The College Level Examination Program will phase out six exams at the end of this month to open the door for computer-based testing in the future.
Humanities, College Level German Language, General Biology, General Chemistry, Western Civilization I and Western Civilization II exams will be gone at the end of June with the rest of paper exams being withdrawn over the next nine months.
Although the computer-based program will not be available for at least a year at military installations, the paper tests must be turned in, said Marti Readel, Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support European adviser.
The College Board has moved all CLEP testing to computers at 1,300 colleges and universities around the United States in 2001, streamlining tests and making scores immediately available to students. The board hoped the same computer-based testing could be available for military members, but ran into problems with Department of Defense security requirements for computers.
While the College Board tries to resolve the security issues, updated CLEP paper tests will be available to military personnel in April 2004. New CLEP exams in 14 subject areas will be available through DANTES at military education centers.
The paper tests will be Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, College Algebra, College Mathematics, English Composition (without essay), Freshman College Composition, History of the United States I, History of the United States II, Humanities, Information Systems and Computer Applications, Introductory Psychology, Introductory Sociology, Natural Sciences, Principles of Management, Social Sciences and History.
In the meantime, military students who want to earn free college credits now must act soon.
The English Composition with essay will be gone in October. In November, Natural Sciences, College Mathematics, English Composition, College Level Spanish Language, History of the United States I, History of the United States II and Principles of Accounting will be turned in. The rest will follow suit next year.
However, Readel said military students have other options for earning credit by examination besides the CLEP exams. Education centers also offer the DANTES Subject Standardized Test and the Excelsior College Examinations to earn class credits.
