There is a new way of earning college credit by exam, and for a limited time, it's free. It is called UExcel, and it has been developed by Excelsior College and Pearson VUE. The new program is currently being tested, and students can sign up to take a free exam at one of 1,000 testing centers around the world at no cost.
To take advantage of the free offer, just register to take one of the beta exams in Calculus, Physics, Political Science or Psychology. After signing up for a user name at the Web site, you can register for an exam and then enter the promotional code UEXCELFREE at checkout. Due to the number of people trying to register, it might take several attempts to use the promo code. Using the promo code will save you $85.00 on the cost of the exam.
Excelsior and PearsonVUE say nearly 3,000 colleges and universities accept credit-by-exam credits, and the UExcel credits will be treated like any CLEP or DANTES exam credit. UExcel will send a transcript to any school you designate, and if your school needs more information about the exam they can check the UExcel Web site or contact the Assessment Unit at Excelsior College at 1-888-647-2388 (ext. 166).
The free credit-by-exam promotion is only running for a limited time. It is set to expire September 30th, 2008, or until Excelsior decides it has collected enough data for analysis. Because the program is in beta testing, students will not receive scores at the testing center. Instead, they must wait until all beta participants have taken their exams. Exam results will be mailed to the student within four months of the exam date. Students will also be able to check their exam scores online at that time at www.pearsonvue.com.