Clep Guide To Mastering The Composition Essay

Let's face it - no one wants to sit through four months of composition classes during their freshman year of college.

This might explain why both the Freshman College Composition CLEP test and Literature test are among the most popular exams in the College Level Examination Program arsenal. Unfortunately, some test takers are quickly discovering that taking this test doesn't necessarily mean that they'll skip out on college level composition classes.

In fact, if you want to guarantee your pass rate on both of these difficult exams, you'll have to get pretty cozy with composition rules, especially with regards to writing essays!

Consider This Your CLEP Guide to the Essay Portion

Unlike other kinds of standardized tests, your essay won't be graded by official examiners; instead, your future college professors will be judging your writing skills. As if that wasn't bad enough, the College Board also doesn't specify what criteria that your professors will use when grading your essays.

So before you start to panic and go into study guide overtime, consider these two important points:

*Before taking this type of CLEP test, it might be helpful to contact someone at your intended college and ask them how much your writing ability will factor into your overall score (as opposed to your expertise on a subject). This should give you a pretty good idea of what you should place your emphasis on when reviewing any study guide.

*Additionally, see if the multiple-choice section will outweigh the essay section. Again, this will help you to effectively range your exam study.

Now that we've got these two business items out of the way, let's get down to the real meat and bones of your exam!

Try These Tips Out on Your CLEP Practice Test

Ready for some truly stellar tips? Of course you are - and we're not ones to disappoint!

*Never underestimate the power of effective organization. In fact, the best way to approach the essay portion of the Literature and Composition tests is to answer the questions you find easiest first. That way, you'll have plenty of time for the tougher questions. It may seem like common sense, but trust us - it'll help you in the midst of CLEP exam panic!

*Watch out for key words in the essay questions. These exam questions aren't all about proving a point or agreeing with a statement - and if you don't read the directions properly, you stand a very good chance of misunderstanding what the question expects from you in the first place! Watch out for key words such as "analyze", "enumerate", "contrast", "rank", "compare", "demonstrate", "generalize" and "justify", as they'll help you to determine what the professor will expect from you.

*Don't charge ahead and write the essay in one go - in fact, make use of the test center scrap paper by jotting down a quick outline of your proposed argument. Bonus benefit: it will help you keep track of your essay when you're in the midst of end-of-test pressure!