Credit by Examination

By passing certain examinations you may get credit for NSCC courses.

Advanced Placement (AP)

The College Board Advanced Placement Program (AP) provides participating high schools the opportunity to offer college-level coursework to students in a variety of subject areas. Upon completion of an AP course, the high school student may take an AP examination. AP scores range from 1 to 5 points. AP scores of 3, 4, and 5 are commonly acceptable as the equivalent of college- level course work.

North Shore Community College awards academic credit as indicated in the AP Policy & Procedures (pdf 48k). To apply for AP credit, please fill out the AP Application Form (pdf 31k). For more information. contact us at cas@northshore.edu.

Challenge Exams

Standardized Challenge Exams for academic credit or course waiver are offered for the following courses (for a P/F grade).

Contact us at cas@northshore.edu for information or to register for an examination.

CLEP

The College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) is a series of examinations that allow individuals to earn college credit for what they already know, regardless of where they learned it. CLEP is the most widely accepted credit-by-examination program in the United States. North Shore Community College awards academic credit as indicated in the CLEP Policy & Procedures (pdf 63k ). To apply for CLEP credit, please fill out the CLEP Application Form (pdf 129k ). Cost per exam is $60 to CLEP and $25 to NSCC. Contact us at cas@northshore.edu for information or to register for an examination.

Exams are 90 minutes long and are administered on computer. Students receive instant score reports following completion of the exam. With the exception of the English Composition 1 and 2 exams, which require supplemental writing samples, the exams are composed of multiple-choice questions. For more information on the content and format of any of the CLEP exams, please visit www.collegeboard.com/clep.

Composition 1 and 2

Credit Options for English Composition 1 and 2 require successful completion a CLEP exam, plus writing samples.

Composition 1 (pdf 1k ) requires a minimum score of 50 on the "Freshmen College Composition" CLEP exam (regular CLEP testing fees plus additional NSCC fees apply), three writing samples, and an essay to be completed in the Center for Alternative Studies and Educational Testing.

Composition 2 (pdf 36k) requires successful completion of the "Analysis and Interpretation of Literature" CLEP exam (regular CLEP testing fees plus additional NSCC fees apply), plus a supplemental essay written in the Center for Alternative Studies and Educational Testing.

DANTES

DANTES is a national credit-by-examination program designed to measure a student’s proficiency in the college level areas of Humanities, Social Science, Mathematics, Business, Physical Science and Applied Technology. Examinations are paper and pencil and are not timed. Cost per exam is $70 to DANTES and $25 to NSCC. For more information on the content and format of any of the DANTES exams, please visit www.getcollegecredit.com.

North Shore Community College accepts and also administers (pdf 49k ) DANTES examinations. Contact us at cas@northshore.edu for an application (pdf 106k ) or to register for an examination.

Departmental Exams

Departmental Examinations are faculty-prepared examinations for catalogued NSCC courses other than those covered by national exam programs. Departmental Exam Policy and Procedures (pdf 49k ) require that students request an exam (pdf 178k ) through CAS and then work with an instructor to learn about and arrange for testing. Contact us at cas@northshore.edu for information.

NYU Language Testing

Language Proficiency Examinations (pdf 178k ) are available to students who have acquired skills in foreign languages. Students register through NYU (pdf 108k ) to have the tests administered off-site at NSCC. Academic credit is awarded to NSCC students who pass examinations at a performance level of C or better. More information is available by consulting the NSCC/NYU Language Testing Policy (pdf 142k ) or by contacting us at cas@northshore.edu.

For more information, please contact us at cas@northshore.edu.