clep tests seem to work a bit differently at our University. They will give you credit, but it doesn't count toward your core with clep (you just get to take higher level courses to fulfill your core), but does with AP. Now I'm not sure if this is true everywhere and some of all this may have been the learning curve problem of our first in college. I don't see child #2 in a secular University system due to her likely majors so the AP stuff isn't as big an issue for us this time around.
Our dd is trying to compete musically while having to maintain a full academic load when those around her simply are focusing on music. She is really growing to hate academics and long for conservatory days!!
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mariB
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| Posted: March 27 2008 at 6:18am | IP Logged
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Yes, this is very hard on the music major...I had to take 7 courses way back while other students were only taking 3 and 4!
Hmmm....college applications are around the corner for us it seems. My oldest is 10th grade but it will come very soon.
I didn't even think to inquire locally as to whether or not our son could take these tests!
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CrunchyMom
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| Posted: March 27 2008 at 6:47am | IP Logged
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I think going into college with some credits out of the way is wonderful. I was able to skip English Comp from AP classes (the History AP tests are really hard!), and I too, was a music major and went to school in the summer in order to finish in 4 years. Most don't. Plus in music, you get 1 hours credit for a class you attend 3 hours a week plus concerts, etc...
Another option we hope to use down the road (way down, lol) is the local community college. Your child could probably enroll there if they are old enough for AP, and go ahead and take the class. Not cheap, but definitely cheaper than taking the same class at a larger school.
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Barbara C.
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More and more colleges are offering internet courses in addition or in place of the traditional correspondence courses. Correspondence classes used to be a lot of busy work, but you could go through them faster than a regular class. Internet classes vary in the amount of work depending on the instructor and subject matter. And as someone else mentioned there is sometimes the community college option.
I took three AP classes in high school: English, U.S. History, and Biology. I managed a three on the English one and earned three college credits; however, I was already exempt from the class it would have replaced due to my verbal ACT score. I only got a two on the History (so earned nothing), and I didn't bother taking the Biology and neither did anyone else because we knew the teacher had left us woefully unprepared.
We also had the option of paying for college credits through the local Catholic University but taking the class at our high school buy an approved teacher. I ended up with 6 hours of Spanish and 8 of Calculus. That helped me make my last semester of college a breeze. So, my point is that AP tests can be a little more dicey depending on how prepared you are and they are very difficult.
The whole discussion reminds me of this guy who moved in my dorm my third year. He was 39 and had just enough credits to be eligible for a co-ed dorm (20). He was trying to get his degree so he could get a better job that would allow him more time with his son (he was divorced). His goal was to graduate within one year. He took the maximum load of real classes, did the maximum number of correspondence classes you could for any six week period, and Clep-ed out of as many courses as possible. He would stay at the college during the week and commute home to work and see his son on the weekends. He finished after two semesters and one summer. When he turned 40, we threw him a birthday party. It was an amazing lesson in dedication and perserverence.
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4Real Forums : High School Years and Beyond
Topic: AP courses
