Excelsior and TESC transcripts

Discussion in 'CLEP, DANTES, and Other Exams for Credit' started by excel, Jul 25, 2009.

Loading...
  1. excel

    excel Member

    ECEs will have their own heading/section like DSST and CLEP, right, and NOT look the same as the Excelsior courses? Will it say "Excelsior College Examinations" or does it say something different?

    And does anyone know how AP credits show up there... under their own AP heading? No grade for them given by Excelsior?

    Is TESC any better or worse when it comes to how tests and courses show up on a transcript?

    Thank you.
     
  2. Alissa

    Alissa New Member

    Yes, they are listed under their own heading. I don't know exactly what it says since I took the UExcel exams, not the ECEs.

    I had AP English, and it does show up under it's own heading, no letter grade. Another thing to note is that the numerical score is also listed for AP, CLEP, and DSST scores in addition to any letter grades.

    EXAMPLE:

    Advanced Placement Examinations
    English Language (4).......P
    English Literature (4).......P

    Excelsior gives letter grades for your prior course work that has been graded, ECE exams, UExcel exams, and DSST exams under the old scoring system. You will have two GPAs on your transcript, one for all course work combined, and one for Excelsior courses and exams alone.

    TESC awards all transfer credit and exams (including TECEPs) as Pass/Fail only, the only letter grades they give are for their own courses.

    There are advantages to either system. If you are looking to improve a GPA, then you may want to consider raising it by doing well on some DSST exams through Excelsior. If your prior GPA is truly awful, you can start over with a blank slate at TESC, take just one of their courses and get an "A", and graduate with a 4.0. This won't hide your prior course work from grad schools though, since you will probably have to send in all transcript from every school you have attended when you apply.

    Hope that helps!
     
  3. excel

    excel Member

    Thank you.

    I am surprised to find out that CLEP and DSST numeric scores are also listed. Only for the ones that Excelsior is assigning a letter grade to, or even for the Pass/Fail ones? If the latter, then it defeats the purpose of Pass/Fail (at least, for me IMO) so hopefully not those. And I feel like for the letter grade ones, others could plainly see that the cutoffs are not too demanding.

    Also, UExcel would show up like an Excelsior course like they stated when they were new? So, under a heading of 'Excelsior College'?

    And SAT II and TECEP would be about the same - score, no grade, own heading?
     
  4. Alissa

    Alissa New Member

    Yes, they list the numerical score for both DSSTs and CLEPs, regardless of whether or not the letter grade is "A-B-C" or a Pass/Fail grade, in parentheses after the exam title.

    No, the Uexcel exams show up under a separate heading for "Uexcel Exams" on the transcript that came with my diploma. The Excelsior course I did take shows up under the heading for "Excelsior College".

    I'm not sure you can get credit for SAT II scores? But yes, for TECEPs, what you stated is correct.

    This is all how it looked on my Status Report when I was enrolled and how it looks on the Student Copy of my transcript that came with my diploma. I don't think an Official Copy would look any different, though. Sorry if this all throws a wrench in your plans...hope it helps you with your decision!
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jul 26, 2009
  5. excel

    excel Member

    Some of that is less than ideal, but it's just great to know instead of being surprised later!

    Yeah, I am not sure on SAT II either, but it was in the Exam Diets thread. Maybe they'd at least show it on the transcript - I'm thinking having it shown would be nice even if there's no credit for them. Although being so old lowers the importance.

    I am also quite interested in any courses where it's basically credit-by-exam without showing on the transcript as being such. (Do the Ohio University CCE classes show up as CCE?) So ideally self-paced self-study without assignments. Multiple quizzes/exams are fine especially if they can be taken online without going to a test center. I am checking out FEMA/NFA.
     
  6. Alissa

    Alissa New Member

    Just to throw this out there, COSC shows the letter grades received on my status report from there. They appear to assign grades much like Excelsior does, giving letter grades for previously graded credit, DSSTs under the old scoring system, etc. But although they don't give you a GPA, they do give you a QPA: http://www.sru.edu/pages/6925.asp Which looks like a pretty good indicator of your academic progress to me. I don't have a degree from there though, so I don't know if this QPA shows on your final transcript.

