| Type | Computer based standardized test |
|---|---|
| Skills tested | English, math, and critical reasoning skills |
| Purpose | Undergraduate admissions (mostly US and Canadian colleges and universities) |
| Score range | Composite score: 0 to 120 |
| Languages | English |
| Fee | US$69 (CLT), $49 (CLT10), $39 (CLT3-8) |
| Used by | Colleges or universities offering undergraduate programs, or used by teachers and parents for student evaluation |
| Website | cltexam.com |
The Classic Learning Test (or CLT) is a standardized test developed by Classic Learning Initiatives in 2015. The company is based in Annapolis, Maryland, and its CEO is Jeremy Tate. [1] Designed as an alternative to other standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT, [2] the test assesses reading, grammar, writing, and mathematics. One of the distinctive elements of the CLT is its use of classic literature and historical texts [3] for the majority of reading passages on the exam.
The test can be taken online or in-school, takes approximately two hours to complete, [4] and issues test scores within ten days; scores are calculated out of 120. Classic Learning Initiatives also offers other assessments for third through twelfth-grade students: the CLT10, designed for high school freshmen and sophomores, and CLT3-8, for third through eighth-grade students. [5] CLT scores have been indexed to SAT and ACT scores, as well as CLT10 scores to PSAT scores. [6]
As of September 2023, the CLT contained sections on verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, and grammar and writing, as well as an optional essay segment. [4] The test has a noticeable emphasis on Christian thought [7] and many of its textual excerpts come from works by Christian figures such as Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, John Calvin, John Paul II, Jonathan Edwards, Teresa of Ávila, [8] , Augustine of Hippo, [7] Thomas à Kempis, [4] , and C.S. Lewis, [7] though religiously critical individuals such as Mark Twain, Charles Darwin, and Karl Marx also feature in the test's author bank, [8] as do the Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, [7] the Greek philosophers Aristotle and Plato, the Roman statesman Cicero, the English playwright William Shakespeare, [4] and female African-American writers Anna Julia Cooper, [7] Toni Morrison, and Ida B. Wells. [8]
Over 250 colleges and Universities in both the United States and abroad accept the CLT for various purposes related to admissions and course placement. These schools tend to be private, liberal arts or faith-based colleges. Many are evangelical and Catholic schools. [9] [10]
In September 2023, Florida's Board of Governors voted to approve the CLT as an accepted admissions test at all public universities in the state. [7]
New College Franklin [11] requires CLT scores for admission for all students under the age of 25.
A list of test-optional colleges that do not require any standardized test for admission, but allow the option to send in a CLT score include: