CUNY Baccalaureate allows students to earn a maximum of 30 non-classroom credits. CLEP (College-Level Examination Program) offers 90-minute computer-based exams in introductory college-level subjects. CLEP is the most commonly used exam; other credit-by-exam options can be found at the bottom of this page.
Three credits will be awarded per exam when the earned score is at least 50; 6-12 credits are granted for the language exams (higher scores are required for languages, level 2).
There are four CLEP exams CUNY Baccalaureate does not accept:
College Composition Modular
Humanities
Social Science and History
Natural Science
In addition, the program does not offer credits for the optional essay sections that are available for the exams in American Literature, Analyzing and Interpreting Literature, and English Literature.
Refer to the chart at the bottom for details on which exams CUNY BA accepts and how they are applied.
Students should be careful not to take exams in subjects for which they have already earned college credit.
CLEP exams are non-collegiate/non-CUNY credit and therefore are not counted toward residency. Consult your CUNY Baccalaureate academic advisor before registering for these exams to ensure that you have room for non-classroom and non-CUNY credits in your program.
The CLEP code for CUNY BA is 7188. We are listed under the CUNY Graduate Center.
CLEP brochures are available in the CUNY Baccalaureate office. More information can be found at http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/clep/about.html.
Refer to the CUNY Baccalaureate Catalog for addition credit-by- exam options and information.
CLEP exams accepted for credit by CUNY BA/BS as of spring 2011
| Exam | Minimum Score | Credits | CUNY BA Core Distribution |
| Composition and Literature (all Liberal Arts) | |||
| American Literature | 50 | 3 | Literature or Humanities |
| Analyzing and Interpreting Literature | 50 | 3 | Literature or Humanities |
| English Literature | 50 | 3 | Literature or Humanities |
| College Composition | 50 | 3 | N/A |
| Foreign Languages (all Liberal Arts)*** | |||
| French (Level 1, first two semesters) | 50 | 6 | Foreign Language, 2 Semesters |
| French (Level 2, first four semesters) | 59 | 6 | Foreign Language, 4 Semesters |
| German (Level 1, first two semesters) | 50 | 6 | Foreign Language, 2 Semesters |
| German (Level 2, first four semesters) | 60** | 6 | Foreign Language, 4 Semesters |
| Spanish (Level 1, first two semesters) | 50 | 6 | Foreign Language, 2 Semesters |
| Spanish (Level 2, first four semesters) | 63 | 6 | Foreign Language, 4 Semesters |
| History and Social Sciences (all Liberal Arts) | |||
| American Government | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Human Growth and Development | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Introduction to Educational Psychology | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Introductory Psychology | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Introductory Sociology | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Principles of Macroeconomics | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| Principles of Microeconomics | 50 | 3 | Social Science |
| History U.S. I: Early Colonization to 1877 | 50 | 3 | Humanities |
| History U.S. II: 1865 to the Present | 50 | 3 | Humanities |
| Western Civiliz. I: Anc. Near East-1648 | 50 | 3 | Humanities |
| Western Civiliz. II: 1648 – Present | 50 | 3 | Humanities |
| Science and Mathematics (all Liberal Arts) | |||
| Biology | 50 | 3 | Science |
| Chemistry | 50 | 3 | Science |
| College Algebra | 50 | 3 | Math |
| College Mathematics | 50 | 3 | Math |
| Pre-Calculus | 50 | 3 | Math |
| Calculus | 50 | 3 | Math |
| Business (Non-Liberal Arts) | |||
| Financial Accounting | 50 | 3 | N/A |
| Introductory Business Law | 50 | 3 | N/A |
| Info Systems/Computer Applications | 50 | 3 | N/A |
| Principles of Management | 50 | 3 | N/A |
| Principles of Marketing | 50 | 3 | N/A |
** The required score for German 2 was lowered from 63 to 60 effective July 1, 2008.
***French, German and Spanish are single exams; earning 4 semesters/12 credits depends on your score.
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Note also that while CLEP is the most popular way of earning credit by exam, there are these other ways; see the Program Catalog for details:
New York University Language Proficiency Exam (offered in over 40 languages, and available in 12 credit and 16 credit modules)
DANTES program (Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support)
Excelsior College Examinations
CUNY academic departments that offer credit by examination (check with individual college departments)