    Have you looked at Penn Foster? Although they do require some proctored exams, which you could arrange at your local library, the homework is minimal. It's mostly quizzes like you have described. You can see which courses are approved by ACE: http://www.acenet.edu/Content/NavigationMenu/ProgramsServices/CCRS/index.htm , and if any of those are ones you need, that's what I would recommend.

    I have two Ohio U exams planned, but I'm sorry I can't tell you how they show up on an Excelsior transcript. If I had to guess, I would bet that it clearly states that they are credit-by-exam. Sorry!
     
  7. excel

    excel Member

    Thank you again. I will definitely look into that. BTW, would most libraries be very familiar with the process of proctoring and hopefully provide me with one contact I can keep dealing with? And generally if the test provider says to find my own proctor, then I can provide a contact at the library? For DSST registration, it was wanting the proctor's name and email address I believe.
     
  8. excel

    excel Member

    As usual, I have more questions, lol. If you don't mind.

    Do TESC and COSC show the scores even when they are putting Pass/Fail? (Especially for DSST/CLEP.)

    Does everything on the transcript (at EC/TESC/COSC) show the date you took the exam or completed the course?
     
  9. excel

    excel Member

    Hm, now I saw a different webpage with official DANTES sites, implying you can only take them at specific locations. And that's what I remember from a couple years ago when I was research DL. The fact that you could pick any legit proctor surprised me, and I am wondering if that's true.
     
  10. Alissa

    Alissa New Member

    Yes, you can call your library and ask them if they provide this service. I think for Penn Foster the proctor has to have at least an Associate-level degree.

    I can't say for TESC, I don't know if they do or not. But for both EC and COSC, the numerical score is in parentheses right after the test's title, even if they are P/F exams.

    At EC, it shows the month and year you completed for each course

    At COSC, it shows the beginning date under each heading, for example:

    DSST Standardized Examinations
    Beginning 2007-2008

    Then all the DSSTs are listed out underneath that.


    Yes, you can just call any testing location in your area and schedule the exam. Some places let you register online. It's convenient, since you won't have to scramble to find someone. http://www.getcollegecredit.com/search.html
     
  11. excel

    excel Member

    Great :)

    I'm curious about how portfolio credit would appear too. I probably won't go for that type of credit, but it's interesting to know. Could be cool to go for if it looked nice, i.e. if you could have a lot of influence on what the stated credit was for, sort of like people who create their own majors, if they even have a descriptor.
     
  12. Ian Anderson

    Ian Anderson Active Member


    If you ever need a proctor you might find one on this LSU site:
    http://www.is.lsu.edu/proctors/FindAProctor.asp
     
  13. excel

    excel Member

    I am looking forward to completing my first batches of DSSTs and CLEPs :)

    Also am I right that for Excelsior I could have an old school mail them a transcript and have Excelsior only transcribe 1 or 2 of the courses and ignore the rest (a bad grade and an Incomplete are on there)? Is 10 years the limit for coursework?

    An A- would not become an A at Excelsior? So the A- would lower my GPA if I had a 4.0 from my Excelsior courses?
     
  14. Alissa

    Alissa New Member

    Yes, Excelsior doesn't take "D" grades at all, so only "C" or better will get you credit. After you apply and receive your first evaluation, you have a certain amount of time (60 or 90 days?) where you can request specific courses be removed from your transcript.

    TESC does take "D" grades for credit as long as your overall GPA was still above 2.0.

    There is no time limit for your liberal studies credits at Excelsior, although be advised that CLEP scores expire after twenty years and GRE scores expire after five years. There is a twenty year time limit on business and technology credits, though.

    Another thing of interest, Excelsior does not accept those one-credit college experience classes that nearly all freshman have to take. They also do not accept physical education credits. However, TESC does accept physical education and college experience credits.
     

Share This Page