CREDIT BY EXAMINATION - GOVERNMENT 310L

Policies Effective for the Academic Year 2009-2010*

*This is to be used as a guide only. Policies are subject to change.

UT Austin provides you with the opportunity to earn course credit by examination. Such credit will satisfy degree requirements in the same way as credit earned by passing a course, except that it will not count as credit earned in residence. Although you may take tests before you enroll in UT Austin, you must be a currently or previously enrolled student in order to receive credit. Unsuccessful attempts to earn credit by examination will not become part of your official transcript.

Faculty members in the Department of Government select the tests, set the levels of performance required for credit, and specify who is eligible to take the tests. DIIA-Student Testing Services assists the department by communicating policies, giving the tests, and reporting the credit.

STATE OF TEXAS LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENT
The Texas legislative requirement specifies that no student may receive an undergraduate degree from a public institution in Texas until he/she has passed six semester hours of American government including Texas government.

TESTS USED BY UT AUSTIN
Students who wish to attempt to earn credit by examination in GOV 310L have the following options:

• The College Level Examination Program (CLEP) Subject Examination in American Government and the UT Austin Test on Texas Government

• The Advanced Placement Examination in United States Government and Politics and the UT Austin Test on Texas Government

ELIGIBILITY FOR CREDIT BY EXAMINATION IN GOVERNMENT
To be eligible for credit by examination, you must not already have a passing or failing grade in GOV 310L or an equivalent course.

CLEP SUBJECT EXAMINATION IN AMERICAN GOVERNMENT
AUGMENTED BY THE UT AUSTIN TEST ON TEXAS GOVERNMENT

Level of Performance Required for Credit

Because eligibility for credit is based on two test scores, no minimum satisfactory CLEP scores are listed in this handout.

TEST ADMINISTRATION

LIMITED TEST CENTER ADMINISTRATIONS
All administrations of the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) Subject Examinations use the computer-based test (CBT) format. These administrations are limited to prospective, current, and formerly enrolled students of UT Austin. At institutional administrations of the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government, the UT Austin Test on Texas Government is administered immediately following the CLEP Examination.

Official score reports are sent by the College Board. UT Austin students should list UT Austin as a score recipient to have an official report of your scores sent to UT Austin.

Test Periods: This test is offered on the UT Austin campus during scheduled test periods. Please check the test schedule for details.

Test Registration: You must register for a test online.

Test Registration for Students with Disabilities: If you require academic accommodations or assistance due to a documented disability, you should contact these two offices at least five business days before the day of the test:

• Services for Students with Disabilities, in the Office of the Dean of Students at ssd@uts.cc.utexas.edu, http://deanofstudents.utexas.edu/ssd/, or (512) 471-6259 to seek approval for authorized accommodations;
• DIIA-Student Testing Services at (512) 232-2662 to register and make arrangements to take the test.

Registration Fee and Test Fee Payment: When you confirm your registration for a test you will be immediately billed a non-refundable test registration fee of $15. In addition, there is a test fee of $72. This fee is payable directly to CLEP. You will pay the test fee when you arrive to take the test. You may pay with credit card, money order, or check (made payable to CLEP).

Repeating the Test: You may take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government only in conjunction with taking one of the College Board government examinations: the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government or the Advanced Placement Examination in United States Government and Politics. You may not retake the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government within six months, and if you do retake the CLEP examination, you must then retake the UT Austin Test on Texas Government before your eligibility to receive credit by examination can be determined.

Admission to the Test Room: When you register online you will be given the location of your test room. You must present, at the test room, a generally accepted form of identification that includes both your signature and photograph.

Amount of Time Needed at the Test Administration: The maximum working time for the computer-based CLEP Subject Examination in American Government is 90 minutes. There are twenty multiple-choice questions on the Texas Government objective portion. You may not begin the Texas Government portion until the end of the 90 minutes allowed for the American Government test.

Test Description: You can find a test description for the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government at the College Board web site.

Test Results: Results are on the computer screen at the end of your testing session for the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government. Once they are available, results may also be found online.

Score Reports: The UT Austin score report will indicate whether your score qualifies you for credit by examination and, if so, the course grade for which you qualify.

