Why Charter Oak State College is better than Thomas Edison State College

[KittenMittens]

Unfortunately, you made a bold wiki entry without having done enough research. TECEPs are $111, period. There is no additional cost for using ProctorU. I know because I've taken a TECEP.

I was comparing doing the same coursework (i.e. same UExcel exams, same DSSTs, etc.) if done through TECEP.

Many have recommended reading the textbooks for Uexcels because the Instantcert flashcards are not enough to score high. Besides, there aren't Instantcert flashcards for most of the Uexcels. Many people have failed CLEPs and DSSTs using the Instantcert flashcards. They worked for YOU; they worked fine for me. A lot of people are uncomfortable with using only the IC flashcards. I can study for a test for a couple of hours and pass, but most people can't do that. As I said earlier, the some of the feedback is from before exams were refreshed. A few people have stated that the feedback did not align well with the newly refreshed DSSTs. The same also applies to IC flashcards.

For the ones I mentioned, and from the forum information I provided, I don’t think the UExcel exams I mentioned are truly out of the water. I think the harder DSST exams are like the Finance one (which I why I recommended doing the Penn Foster Financial Management course instead), and exams like UExcel Quantitative Analysis which don’t have any information/little-no student feedback.

Most importantly, I think instantcert.com tried to figure out which subjects had the most doable subjects, and I think students naturally tend to gravitate towards the exams that are easiest, and most doable – and instantcert.com and degreeforum.net’s instantcert forums reflect that.

Most people don't go to graduate school, but want a high GPA for other purposes. For graduate school, you need to be better at writing than multiple choice testing.

True, but test taking also tests logical thinking and analytical ability as well –*being able to write is half of the equation, the other part is developing/having a proficiency in the subject.

Many people have greater aspirations than West Texas A&M. There are many colleges that aren't Ivy League, but have competitive admissions.

This is true, and in those cases they should look into ensuring good GPAs and possibly completing a degree from a “better” name school.

No, you would save over $2,000 by taking TECEPs.

On the other hand, I would argue that the time you’d have to put into the TECEP degree would mean it’s more involved –*and time is money in the end. If you have to spend more time scouring and reading a textbook (which I’d personally argue is one of the worst ways to prepare for a standardized exam), those are lost hours.

What you are personally doing, Sanantone, is commendable, and you do get the benefit of saving a couple grand because of that. However, most people cannot do that (what you are doing is more out of reach for most people than what I am advocating)

Most of the students here use multiple sources to study for their exams. Many also read whole books made for CLEP and DSST such as REA. Again, I can spend a couple of hours on flashcards and pass a test, but I know most people cannot do this. You can't make assumptions about other people based on your own experiences. Everyone is different. This also applies to assuming that most people who are comfortable with testing will be uncomfortable with TECEPs. Many members of this forum are perfectly fine with taking TECEPs.

Well, I’m making an assumption that a person is of average intelligence, decent work ethic, and has a demonstrated interest in at least passing the exams. I think that’s not too much to expect of an average person. These exams I mentioned are certainly not as in-depth as a traditional course, and the pass rates, forum feedback, flash cards, practice exams, etc. seem to strongly suggest that they are very doable. That’s why they post on the instantcert.com website their pass rates (of course there is a selection bias where people who pass are more likely to report info than those who fail –*but still data is data).

I’ve never had any use for practice exams. Again, we're all different. TESC gives you a breakdown of what's going to be on the test. Some people prefer more in depth studying for their tests because they want to obtain the equivalent knowledge of having taken the course.

Again, referring to the average, motivated person (maybe our definitions are different), who doesn’t have any out of the ordinary major academic/mental deficiencies, all other things being equal, would you want to take an exam just knowing what the breakdown of the exam is, or having practice tests and/or flash cards and/or forum advice? Yes, some people want to do more in-depth studying, and that’s fine, but it’s reasonable to assume that most people are spending a few grand for a degree mainly to have the degree for career/academic advancement purposes. Yes there are life learners, etc – and in those cases, I would actually steer them away from these exams, and push them towards MOOCs that do a better job of giving a comprehensive education (I’m talking about Udacity, Udemy, Coursera, Open MIT, Open Stanford, Open Harvard, etc.)

It wasn't college-supplied. It was based on Payscale's survey of 1.4 million people.

I’d always take reported incomes, particularly from Payscale, with a grain of salt. I think GlassDoor’s data is better on that regard. JD’s incomes are grossly exaggerated post-law school, as are college graduates. The age-old statistic that college graduates make a million more than a high school graduate are not always accurate given how expensive college has become, and the dearth of jobs available in this day and age. Certainly, for the bachelor’s degree, opportunities HAVE gone downhill, unless they are in a technical/in high demand field i.e. engineering, CS, health, etc.