I am preparing for the Civil War exam. I am scheduled to take the exam on 8/30. I have been mainly using IC and the Rudman Book. They don't seem to cover the same material. Can anyone who has taken the exam advise me on whether to focus my time on IC or the Rudman book. I am ultimately trying to study both equally, but am scheduled to take this test next week, and would like to focus most of my study time on the more valuable of the two. I have to allocate my time wisely, as I am also taking a seated class, an online class, and working full-time.

Thanks in advance...

The thing to remember about dantes exams is that they differ slightly from clep exams in the way they present their questions and often odd way they present their answer options. The Rudman books give you a better idea as to how dantes exams are presented.

__________________
Brian R. Fey Sr.
M.S. - Psychology
B.S. - Criminal Justice
A.S. - Administrative Management

Shoto-Advice:
"EC"
"CCU"
"Prayer"
"A Pass is a Pass"
"Slow and Steady - Wins the Race"
“Sometimes The Easy Way Is Not Always The Best Way”
"Passing a Petersons = Conquering a CLEP -or- Defeating a DSST"
"The 5 R's of Study: Repetition - Re-Enforces - Recognition - Recall - Retention"

"Always be Ready to Release Your Mind & Incorporate the Advice of Others into Your Plans."

"Studying is much like Boiling Water, if it is not Heated Constantly it will Once Again Become Cold Water."

Other Sources of CLEP & DSST Study Material

REA Books, Comex Books, Pass Your Class Guides, Standard Deviants DVD's, Petersons Practice Exams, Dummies Books, Idiot's Guides .

B2,

I took the Civil War exam last month. I studied using IC, Civil War for Dummies book, and I also rushed through the Ken Burns tapes. The tapes are extermely good, but I didn't have the time to completely watch them. Some of the things the test covered in depth.

The reasons of the war and how & why Lincoln did things.
Reconstruction (how the former slaves reacted and continued living)
Major battles. (most costly, logistics, naval blocks)
Grant & Lee (also why some generals got releaved from command)

My suggestion would be don't worry about exact dates for each battle, but why certain battles were turning points during the war.

I took the Civil War exam last wednesday and I completely agree. There were quite a few reconstruction questions and dates weren't as important as WHY events happened. I also used mostly instacert with the Civil War for Dummies book, which was really helpful. It explained a lot of the WHY for me. I am pretty sure I passed but DANTES tests leave me doubting since I have to wait for the scores. This was my second DSST.

__________________
Barry
47 Traditional Credits 75 Non-Traditional with 3.7 GPA
BA in Social Sciences from TESC last class ended on 1/13/2007!!
Waiting on grade for SOS440
B in SOC210
Next up MA of Liberal Studies in Administrative Leadership through the University of Oklahoma!!

Hey Barry -

Check out some of the established threads on this one. As I recall there was quite a volume of great and intense information about the exam and what to prepare for already. Just use the "SEARCH" feature and look for "Civil War" and the threads will be displayed. GOOD LUCK!!

__________________
Brian R. Fey Sr.
M.S. - Psychology
B.S. - Criminal Justice
A.S. - Administrative Management

Shoto-Advice:
"EC"
"CCU"
"Prayer"
"A Pass is a Pass"
"Slow and Steady - Wins the Race"
“Sometimes The Easy Way Is Not Always The Best Way”
"Passing a Petersons = Conquering a CLEP -or- Defeating a DSST"
"The 5 R's of Study: Repetition - Re-Enforces - Recognition - Recall - Retention"

"Always be Ready to Release Your Mind & Incorporate the Advice of Others into Your Plans."

"Studying is much like Boiling Water, if it is not Heated Constantly it will Once Again Become Cold Water."

Other Sources of CLEP & DSST Study Material

REA Books, Comex Books, Pass Your Class Guides, Standard Deviants DVD's, Petersons Practice Exams, Dummies Books, Idiot's Guides .

Yeah, I did in-depth searches on this subject before making my post. There's a lot of good information out there. I actually printed off some of the study suggestions and have been using that as well.

The Rudman Book is VERY detailed, and I was just wondering if it was more accurate, or if focusing my time on IC would pay off. I wish I had time to watch the Burns Videos, but my exam is next Tuesday, and between working full-time, and my other traditional classes, it's really not an option.

I guess I'm just a little gun-shy since I took US History I using only IC and failed with a 49 (I know it's borderline, but it's still not a pass). My college will allow Civil War in lieu of US History I, but if I fail it, I will definitely have to wait 6-months to get one of my history GER credits, which puts me in a tough situation as I am applying to my Bachelor's program (BS in MIS) in November and need these credits to get in.

Thanks for all of the replies and suggestions...

I remember questions about munitions, the role of women and the border states. Seemed to be more questions about what led up to the Civil War and the Reconstruction period after, than the battles themselves.

Good luck on your exam.

__________________
Crystal King
BS Liberal Studies 3.87
Preparing for GRE
Goal Master Library Science 2009

Ambition is the Path to success,
Persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.

HI B2. I used both (IC and Rudman's) equally. I made sure I was getting 90-95% right on both before I took the Dantes exam. I ended up with a 62 on the test.

-Shaw

I took Civil War on 8/08/06, received my results today. Passed with a 52, which is a B at EC. (55 is an A, 50 is a B, 47 is a C with EC) 47 is a passing score.

I used IC,Dummies book, Sparks Notes, and Ken Burns video. Off and on study for a month.

Good Luck ! You should not have any problems passing it.

__________________
Tim,
27 credits completed by exam so far.

Next exam: DSST ??

Taken, waiting for results:

Recently taken:
CLEP Intro to Soc (55) 7/31/07
CLEP Principles of Accounting (53) 6/27/07
DSST Here's to your Health (59) 5/23/07
DSST Personal Finance(71) 5/24/07
DSST MIS (63) 5/31/07
CLEP Information Systems (60) 5/31/07
DSST Intro to Computing (65)
DSST Civil War 08/08/06 (52).