CLEP Introductory Sociology Exam Prep Course
Full course with 450+ practice questions and a practice exam
Self-paced prep for the CLEP Introductory Sociology exam. 14 chapters covering all 5 content areas the exam tests, with a quiz after every subchapter. 100 questions, 90 minutes. A score of 50 earns 3 transferable college credits.
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path — earn the credit even if you don't pass
- Lifetime access — no deadlines, no expiry, study at your own pace
- Credits accepted at 2,900+ U.S. colleges
Pricing
$19 for this course with lifetime access, or $29 a month for all 28 CLEP subjects. Every plan also unlocks the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject.
- All 14 chapters and 70 lessons
- Five-question quiz after every subchapter
- Readiness score tracker
- Every major sociological theory, applied
- Lifetime access, no expiry
- All 28 CLEP prep courses
- Every chapter, lesson and quiz
- Readiness tracker per subject
- Backup ACE/NCCRS credit path
- Cancel or pause anytime
- Lifetime access to all 28 subjects
- All current and future courses
- 12-month ACE/NCCRS backup path
- Pay once, never renew
What are ACE and NCCRS?
Two independent bodies that review online courses and recommend them for college credit. The American Council on Education (ACE) and the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) put courses through faculty panels that assess rigor and learning outcomes, then publish a credit recommendation. When you complete one, the credentialing body issues an official transcript you send to your college — the same kind of transfer credit a student moving from another university would bring with them.
- Reviewed by faculty panels, not by the course provider
- Official transcript issued on completion
- Recognized at 2,100+ colleges, many of which also take CLEP and DSST
Both routes, one plan
Buying CLEP Introductory Sociology prep also opens the ACE/NCCRS course in the same subject — Introduction to Sociology — at no extra cost. So exam day isn't the only way through. If the score doesn't land, the course is already sitting in your account: complete it self-paced, no proctor and no 90-minute timer, and earn the three credits through coursework instead.
- Same subject, same 3 semester hours, different path
- Unlocked automatically — no extra fee, no application
- CLEP can still be retaken after three months
Each college sets its own transfer policy, so confirm yours accepts the route you plan to use.
Check your college's policy before you buy. We keep 280+ school pages listing accepted exams, required scores and credits awarded.
Check your collegeCLEP Introductory Sociology exam format and topics
The exam covers a one-semester introductory sociology course across 5 content areas. About 100 questions in 90 minutes, some of them unscored pretest items. Some questions ask you to interpret tables and charts or apply concepts to hypothetical situations. Pass mark is 50.
| Content area | Weighting | Questions | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social Processes | 25% | ≈25 | Collective behavior and social movements; culture; deviance and social control; groups and organizations; social change; social interaction; socialization |
| Social Stratification (Process and Structure) | 25% | ≈25 | Aging; power and social inequality; professions and occupations; race and ethnic relations; sex and gender roles; social class; social mobility |
| Institutions | 20% | ≈20 | Economic, educational, family, medical, political and religious institutions |
| The Sociological Perspective | 20% | ≈20 | History of sociology; research methods; sociological theory |
| Social Patterns | 10% | ≈10 | Community; demography; human ecology and environmental sociology; rural and urban patterns |
| 5 content areas | 100% | ≈100 | 90 minutes · multiple choice · score 50 for an ACE recommendation of 3 semester hours |
How hard is the exam?
Half the exam is social processes and stratification, and theory runs through all of it: expect to match a situation to functionalism, conflict theory or symbolic interactionism. Some questions give you a table or chart and ask what it shows, so practice reading data, not just definitions.
- Start with Social Processes and Stratification — 25% each
- Know the three main theoretical perspectives cold
- Social Patterns is 10% — demography and urbanization basics
Exam fee and booking
Register with College Board for $97. Test centers may add an administration fee. You can test at a center or remotely with a proctor, year-round. Scores are reported immediately for multiple-choice exams, and you send them to your college yourself.
- Passing score 50, for 3 semester hours
- Retake permitted after three months
- Free for active-duty military via DANTES
Every chapter closes with the functionalist, conflict and interactionist view of its topic — the comparison the exam asks for most often.
Check your collegeCourse chapters and lessons
14 chapters across 62 instructional hours. Expand any chapter to see the lessons inside it.
Chapter 1 Sociology Basics: Exploring the Field
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1.1 What Is Sociology?
What sociology is, how it shapes public policy, and the major theoretical perspectives — functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism — that run through the whole exam.
- 1.2 Significance of Sociology: Impact on Public Policy, Social Dynamics & Personal Growth
- 1.3 Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology
- 1.4 Why Study Sociology?
Chapter 2 Sociological Research and Culture
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2.1 Approaches to Sociological Research
How sociologists do research, the main research methods, Lenski's theory of sociocultural evolution, and what culture is and how it changes.
- 2.2 Research Methods
- 2.3 Gerhard Lenski's Theories: Sociocultural Evolution, Social Stratification & Technological Advancement
- 2.4 What is Culture?
