Hello, I am trying to find out if this is still a viable option for credit but cannot locate it on the website. Thanks. Hille
The Excelsior website only gives a few details: https://www.excelsior.edu/portal/page?_pageid=57,41890&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL To quote myself: I do discuss the difficulty of the GRE Computer Science Subject Test in more detail at another forum: Can it be done? (the posts by CalmLogic are by me)
It's doable, but hard, hard, hard. I took it to improve my chances of getting into UIUC for grad school after I had already completed my undergrad requirements (but before I actually graduated - so I have 30 credits from the test on my Excelsior transcript even though they didn't count for anything). Along with the practice test and the rather poor CS GRE book available, I studied by reading: Graduate text in algorithms Graduate text in computer architecture Graduate text in operating systems Graduate text in data networks Graduate text in compiler theory (finite automata and the like) Undergraduate text in discrete math Schaum's Outline in computer math I'm probably missing something in there. I already had a very good feel for software engineering topics, so I didn't study that (but would recommend it for anyone not up on the literature).
I firmly believe that the GRE Computer Science subject exam is hard even for those that have a undergrad in CS! In fact, very few CS graduates who go on to take this exam take it without a lot of studying because many (most?) of the questions are about more than just basic understanding. Some of the questions require considerable insight. My recommendations for those not having a CS degree who want to take this exam are: just don't! Find some other way to earn the credit. While there is that rare individual you would prove me wrong, I'm betting my advice is appropriate for 98+% of anyone wanting to take this exam without a CS degree. A little over a year ago, I entertained taking this exam to increase my chances of admission to Columbia; however, Columbia's price and the exam's difficulty persuaded me that being a gator is not so bad.
