Military Education Options Come of Age
Written by Colleen Caulfield
DANTES Subject Standardized Tests (DSSTs) have been a staple of military education for service personnel for over 30 years. The tests have long offered a way for U.S. military to receive college credit for field experience and knowledge in broad topic areas. Only recently, however, have the tests truly come of age. Leveraging technology and Internet-based testing (IBT), the DSSTs are now available to a wider variety of servicemember in a broader geographic scope.
In fact, this year the DSSTs will experience a number of significant “firsts” that seek to make the tests even more viable and available than they have ever been before.
THE “FIRSTS”
- Late last year the DSSTs were—for the first time—made available in an Internet-based testing format.
- Thanks to the tests’ availability in IBT format, computerized DSSTs are now— for the first time—available through the on-base and on-campus facilities of the national testing centers.
- This year the computerized DSSTs are—for the first time—available internationally, with the first overseas tests soon to be available in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, and with plans for significant additional global expansion already underway.
Since its inception, this type of testing has been beneficial for military personnel and the services themselves by offering a broad base of topic areas and a convenient path to post-secondary education. One of the benefits to individual branches is that it helps to increase retention rates; for individual military personnel, it helps provide a head start on a post-military career path.
These evolutionary advances, and the increased access they provide, make it easier than ever for servicemembers to gain valuable educational credentials while on active duty, regardless of post-military plans.
DSSTS: YESTERDAY AND TODAY
The original mission of DANTES (Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support) included the directive to support the off-duty voluntary education programs of the Department of Defense. DSSTs were designed to provide a benefit to the military by allowing personnel to further their educational goals while in the service—whether they were deployed in the field or located on a military base. Specifically, DSSTs allowed military personnel to earn college credits for field experience or for areas of specialization, where they already have a certain level of knowledge.
When DSSTs were first introduced in 1974, there were only a handful of subjects available, and all tests were administered by means of paper and pencil. Today, while DANTES’ mission remains the same, it has evolved and enhanced the approach to achieving that mission more quickly and more efficiently as the needs and requirements of the military have evolved.
For example, DSSTs are now administered by more than 1,200 colleges and universities nationwide and are recommended for college credit by the American Council on Education (ACE). The examinations are administered on more than 560 military installations.
The DSST program offers an extensive series of examinations in college subject areas that are comparable to the final or end-of-course examinations in undergraduate courses. Service personnel can take 37 exams on a wide range of topics within the areas of social sciences, math, applied technology, business, physical sciences and humanities.
DSSTs are available to all branches of the military in all capacities. More than 700 colleges and universities offer course credit for a passing score on the DSSTs.
Generally, a growing awareness and acceptance of certifications in the commercial world and in the military alike has helped the advancement and growth of the DSSTs. Retention has also been a factor. With the increasing importance of keeping military personnel satisfied in their careers, the ability to take tests such as the DSSTs helps provide strong retention by helping to better position military personnel for a time when they move into a civilian role.
GROWTH IN INTERNET-BASED TESTING
Since October, 2006, Internet-based DSST testing has experienced strong growth. In January 2007, Internet based DSSTs represented just over 6 percent of all DSSTs delivered. By June of this year, that had grown to just under 20 percent. This growth in IBT delivery is largely due to the increased accessibility and availability of the test. In fact, no change to the test during the past 20 years has had as dramatic an effect on the level of growth as the test is seeing now.
For more than 30 years DSSTs were only available as paper-and-pencil tests. While there will remain a need to administer some tests using paper-based means, to accommodate demand from service personnel on ships at sea or those deployed in the field, the transitioning of the test to IBT means the DSSTs can now be administered almost anywhere, anytime.
The availability of DSSTs in an IBT format also means that, in addition to taking the tests through DANTES’ education services offices, servicemembers can now take the DSSTs through the college and university facilities of the National Testing Centers—on or near military bases throughout the United States.
But availability is not the only advantage of taking the DSSTs online. Other advantages include:
- Instant score results—IBT increases the speed at which candidates receive their score results. Candidates will know immediately whether they passed or failed an exam.
- Quicker score reporting—Instant scoring and instant results enable the quick distribution and dissemination of test scores to appropriate facilities to gain credits and certifications.
- Security—Internet-based tests provide enhanced security as tests can be encrypted and more closely monitored.
- Increased accuracy—With IBT, there are fewer response entry and recognition errors.
- Consistency and reliability—The size and physical layout of the testing rooms, the number and style of proctors and the test-takers themselves all contribute to the variability that can impact the quality of the testing experience. Internet-based tests, offered in testing centers, offer consistency and reliability in the testing experience.
The transition to Internet-based testing was spearheaded by DANTES, which will continue to fund the tests. With the move to IBT testing last October, DANTES has evolved its funding requirements to accommodate both Internet-based testing and traditional paper and pencil based testing.
According to DANTES: “DANTES funds paper-based DSST testing for eligible service members and civilian examinees at DANTES Test Centers and at national test centers (colleges and universities) offering the Internet-based (IBT) DSSTs. Effective October 1, 2006, DANTES authorized upfront funding of the IBT DSST test fee for eligible military and civilian examinees at national test centers that administer the iBT DSST tests. DANTES does not fund paper-based DSST testing at national test centers.”
GLOBAL REACH—THE FUTURE OF DSSTS
The recent explosive growth of the IBT DSSTs throughout the United States is only the beginning of where experts see the tests taking off. The ultimate goal is to enable service personnel located almost anywhere around the world to have regular, reliable and convenient access to these tests.
Prometric, the contractor who owns the exams, and the University of Maryland, University College (UMUC) are pilot testing the delivery of IBT-based DSSTs in Japan, Taiwan and South Korea. When fully operational later this year, this program will provide service personnel throughout Asia with the same convenient access to testing that they could find back in the United States.
As U.S. servicemembers continue to serve around the world, achieving the DANTES mission of increasing accessibility of educational services for the U.S. servicemember increasingly spans a global reach. The transition of the DSSTs to an IBT format is making sure this is a guarantee.
CONCLUSION: GROWTH AND FLEXIBILITY BEST SERVE OUR MILITARY
By nature, a position in the military requires extraordinary flexibility—service men and women don’t necessarily know where they will be deployed next or when. DSST testing requires the same flexibility. Internet-based DSST is taking off. With positive growth this past year and significant international growth on the horizon, they sky’s the limit. That said, flexibility is key—there will remain a need to rely on the paper-based version to ensure all personnel are served equally, regardless of their individual needs.
Today, using paper and pencil means, the Navy can deliver DSSTs to service personnel on ships at sea. The Army and other military branches can administer DSSTs to troops deployed in the field anywhere IBT testing is simply not a viable option. And, DSSTs are also available to troops on-base and on-campus any time thanks to IBT.
IBT and paper-and-pencil testing are both critical resources, not only to the spread of education but to the thousands of military personnel who use the tests as a bridge to a post-military career. Regardless of how these tests are administered, the goal is to continue to provide DSSTs—and other education options—for U.S. military to help continue raising the bar for support of our military during and after service. ♦
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Colleen Caulfield is vice president, Academic and Federal Segments, Prometric.