Q & A on the issues
Q: Can I meet my state requirements by taking exams, online courses or classes at out-of-state institutions? How can I be sure the State Education Department will accept these credits?
Jan 17, 2008 1:20 PM
A: If you need to eliminate course credit deficiencies for your state certification requirements, you may be able to do so by getting passing grades on exams given by the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSST) or Excelsior College Examinations.
The exams you take should not duplicate any college courses you already took. If you have questions about these exams, call TeacherLine, an educational liaison in your UFT borough office or the union’s Department of Certification Services (1-212-420-1830).
Contact each testing company for information about which exams it offers, costs and registration procedures:
- CLEP offers exams in 35 subjects and 65 Court St. is the DOE’s official test site for anyone with a DOE file number. For more information about CLEP, go to www.collegeboard.com and http://schools.nyc.gov.
- You can get current information about DANTES at www.getcollegecredit.com or by calling 1-877-471-9860.
- To check on Excelsior exams go to www.excelsior.edu, or call 1-888-72EXAMS.
(The credits you earn by taking these tests also count toward the credit requirements for either the first or second salary differential. If you take an exam at the DOE site, you can submit the score report issued at the site with your differential application. Otherwise, you will need to request a transcript from the testing company.)
For the SED to accept course credits or degrees that you earned outside New York, whether you took them online or in person, they must be from regionally accredited institutions. You may check with the Council for Higher Education Accreditation at www.chea.org/ to determine whether or not an institution is regionally accredited.
