How to Read Your CLEP Score

When a student finishes a CLEP exam at a CLEP testing center, they receive a print-out with their CLEP score.

But what does this score actually mean? Does it automatically award you college credit?

Here is what you need to know about the score you obtain on a CLEP test.

How your test is scored

After you take your CLEP test, it will be scored by a computer. (Note: if you took a CLEP exam with an essay, you will receive that score after it is manually graded.)

You will receive two scores—-a raw score and a scaled score. The raw score is the number of questions that you answered correctly. Your raw score is then scaled from 20 to 80 to give you a scaled score.

The scaled score tells you whether you have passed the test.

Most colleges consider a scaled score of 50 or higher to be passing and will grant credit to you for the CLEP test. Others may have more restrictive limits placed on the acceptance of your CLEP test scores for college credit.

There may also be some CLEP tests and college courses that will require a higher minimum of 59 for you to receive credit. For example, if you take a French CLEP test, you may need to score a minimum of 50 to get credit for French I proficiency, but you might need a 59 to get credit for French II proficiency at the college level.

The College Board publishes a recommended list of scores each year for universities. These provide guidance to colleges and universities about the minimum CLEP scores that they should accept and the number of college credits that should be granted for attaining minimal scores in different subjects.

You can check your scaled score against the college’s list to see what you might expect. You can also talk to the admissions office at your preferred college to learn about the number of credits that your institution may grant to you for passing your CLEP test.

Have questions about CLEP? Watch our free online CLEP workshop and discover how you can earn a college degree by taking CLEP exams during high school!