Part One of a Who Knows How Long Series

Well, I took my first two CLEPs today, Humanities and College Math. I studied the Math for a couple days using instacert and the Humanities for a couple weeks (nothing too strenous, just a hour every other day) and I got a 66 on the College Math and a 70 on the Humanities. Now, believe me when I say that I didn't really know ANY of the names on the Humanities instacert when I started... I probably got about 10% of the questions right on my first run through! But I kept on drilling the information, checking on wikipedia when I wanted to know more, and using the sample tests from the Official CLEP guide and the Princeton review guide and that was more than enough to learn everything! It takes some work if you're starting from scratch, but I feel it's setting me up for future tests in Literature, which is very good.

Also, I want to say that the Peterson's tests that are available on the internet for Humanities seemed a LOT harder than the actual CLEP and really, I only learned a few bits of trivia from those that I didn't see somewhere on this site or in one of the sample tests that I talked about. And in the end, it only served to make me paranoid that I didn't know as much as I should know. So, basically, I wouldn't suggest spending too much time on them. If you want to take them, go ahead, but don't worry if it seems a bit overwhelming.

My overall philosophy to learning was take the information that sticks out to you and don't worry about cramming in that stuff which you don't know right away. The goal should be to get somewhat familiar with names, not neccesarily knowing them stone cold. Because the test, afterall, is multiple choice, and seeing names in front of you is a lot easier than having to simply recall them. I was amazed at how many answers just pop out at you after you're read through the instacert tests a few times.

As for more specifically the College Math, I found using the Princeton Review book to be very helpful in one way in particular. They suggest for alegrabic equations on the CLEP to, in a lot of cases, simply plug the answer choices into the equation and see what works. That may seem time-consuming, but I'm no genius when it comes to math but I was able to do that for every possible question in that format on the CLEP today and I finished with 10 minutes to spare and the satification of knowing that I did a good job because the method is idiot-proof, so to speak. Of course, you need to be able to identify WHICH questions you can do that for, which is what instacert can help you with.

I know a lot of you have probably already taken these tests, but I just wanted to contribute my experiences because reading some of your posts have really helped me and I want to give back. Also, I made this its own thread because I'm an egomaniac and love attention.

Next up, I'll be taking the Social Sciences and History and Natural Sciences CLEP. I hope to take them within the next two weeks. A full report will be issued at that time.

Good luck and happy CLEPing!

~Banta

Fantastic Banta!! Great scores!!
And on the Petersons note, I think that it was harder for the Biology test too but I kind of liked that. I knew that when I could get a good score on it that I would probably do okay on the exam. Can see where others might feel differently though. Keep it up!!

LIbrevore

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Kate
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BS Psychology

Librevore,

I agree! I found the Peterson mocks to be slightly harder than the actual CLEPs. But if you are scoring well on them, you will almost certainly also do well on the real thing.

Banta,

I love it when somebody adds their on-going exam experiences to a single thread. It's great to follow someone's progress.

If you keep posting your feedback for each exam, this will be a very helpful thread. Go for it!

Snazzlefrag

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My name is Rob
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Way to go Banta! The info on the math has got to be helpful for those of who are math-phobes and currently pushing through it! I love the idea of plugging the answer into the equasion to see what works - it really seems to work well as evidenced by your fab score!


I took Social Science and History, it's totally doable. I think I posted by experience after the exam and I used the posts from others who took it to guide my studying. Search it and see if you find anything useful. Didn't take Natural Sci. so can't help ya there.

Nicely done!

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Best of luck,
Joanne

31 hours traditional schooling
11 Microsoft exams, 1 Linux+, 2 ICCP's, 6 CLEP's, 12 DSSTs, and 6 ECE's

Degree Completed!
BS in Liberal Studies

Banta,

Your post is awesome! Congratulations on doing so well on your tests.
Thank you for your descriptions and insights. I currently don't think I am going to take any math, but it is excellent to know that the Peterson's books are such a good resource. Thank you!

Kindest Regards,
Amy

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32 traditional credit hours (in 1990) began again by testing in April 2006. CLEP Am. Gov. - CLEP US Hist I - CLEP Am. Lit. CLEP Human Growth - CLEP US Hist II- CLEP CIS - CLEP English Lit - May '07 Associates Degree - registered at Eastern Illinois University - DSST Drug Abuse - CLEP Bio - CLEP Spanish - DSST Civil War - DSST Intro to Law Enforcement
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I generally agree about the Peterson's too. I was only wanting to tell others not to get too down on themselves if they didn't do well on the Peterson's... it's entirely possible that they know the material very well. The Peterson's seem trickier not only in the content but also in the phrasing of their questions. Still though, they do have value in taking them.

You can learn little pieces of information from EVERYWHERE. I truly am of the philosophy that everyday is a learning experience!

Thanks to all who posted in this thread for their kind words. They are much appreciated. This site is really interesting... very few forums on the internet are this friendly. What the reason for that is, I can only speculate, but this site is definitely worth it.

~Banta

Hi Banta. Let us know when you are going to take these so we can cheer you on. I am looking forward to your report.

Librevore

__________________
Kate
*******
BS Psychology