Homeschool High School Tests Simplified: CLEP, AP, ACT and SAT

When Noah went to get his financial aid for college, he was awarded a very nice scholarship based solely on his ACT score. His ACT score wasn’t super high either, and yet it netted him tens of thousands of dollars in scholarship money.

This is NOT talked about much in home school circles near me, although I did blog about it last year.  Yet signing up for the ACT and/or the SAT is pretty quick and painless, not super expensive, and can result in big savings. 

These tests are also the premier credential you bring to college admissions offices. I think maybe homeschool grades are sometimes looked at as either being inflated or too tough, and so the ACT or SAT gives them a yardstick that they are familiar with when comparing our kids to other students. You could try your students on both tests to see which one they score better on and then stick with the better test for your child. My kids have done better on the ACT.

There is also a new test that’s available, the Classic Learning Test. I have no experience with that one yet. If you have, please share in the comments. 

There a number of books and resources to help you prepare for the ACT exam. These are some that I have used. 

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Dr. James Stobaugh was my son’s World History AP teacher. He also works for the college board, so I thought his book as someone who actually works for the test maker, was a good addition to our test prep.

Two of my kids also earned college credit with CLEP testing. Noah earned enough credit to free up his schedule so that he could double-major I’ve posted on this before. My plan for my daughter this year is to do a thorough study of English LIterature and Biology all year, study with the test books in the spring and then take the CLEP tests in these subjects while the information is still fresh in her brain.

Two of my kids also earned college credits with CLEP testing.

For thorough preparation, you can’t beat Instacert. That’s a service to help you prepare for CLEP exams for a monthly subscription. Cancel at any time. The forum is also helpful to hear from other test takers. Both of my CLEP earners have found Instacert to be invaluable for test preparation.

Another good way to earn college credit is with AP exams. You don’t have to take a certified AP class to take the AP exam. My son, however, did both with an online class from Dr. Stobaugh and then taking the test.

Unlike CLEP tests, which can be taken at any time at a test center, AP exams are only offered at certain times of the year (spring) and you have to get permission from the high school to take the exam. They are not always very hospitable to homeschoolers in that regard so plan ahead!

Also, it’s important to check with the colleges your students might be enrolling in to see if they accept CLEP and AP credits before you take them. It’s good to know that information.