Departmental Challenge

Procedure for Departmental Challenge Request:

The student must contact the appropriate department for the exam they are requesting before registering and paying for the exam. The department will make sure the exam is available and that the student is qualified to take the exam.
By clicking on the Departmental Challenge link on the Academics tab or accessing the Departmental Challenge page directly, the student selects the link (below) with the exam(s) they wish to register for and pays for the exam(s) with a debit or credit card through the Marketplace Store.
An email request is sent to the department.
The department contacts the student to schedule the exam(s).
If the student successfully passes the challenge exam(s), the department chair/representative will send notification to the Office of the Registrar.
Credit will be posted to the student's academic record if the student is currently enrolled.

FAQs

Does the person who wishes to take a challenge exam have to be a student at Murray State?

No. They could be planning to enroll at Murray State and already working with the department to receive challenge credit. If they do not have a myGate account, there will be a link on the Office of the Registrar website where they can access the Marketplace store site. However, departmental challenge credit will not be posted to a student's transcript until they are enrolled at Murray State.

Does the person have to pay for the challenge exam?

Yes, payment is required at the time of request. The email request will not be sent to the department until payment is completed.

Does the person have to register for the exam before they take it?

Yes, all costs connected with a particular examination must be met by the student prior to the testing date. The same is true when a person registers for the AP or CLEP exams. They must register and pay for before taking the exam. Taking the exam does not guarantee the student will receive credit.

Can students challenge a graduate-level course?

No, Murray State University does not grant graduate-level credit for correspondence courses, portfolio-based experiential learning, challenge examination or any national testing-for-credit in any course.

Can the exam be taken more than once?

No, a departmental challenge examination may only be taken once.

Can the exam credit mark off a previous passing or failing grade earned for the same course?

No, departmental challenge credit may not be used as a repeat of a course taken earlier. A grade received in a regular course may not be changed by departmental challenge examination.

What if a student wants to challenge a course but it is not listed on Marketplace?

The student should contact the department to see if a challenge exam is offered for that course. If so, the department representative should contact the Office of the Registrar to get it added to the Marketplace store.