CLEP® Precalculus (CLEP Test Preparation)

This book really helped out in focusing on what's really on the exam. And I already knew the basic concepts so I rather enjoyed the brevity of the overview section. The practice tests are QUITE rigorous in that many questions involve a few more steps to get to the right answer. That makes them impossible to complete in the allotted time. That's ok though. Knock your self out on these tests and let them toughen you up for the real thing.These tests have more than a few questions regarding the effects of arithmetic between even and odd functions. This is the first place I've seen this discussed but it's not hard to pick up if you research it online.This is a good last stage book before the actual test. Learn with a more comprehensive text, then use this book to get ready for the test itself.

I took each practice test three times. Each time I had a lot of difficulty completing them quickly enough. My scores on the second practice test were 44, 53, and 64. When I took the actual CLEP, I answered every question completely and only had to guess on the last question of each section. My score on the actual CLEP was 69. I really felt like the practice tests were a little more difficult than they needed to be.

It briefly covers all the material you will need for the CLEP test. If you're comfortable with math and find it easy to understand and pick up like me, this book is the only thing you'll need. Otherwise I suggest supplementing it because it is very brief. If you can pass the tests in the back you WILL make a good grade on the test (the book's practice tests are much harsher).

I can't recommend this book. It does nothing that other books don't do far better.The review questions are needlessly difficult--not in a way that challenges you to learn--but in a way that is just peculiar and causes you to become even more confused. The author frequently throws "curveballs" into questions that don't feel relevant to the material and seem inappropriate for what should be general review text for a broad audience. This would be fine if the book contained a large number of questions that "ramped up" from easy to hard, but that is not the case here. I realize that the book is intended to be a "quick overview" rather than an exhaustive course, but I found it to be unsatisfactory for any purpose because it is written in a way that seems so difficult and insular.The worked solutions are typically missing steps at key points, leading you to wonder how the author got from Point A to Point B. I know this is a common criticism of math texts, but it is particularly common here. The (rather brief) concept reviews seem to, again, cover material haphazardly. The best way I can describe this book is that it is almost as if the author skips every other thought (or, as if the book was rushed).If you are studying for the CLEP Pre-Calculus exam, these are the books that I recommend:"The Complete Idiots Guide to PreCalculus" - W. Michael Kelley. This is not the most rigorous book, but it's very readable (and genuinely funny) and great for getting the basic concepts down."Pre-Calculus Demystified" - Rhonda Huettenmueller. This goes into greater depth, and has provides lots of practice and worked examples, but beginners may want to start with the "Complete Idiot's" book."Problem Solvers - PreCalculus" - REA. Ironically, this is the same company that wrote the book that I am writing this negative review for. The Problem Solvers books are loaded with problems that include fully-worked solutions. The overviews are brief and dry, but when it comes to fully-worked practice questions, the REA Problem Solvers series has no equal.And, of course, the official CLEP study guide--the one that you have to order from the CollegeBoard folks themselves. From this, you will get cover topics and a practice exam.Good luck!

Compact, yet thorough and detailed textbook.I bought this book just for a refresher of my high-school math class, but turns out, it became one of the most interesting books to dig deeper. It covers absolutely essential components CLEP Precalculus exam from algebra to trigonometry with detailed explanations. The test section is slightly harder than the actual CLEP exam I thought, but nevertheless, upon completing the problems, you will have confidence in taking the actual exam.I only wish if there were more quiz sections so that I can do more practices.

I am thoroughly un-impressed with this book. Explanations of fundamental and even basic concepts are hazy and tough to interdigitate with mentally. The book launches into the Precalculus review at an advanced level - if you don't already know a significant amount of Precalculus you'll be absolutely lost from the start.Here are my recommendations for any fellow students wishing to CLEP Precalculus. It IS a very doable test. PLEASE - do not let the practice tests in this book deceive you!! The 3 practice tests are pythonically hard. If I would have paid attention to them I would never have taken the Clep. I just took the actual Clep yesterday and passed easily. The actual Clep is far easier than REA's practice tests, Peterson's practice tests, and the official Clep Study Guide practice test.The book that I found extremely useful in prepping for this Clep was Precalculus Demystified. I got it right here from Amazon. Infinitely more helpful than this REA Clep guide.Before that I went through Saxon's mathematics lineup.This test is very passable. Just don't get discouraged by the practice tests out there. And don't waste your time with this book, unless you already know a good deal of precalculus and just want a very quick (and unintelligible) review.Precalculus Demystified on the other hand is perfect. If you want to pass, get Precalculus Demystified. Pre-Calculus Demystified