Maximizing College Credit While Still in High School: How to Utilize CLEP Testing for a Free College Freshman Year

Looking for ways to cut down on college tuition costs? The Education Data Initiative reports that tuition at public 4-year colleges rose by 36.7% between 2010 and 2023. When accounting for inflation, tuition fees have surged an astounding 197.4% since 1963. Yikes! 

What is CLEP testing? 

When my oldest son was a sophomore in high school, I started hearing about CLEP testing and how it could save students time and money. Through my research, I stumbled upon a website (moderstates.org) with the heading “Freshman Year for Free.” It turns out that a charitable organization in New York funded the production of online videos taught by college professors in an effort to help students pass College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exams in a variety of subjects. 

How does CLEP testing work?

To take advantage of this opportunity, your student will choose one of the 32 self-paced courses. Once your student watches the course-related videos and answers some comprehension questions, Modern States will issue a CLEP voucher code to cover the $95 cost of the CLEP exam. Next, your student will register online with your local testing center. In Northwest Arkansas, our testing center is at the Northwest Arkansas Community College, Community Tests | NorthWest Arkansas Community College This testing center is open year-round, so we took advantage of this in the summer when we had more time available. The cost is $35 to proctor the exam. Exams take 90-120 minutes to complete. 

My son passed the English Composition CLEP exam, allowing him to receive college credit for both Composition I and II.* That gave him six college credits for $35! Since that worked well, next he completed the American History I CLEP exam and passed it as well. We’re now up to nine hours of college credit and have only spent $70. That’s a huge win in my book! 

Even though the cost of college is astronomical, there are ways to save money. CLEP exams have definitely worked well for us. If your student passes eight exams, they can potentially receive their freshman year for free!  

*Every school is different in how they accept CLEP and Dual Enrollment credits. Be sure check your potential college’s CLEP rules.  They are often posted on the admissions page of college’s websites.  You can google “Alternative Credit Options at ______ (fill in the blank) University)” to see their acceptance policy of outside credits.

See full video on our Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/p/DCKZHsPyUdZ/