Hello, Has somebody taken TECEP exams without being enrolled at TESC? If so, whom would they accept as a proctor and how much did you pay for the exam all in all? From what I know, I assume that the format of the exams is much like that of DANTES. Is that correct? Thanks for your replies in advance, Dennis
Much of this should be listed on their web site. They only allow public librarians, collegiate testing offices, or military testing officers to administer the exams. Yes, they are similar to the DANTES in format, but in general, they tend to be slightly more difficult than the DANTES exams. Not sure about taking them if not enrolled, but I'm pretty sure you should be able to ...
I'm not enrolled there but did take one of their exams in April this year. If you call and talk to their testing office, they are quite helpful, even to us non enrolled students. I proctored through a university testing office while I was visiting in the states. Their testing fees were listed on their site for non enrolled students. They charge by the credit hour. I think I paid $354 for a 3 hour credit exam in "Introduction to Operations Management". Plus the university I tested at charged me about $20 for the proctor fee. The exam was a little more difficult if you are used to taking CLEP or DANTES exams. My impression is that they require a higher pass rate for credit. And the way they ask the questions is a little different. Mind you...I took this in a long line of tests over 5 weeks. I think it was test number 24. So I got a little complacent about studying. I wound up failing by something like 5 points. I think if you have studied properly, that their tests are far from unpassable. Pointers....register early. When they say it takes at least 4 weeks for them to send the test to your proctor...believe it. We were wondering if was going to make it there before the test date that I arranged. They also take a while to send out the score reports. So if you're trying to meet a deadline for the credit...plan ahead. On the plus side...they do allow you to retake tests that you botch in 3 months. So I'm registering again now to fix my mistakes. But at $354 a test, I think I'll avoid that mistake again.
similar but different Two big differences between DSST's and TECEP's Cost. TECEP's cost a bit more Time: TECEP'S must be completed in a set time. DSST's are not times. Good luck, Mike
Ditto what bmcole said. I registered for my TECEP (HEA-301, Community Health) three weeks before I planned to take it. They rescheduled me for four weeks from the date I faxed my registration, but you have (I believe...) 2 weeks from their arbitrarily chosen date to take it before they ask your proctor to return it. I forget exactly how much I paid, but I believe it was the $354. I'm not a TESC student. As far as the test format itself, it was definitely reminiscent of some of the DANTES tests I've taken. Multiple choice, not terribly challenging. The test took about 3 weeks to grade and process. DJ
thanks for your replies, But TESCs are all pass & fail, aren't they? So they haven't the potential to spoil your GPA as some CLEPs and all DANTES do(of course, I'm writing from the perspective of an Excelsior student; Excelsior awards grades to DANTES and to some of the CLEPs) Dennis
Correct. They are pass/fail only. The only one who gets a copy of the exact score is the test taker. In fact, I'm not certain Excelsior even received a transcript from the test I failed. At least it isn't showing on my received transcript list and it wasn't on any evaluations that would have been done after they received that. So I'm not sure Thomas Edison even sends out the failed attempt transcripts. Or they failed to do so in my case.
Well I know LSU is cheaper since I've taken courses there. Problem in my case is that they didn't have the class that I needed when I checked. I would never have taken a TECEP if they had a self-study, one test course anywhere else. The only self paced course that came close was Ohio's. But they were even more costly than a second TECEP. And they still require 2 proctored tests and want you to finish the course no faster than they can send feedback on your last module submitted. Via snail mail and back and forth to Germany, that's at minimum of 6 months for a course I'm not even remotely interested in that's holding up my graduation and grad school admission. I suppose it depends on your situation...but I think paying a little more and getting things out of the way quickly can be of benefit to some.