OPEN TEST CENTER ADMINISTRATIONS
The College Board has a nationwide network of centers in which CLEP examinations are offered. The fee for one CLEP examination is $72 plus an additional service fee. A complete list of test centers and a test description for the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government are available through the College Board web page. Prospective or current UT Austin students who elect to take examinations in this type of administration must list UT Austin as a score recipient (code 6882) if they wish scores to be reported here. Approximately two weeks after the test date, score reports are mailed from Princeton, NJ, to you and to the institution you designated as score recipient. Your CLEP score report will give only your score on the CLEP American Government examination.

Before your eligibility for GOV 310L credit can be determined, you must arrange to take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government, which is offered only on the UT Austin campus. You must register for the UT Austin Test on Texas Government. When you confirm your registration to take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government, you will be immediately billed a non-refundable registration fee of $15.

An official copy of your CLEP scores must be on file with DIIA-Student Testing Services before you may take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government.

Reading Suggestions for the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government
The UT Austin Department of Government suggests the following textbooks to use in preparation for the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government:

Morris P. Fiorina & Paul E. Peterson, The New American Democracy (any recent edition, full or alternate). Longman

Edward S. Greenberg, The struggle for Democracy (any recent edition). Harper Collins

Theodore J. Lowi & Benjamin Ginsberg, American Government (any recent edition). W.W. Norton

UT AUSTIN TEST ON TEXAS GOVERNMENT

The twenty multiple-choice questions in this test cover the politics and government of the state of Texas. The questions are very similar to the questions in the CLEP examination. The subject matter of these items is devoted exclusively to Texas politics and government and includes questions on the following:

• State government organization and powers -- 40%

• Political parties and elections -- 10%

• Social-economic environment -- 10%

• Constitution and local government -- 20%

• Policies, including state finance -- 20%

Like the CLEP Subject Examination in American Government, the UT Austin Test on Texas Government may be taken only once within six months, and only in conjunction with taking the CLEP examination.

Reading Suggestions for the UT Austin Test on Texas Government
Although the test questions are not based on a specific textbook, any one of the following books should be helpful in preparing for the examination:

• Richard H. Kraemer, Charldean Newell, & David F. Prindle, The Essentials of Texas Politics (10th Edition, Wadsworth Publishing)
  

SAMPLE QUESTIONS

1. Which of the following constitutional powers enables the Texas governor to exercise the most control over Texas government?
   1. The power to appoint top constitutional officers
   2. The power to prepare the budget
   3. The power to dismiss executive officials
   4. The power to veto legislation

2. Appointment to committees in the Texas House of Representatives is primarily determined by
   1. party membership.
   2. the wishes of the majority party caucus.
   3. the wishes of the Speaker.
   4. election by the membership of the House.

Answer Key to Sample Questions

1. D

2. C

COLLEGE BOARD ADVANCED PLACEMENT EXAMINATION IN UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS AUGMENTED BY THE UT AUSTIN TEST ON TEXAS GOVERNMENT

The College Board Advanced Placement Examinations are offered once a year in May, usually in high schools that offer College Board Advanced Placement courses. These tests are not offered on the UT Austin campus. Although determined by each school giving the test, registration deadlines are no later than March. Test results are available in July. Please visit the College Board's Web site for current test registration fees at http://www.collegeboard.com/student/testing/ap/cal.html.

The AP Examinations are based on course descriptions prepared by The College Board. A course description, which includes sample examination questions, is available for the United States Government and Politics examination at the College Board's web site www.collegeboard.com/apcentral.

Sometimes high school counselors have reference copies of course descriptions. If a high school in your vicinity is not administering AP Examinations, you can request special testing arrangements by contacting AP Services, Box 6671, Princeton, NJ 08541-6671, 1-888- CALL- 4- AP.

Your AP score report will give only your score on the AP Examination in United States Government and Politics. Before your eligibility for GOV 310L credit can be determined, you must arrange to take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government, which is offered only on the UT Austin campus. You must register for the UT Austin Test on Texas Government. When you confirm your registration to take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government, you will be immediately billed a non-refundable registration fee of $15.

An official copy of your AP scores must be on file with DIIA-Student Testing Services before you may take the UT Austin Test on Texas Government.

PETITIONING/CLAIMING CREDIT

UT Austin students must petition (or claim) their credit to have it appear on their official transcript. DIIA-Student Testing services reports petitioned credit to the Office of the Registrar.

|     Current Test Schedule  |   Test Descriptions  |