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Home > College Board Tests > CLEP: Exam Descriptions > Freshman College Composition

Freshman College Composition

Description of the Examination

The Freshman College Composition examination assesses skills required in most first-year college-level writing courses. It addresses elements of language and grammar; various types of writing, both formal and informal; and limited analysis and interpretation of short passages of prose and poetry. The examination assumes that candidates know the fundamental principles of rhetoric and can apply the principles of standard written English. In addition, the exam requires familiarity with the research paper and reference skills.

The Freshman College Composition exam also includes an optional essay section. Candidates should check with the college(s) of their choice to confirm whether the essay is required. This optional section requires candidates to demonstrate their ability to write clearly and effectively. Candidates respond to two essay topics, spending approximately 45 minutes on each essay. Faculty at the receiving institutions are responsible for scoring the essays; scoring instructions (scoring guide, commentary, and sample papers) are provided by CLEP to facilitate the process.

The examination contains approximately 90 questions to be answered in 90 minutes. Some of these are pretest questions that will not be scored. Any time candidates spend on tutorials or providing personal information is in addition to the actual testing time.

Knowledge and Skills Required

Questions on the Freshman College Composition examination measure students' writing skills both at the sentence level and within the context of passages. Elements of language and grammar, different styles of writing, and limited literary analysis of short prose and poetry selections are tested.

The subject matter of the Freshman College Composition examination is drawn from the following topics. The percentages next to the main topics indicate the approximate percentage of exam questions on that topic.

20%

Ability to Recognize and Use Standard Written English

The examination measures candidates' awareness of a variety of logical, structural, and grammatical relationships within sentences. The questions test recognition of acceptable usage relating to the following:

  • Syntax (parallelism, coordination, subordination, dangling modifiers)
  • Sentence boundaries (comma splice, run-ons, sentence fragments)
  • Recognition of correct sentences
  • Sentence variety
  • Concord/agreement (subject-verb; verb tense; pronoun reference, shift, number)
  • Correct idiom
  • Active/passive voice
  • Logical comparison
  • Punctuation

Two question formats are used to measure the skills above.

  • Identifying sentence errors—Requires candidates to identify wording that violates the standard conventions of written discourse.
  • Improving sentences—Requires candidates to choose the version of a phrase, clause, or sentence that best conveys the intended meaning of a sentence.
65%

Ability to Recognize Logical Development

The examination measures recognition of the following in the context of works in progress (student drafts) or of published prose:

  • Organization
  • Evaluation of evidence
  • Awareness of audience, tone, and purpose
  • Level of detail
  • Consistency of topic focus (sustaining coherence between paragraphs)
  • Sentence variety
  • Paragraph coherence
  • Main idea, thesis
  • Rhetorical effects and emphasis
  • Use of language
  • Evaluation of author's authority and appeal
  • Evaluation of reasoning
  • Shift in point of view

The following kinds of multiple-choice questions measure writing skills in context:

  • Revising work in progress—Candidates identify ways to improve an early draft of an essay.
  • Analyzing writing—Two prose passages written in very different modes and a poetry selection appear in the examination. Candidates answer questions about each passage and poem and about strategies used by the author of each selection.
  • Analyzing and evaluating writers' choices—Candidates are given a short stimulus and must answer questions about tone, attitude, ambiguity, and clarity.
15%

Ability to Use Resource Materials

The examination tests familiarity with the following basic reference skills. Skills are tested both in context and in individual questions.

  • Evaluating sources
  • Integrating resource material into the research paper
  • Manuscript format and documentation
  • Reference skills
  • Use of reference materials