If you think you already meet the requirements of a course by experience or previous training, you may request credit-by-examination. You may not request credit-by-examination for courses in which you are currently enrolled. The Registrar's Office has information about the courses for which credit-by-examination is available. The examination may be an approved subject examination (not a general examination) of the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), Advanced Placement Exams (CEEB), Defense Activity for Nontraditional Education Support (DANTES), International Baccalaureate Program Exams, (IB) or an instructor-made test, depending on the course. You should ensure college acceptance of specific national exams prior to taking them. Scores for national testing programs, such as CLEP, AP and DANTES, will be valid for 10 years.

You must pay a test administration service charge for each course examination. This charge is in addition to fees charged by testing companies--eg. CLEP, DANTES. This service charge must be paid prior to taking the examination and is not refundable. Final acceptance of credit-by-examination for specific degree purposes is determined by the degree-granting institution. If you are planning to use credit-by-examination to meet degree requirements at other institutions, you should check the receiving institution's requirements.

You must be currently enrolled as a credit student at the college to receive credit-by-examination. Although your current enrollment in a course may normally make you ineligible for national testing programs, the Foreign Language Curriculum Committee permits an exception to this policy for students enrolled in foreign language courses.

You may earn as many credits through examination as your ability permits and needs require, but at least 25% of the credit hours required for graduation must be taken through instruction and not through credit-by-examination. Credit-by-examination may be attempted only one time in the college for any given course and a minimum score must be earned in order for credit to be recorded. Those who successfully complete an approved credit-by-examination may choose to have either the grade earned, if it is made available, or "CR" recorded on the transcript. Only letter grades of A, B, or C for credit-by-exam will be calculated into the GPA. If a student chooses "CR" for a credit-by-exam or if "CR" is the only option available to students, the "CR" cannot be calculated into the GPA. Students who meet the minimum passing standard on Computerized CLEP exams will be awarded "CR". The option for a letter grade is currently not available.

The following national tests are approved for credit-by-examination:

CLEP Computerized Test Subject Exams

(CLEP General Exams are NOT approved)

*See College Testing Center for test limitations for these computerized CLEP exams

CLEP Paper/Pencil Exams

(CLEP General Exams are NOT approved)

Paper/pencil CLEP Tests are no longer administered, but the required scores, from such tests, taken within the past ten years can be utilized. * See College Testing Center for test limitations on these CLEP tests.

AP Advanced Placement

(*See more information below concerning these exams.)

*Students taking Advanced Placement Exams have a choice of receiving a grade or "CR" for credit, except for the AP language exams and English--Literature and Composition exam, for which only "CR" may be granted. For all but the AP language exams and English--Literature and Composition exam, a score of 3 equals C; a score of 4 equals B; a score of 5 equals A. If you take any of the tests listed above, you should check with the Registrar's Office to ensure these tests will be accepted in lieu of coursework. You should do this prior to taking the test as the previous list may change. You may challenge courses not on this list by taking an instructor-made examination. If you are interested in this method, contact the appropriate academic division office.

DANTES

CERTIFIED PROFESSIONAL SECRETARY (CPS) EXAM

Students who pass all sections of the CPS exam will be granted credit for 15 hours from the Business Office Systems & Support (BOSS) courses. Choose five of the following courses:

POFI 1301 - Computer Applications I
POFI 1341 - Computer Applictions II (MS Office) or
POFI 1349 - Spreadsheets (Excel)
POFT 1301 - Business English
POFT 1309 - Administrative Office Procedures
POFT 1319 - Records Management and Information
POFT 2312 - Business Correspondence and Communication

Students must complete 12 college level hours within Cedar Valley College and at least two courses must be completed in the Business Office Systems & Support program with a grade of "C" or better. Credit earned through the CPS is applicable only to the Associate of Applied Sciences Degree in the Business Office Systems & Support program.