Two of the best-known examination programs are the College-Level Exam Program (CLEP) and the Advanced Placement (AP) program. A newer program, DSST (Dante) is also available. Of the three, the AP program is probably the best-known and most widely recognized.
These exams are good for people who are passionate about a subject and have mastered the material on their own. If you read about history constantly, have acquired the basics of a foreign language while traveling, or learned computer programming while designing your company's website, you may want to take an exam and earn college credit.
The AP and CLEP exams cover traditional academic subjects but the Dante program is broader and offers exams in personal accounting and public speaking.
Before investing time and money in the exams, however, check to see if the college you wish to attend offers credit for these exams.
Since 1987, some universities have offered credits for life experience. Generally, you must be able to document that what you have learned on the job is equivalent to what you would have learned in a college classroom. Small business owners may be able to get management and accounting credit while human resource managers may be able to receive credit if they can document attendance at training sessions and seminars.
The key to receiving life experience credit is proper documentation. Often, the student must go before a committee and answer questions about her knowledge and experiences.
The armed services offer excellent training in a variety of fields and many colleges will accept coursework offered through the military as college credit. The American Council on Education works together with the military to assess their training programs and document their equivalence to courses offered by many colleges. The organization maintains a website offering advice to current and former military personnel wishing to obtain college credit for their military training.
If you hold certifications or professional licenses, you may be able to earn college credit. However, those certifications must correspond closely to a course of academic study offered by the college. For example, it would be far easier to earn college credit for certifications in computer programming than it would be to earn college credit for having a beautician's license.