I really try to avoid sweeping generalizations like, “Oh, this is such an easy exam!” or “You don’t even need to study for this!” Why? This exam requires a certain reading skill set. It's not really about memorization, but about the ability to pick out things from what you're reading. Some people are really good at that, others find it very challenging. So even if 100 people take the exam and pass, someone else may run into issues and end up with a failing score. And that one person? They’re glaring at me from the back of the crowd right now, saying, "You said this was the easiest exam!" So, let me phrase it this way: most people have absolutely no issues with the Analyzing and Interpreting Literature CLEP exam. If you’re a reader—even if your go-to material is Dr. Seuss or comic books—you already have the foundation. Remember those reading comprehension quizzes from elementary school? This exam is basically a longer, more grown-up version of those. Understanding what a poet is saying in a poem isn’t much different than figuring out what a singer is talking about in a song. If you can break down a song’s meaning after one listen, you can handle this test. You may also get questions asking what emotion the writer is trying to convey. If a passage describes a cold, wet, foggy day, “Happy and full of good cheer!” probably isn’t the right answer. Most of these questions are straightforward and rely more on common sense than deep literary analysis. Now, the one area you do need to study is literary devices. If you’ve already taken the American Literature or English Literature CLEPs, then you’ve seen these before. Knowing terms like metaphor, personification, and irony—and being able to recognize them in context—is essential. This is where you should spend the bulk of your study time.