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CLEP®

Exam-Specific Prep

Visit the online store to download Individual Subject Study Guides. For $10, you'll get an outline of the test, sample questions, and tips for preparing to take the exam.

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Essay Tips

Strategies for Answering Essay Questions

There are five CLEP exams with essay sections.

Check before you take an exam to determine if an essay is required for college credit. If your college requires the essay portion, you may want to do some additional preparation.

Essay Formats

The English Composition with Essay examination requires you to type a response to one essay into the exam software. You can use the CLEP Sampler (.zip/9.36MB) to familiarize yourself with the essay interface.

The optional essay portions for American Literature, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, English Literature, and Freshman College Composition, consist of two essays. They are written by hand on paper and collected by test center administrators.

Essay Scoring

The essay you write as part of the English Composition with Essay examination is returned to CLEP. It is graded by English professors from a variety of colleges and universities across the United States.

The essay portions for American Literature, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, English Literature, and Freshman College Composition, are graded by faculty members at the college you designate as a score recipient. Therefore, you should talk with someone at your college to find out what criteria are used to determine whether you will receive credit.

  • Ask how much emphasis is placed on your writing ability and your ability to organize your thoughts, as opposed to your knowledge of the subject matter.
  • Find out how much weight is given to your multiple-choice test score, in comparison with the weight of your essay grade.

Writing Your Essay

  1. Estimate how much time you can give to each question. Once you know which questions you plan to answer and in what order, determine how much testing time remains and estimate how many minutes you have to spend on each question. Unless suggested times are given for the questions, or one question appears to require more or less time than the others, allot an equal amount of time to each question.
  2. Watch for key words in test questions. Before answering a question, reread it carefully to make sure you are interpreting it correctly. Pay attention to these key words that often appear in free-response questions. Be sure you know the exact meaning of these words before taking the exam.
    analyze
    demonstrate
    enumerate
    list
    compare
    determine
    illustrate
    rank     		apply
    derive
    explain
    outline
    contrast
    discuss
    interpret
    show     		assess
    describe
    generalize
    prove
    define
    distinguish
    justify
    summarize

    If a question asks you to outline, define, or summarize, do not write a detailed explanation. If a question asks you to analyze, explain, illustrate, interpret, or show, you must do more than briefly describe the topic.

  3. Organize your thoughts. Write a brief outline on the scratch paper provided by the test center before you write your essay response.