Southwest Tech recognizes that students come to college with experiences that have provided learning that equals or exceeds the learning that takes place in the classroom. A student has the option to test out of courses in which he/she feels the learning was achieved before coming to Southwest Tech.

CLEP Test

College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) test is an assessment test developed by the College Board. In order for Southwest Tech to award credit for the course, a score of 50 must be achieved on the test, unless otherwise noted. The following tests are accepted for credit at Southwest Tech.

Tests marked with ** are for the University Transfer Liberal Arts program.

  • Business
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    Financial Accounting 10-101-111 Accounting 1 4
    Introductory Business Law 10-102-109 Business Law 1 3
    Principles of Management 10-102-130 Management Principles 3
    Principles of Marketing 10-104-130 Marketing Principles 3
    Information Systems ** 10 or 20 code elective 3
  • Humanities
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    College Composition 10-801-136 English Composition 3
    10-801-195 Written Communication 3
    10-801-197 Tech Reporting 3
    American Literature** 20-801-239** American Lit. 1865 to Present 3
    Analyzing and Interpreting Literature** 20-801-255** Introduction to Literature 3
    College Composition Modular 10-801-136 English Composition 3
    10-801-195 Written Communications 3
    English Literature** 20-801-235** British Lit 19th Century to Present 3
    Humanities** Humanities Credits 3
  • History & Social Sciences
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    Human Growth and Development 10-809-188 Developmental Psychology 3
    Principles of Macroeconomics 10-809-195 Economics 3
    Introductory Psychology 10-809-198 Introduction to Psychology 3
    Introductory Sociology 10-809-197 Contemporary American Society 3
    American Government** 20-803-227** American Government 3
    History of the United States 1** 20-803-215** History of Am People to 1877 3
    History of the United States II** 20-803-219** History of Am People from 1877 3
    Intro to Educational Psychology** 20-809-251** Introduction to Psychology 3
    10-809-199** Psychology of Human Relations 3
    Principles of Microeconomics** 20-809-291** Principles of Microeconomics 3
    10-809-195 Economics 3
    Social Sciences and History** Social Studies Credits 6
    Western Civilization 1** 20-803-258** World History to 1500 3
    Western Civilization II** 20-803-259** World History since 1500 3
  • Science
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    Chemistry 10-806-134 General Chemistry 4
    20-806-245** College Chemistry 5
    20-806-241** Introduction to Chemistry 5
    Biology** 20-806-201** Principles of Biology 5
    Natural Sciences** Natural Science Credits 6
  • Mathematics
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    College Algebra 10-804-195 College Algebra with Apps 3
    20-804-220** Intermediate Algebra 3
    College Mathematics 10-804-107 College Mathematics 3
    20-804-250** Quantitative Reasoning 4
    10-804-134** Mathematical Reasoning 3
    10-804-123 Math with Business Apps 3
    10-804-302 Applied Technical Math 2
    College Math 10-804-113 College Technical Math 1A 3
    Pre-Calculus 10-804-114 College Technical Math 1B 2
    20-804-224** Algebra for Calculus 3
    Calculus 20-804-236** Calculus and Analytic Geometry 4
  • World Language
  • CLEP Exam Course # Course Name Credits Issued
    Spanish Language Level 1** 20-802-217** Spanish 1 4
    Spanish Language Level 2** (Required score of 63) 20-802-221** Spanish II 4

Other CLEP tests are available and will be accepted as elective credits to a program. Please see the Prior Learning tab on your program page for more information on what is available for credit for prior learning in your program.

The College-Level Examination Program encourages candidates with disabilities to take CLEP examinations. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and other laws, a variety of testing accommodations are offered that optimize testing conditions for candidates with disabilities.

Registering For CLEP

To register for a CLEP test, visit https://clep.collegeboard.org/clep-exams and click on the exam you wish to take. If you scroll down, the topics covered on the CLEP are listed. At the top of the page, there is a link to purchase the test. The cost of the test is $89 and is paid to CLEP.

One you have purchased the test, call the Southwest Tech Testing Center (608-822-2313) to reserve a time to test. There is a charge of $20 per test to test in the Testing Center.

Preparing For CLEP

On the same page you order the testing, there is an option to purchase study guides. We recommend you use https://modernstates.org/. This site offers free courses to prep for the CLEP test.

Other Nationally Accredited Exams

Other nationally accredited exams are also accepted. If a student has documentation of an acceptable test score (transcript/report) for a nationally accredited exam, the student will submit it to Student Services. Potential exams include Advanced Placement (AP) with a score of 3 or higher, GED test score of 175 or higher, DSST (formally known as DANTES), or Excelsior exams. For other national exams, scores will be reviewed to determine if the score is acceptable. Southwest Tech will also accept CLEP test results taken at another testing center with the official transcript.