- 2.5 Elements of Culture
- 2.6 High, Low, Pop, Sub, Counter-culture and Cultural Change
- 2.7 Theoretical Perspectives on Culture
Chapter 3 Society, Social Interaction, and Socialization
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3.1 Types of Societies
Types of societies, the social construction of reality, theories of self-development, and the agents of socialization across the life course.
- 3.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Society
- 3.3 Social Constructions of Reality
- 3.4 Theories of Self-Development
- 3.5 Why Socialization Matters
- 3.6 Agents of Socialization
- 3.7 Socialization Across the Life Course
Chapter 4 Groups and Organization
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4.1 Types of Groups
Primary and secondary groups, how group size shapes behavior, and formal organizations and bureaucracy.
- 4.2 Group Size and Structure
- 4.3 Formal Organizations
Chapter 5 Deviance, Crime, and Social Control
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5.1 Deviance and Control
What counts as deviance, the theories that explain it, and how crime and the law work as social control.
- 5.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Deviance and Crime
- 5.3 Crime and the Law
Chapter 6 Social Stratification in the United States
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6.1 What Is Social Stratification?
Social stratification and class, mobility in the United States, global inequality, and the theories that explain why stratification exists — half of the exam's largest area.
- 6.2 Social Stratification and Mobility in the United States
- 6.3 Global Stratification and Inequality
- 6.4 Theoretical Perspectives on Social Stratification
Chapter 7 Race, Ethnicity, Gender, Sex, and Sexuality
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7.1 Racial, Ethnic, and Minority Groups
Racial and ethnic groups, prejudice and discrimination, patterns of intergroup relations, and sex, gender, identity and sexuality.
- 7.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity
- 7.3 Prejudice, Discrimination, and Racism
- 7.4 Intergroup Relationships
- 7.5 Race and Ethnicity in the United States
- 7.6 Sex, Gender, Identity, and Expression
- 7.7 Gender and Gender Inequality
- 7.8 Sexuality
Chapter 8 Aging, Relationships, Marriage, Family, and Religion
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8.1 Who Are the Elderly? Aging in Society
Aging and its challenges, marriage and family variation, and religion as an institution and an agent of change.
- 8.2 The Process of Aging
- 8.3 Challenges Facing the Elderly
- 8.4 Theoretical Perspectives on Aging
- 8.5 What Is Marriage? What Is a Family?
- 8.6 Variations in Family Life
- 8.7 Challenges Families Face
- 8.8 The Sociological Approach to Religion
- 8.9 World Religions
- 8.10 Religion in Contemporary Society: Agents of Change and Emerging Trends in the United States
Chapter 9 Education
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9.1 Education around the World
Education around the world, the theoretical perspectives on schooling, and current issues in education.
- 9.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Education
- 9.3 Issues in Education
Chapter 10 Government and Politics
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10.1 Government and Politics
Power and authority, forms of government, U.S. politics, and the theoretical perspectives on the state.
- 10.2 Power and Authority
- 10.3 Forms of Government
- 10.4 Politics in the United States
- 10.5 Theoretical Perspectives on Government and Power
Chapter 11 Work and the Economy
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11.1 Work and the Economy
Economic systems, globalization, and the changing nature of work in the United States.
- 11.2 Economic Systems
- 11.3 Globalization and the Economy
- 11.4 Work in the United States
Chapter 12 Health and Medicine
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12.1 The Social Construction of Health
The social construction of health, global and U.S. health patterns, and comparative health systems.
- 12.2 Global Health
- 12.3 Health in the United States
- 12.4 Comparative Health and Medicine
- 12.5 Theoretical Perspectives on Health and Medicine
Chapter 13 Population, Urbanization, and the Environment
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13.1 Population, Urbanization, and the Environment
Demography and population change, urbanization, and environmental sociology — the core of the social patterns area.
- 13.2 Demography and Population
- 13.3 Urbanization
- 13.4 The Environment and Society
Chapter 14 Social Movements and Social Change
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14.1 Collective Behavior
Collective behavior, social movements, and the forces that drive social change.
- 14.2 Social Movements
- 14.3 Social Change
Practice exam Practice final exam
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Practice final exam — 100 multiple-choice questions
A full-length practice final that mirrors the exam's content areas and question style. Your score feeds the readiness tracker, so you know when you're ready to book the real exam.
These chapters make up the CLEP Introductory Sociology exam prep class. They cover every content area on the official exam outline, and some topics go further than the exam requires.
Take the CLEP exam for the fastest route to 3 credits. If it doesn't go your way, your plan also includes a backup course that earns the credit through coursework.
See pricingColleges that accept CLEP Introductory Sociology
CLEP is recognized at more than 2,900 U.S. colleges, but each one sets its own minimum score and decides how many credit hours to award. Check yours before you book the exam.
Browse college credit policies
Policies change. Every college page lists the date the policy was checked, and we recommend confirming minimum scores and credit awards with the Registrar before you schedule an exam. TransferCredit.org is an independent education service and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the institutions listed.
Practice tests and study guides
Five questions in the style of the CLEP Introductory Sociology exam, drawn from the chapters above. No sign-up needed — see where you stand before you buy.