Planning For Prior Learning Assessment
RWU | UC has streamlined the process for your experiences to be assessed for credit towards a certificate or degree.
With one application, you can have your experience assessed and applied towards your academic program credits to help you graduate faster, with less money and allowing for a customized learning environment unique to you. There are three areas that you can explore to maximize your prior experience for college credits. This page will help you understand the process for each area.
Reviewed & Approved Experiences
This is where students should begin- as it is the most streamlined and easiest to complete.
If you've found your experience on our Reviewed and Approved Lists, all you need to do is provide the evidence of successful completion along with some biographical information on the PLA Application. The type of evidence necessary to qualify for the credit depends on the experience you have. You can see what evidence is necessary and apply for the credit with the following link:
Note about Transcripts
These courses are different than courses coming in from transfer. In the case of these non-credit courses, we don't record grades. Your certificate of may have a grade on it, but we consider any approved course to be accepted with a certificate of passing. The credits, not the grade appears on your official transcript from RWU | UC.
Additional Accepted Credits
The University also accepts credits for review completed by the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) of the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York or by the American Council on Education's CREDIT program. If you find your credit on one of these lists, you will notate the name of the credential or training and indicate is NCCRS or ACE on the Prior Learning Assessment Application.
New Assessment
After you browse our reviewed and approved experiences, you should consider this second track.
If you have experience is not listed, it may mean we have never had it submitted before and we need to assess it for credit. To have your credit assessed you will need to provide some details about the experience. We have provided you with specifics regarding what documents you will need for a new assessment.
A credit determination will be made within 14 working days from submission. If the request is approved, the documentation submitted with the request will remain part of your official RWU | UC file.
It is usual that once a student gets a new request approved, it is then added to the approved lists so other students may make use of it.
The link below will allow you to choose which experience you have and find what you'll need to submit for the credit assessment.
Assessing Non-Credit Online Classes
There are many opportunities to take online courses not for credit. These courses income from Harvard EdX, Pluralsite, LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, Coursera etc. If you have taken a course from one of these vendors, you may want it to be considered for college level learning.
Portfolio Option for Unique Experiences
Sometimes, we will find that the experience you have can't count on its own for college credit. With the portfolio pathway, you not only have a clear visualized plan towards your college goals, but you will also be able to recognize and articulate your skill and expertise from work and life experiences. This is where RWU | UC is unique. As part of the Portfolio Process, your advisor and the Director of Prior Learning work with you to determine how your experiences may connect organically to satisfy the outcomes of a college course. You may be surprised at how your experiences can link together. From life learning to a workplace training, we can assist you in determining how to best fit your experience together to potentially earn college credit at RWU.
What is a Portfolio?
A portfolio, in terms of prior learning, is an extensive written presentation of evidence assembled by a student and reviewed by a faculty member under the direction of the Academic Dean. The award of prior learning portfolio credit is dependent on the student’s degree program and the amount of credits earned previously through prior learning or transfer credit. The portfolio includes a resume, a personal narrative summary, and a narrative that demonstrates and verifies your knowledge of the course material. You will need to explain and document your proficiency in each published course objective. Examples of the types of documentation that you may submit include: work samples to demonstrate competencies and reference letters from those who have observed you demonstrating the competencies.
Transfer Options
Any credit that is assessed by RWU | UC from a Prior Learning Credit Request from a Portfolio may not be transferable. You should work directly with your transfer school and follow their process to request consideration of your portfolio for credit.
Assessment of Experience
Your portfolio will be reviewed by the Prior Learning Director and routed to the appropriate subject matter expert for evaluation. The subject matter experts who will evaluate your portfolio will be an RWU faculty member or outside consultant.
Transcripts
Equivalent credit will be awarded for a portfolio that demonstrates a passing grade of at least "C" work. No letter grade is awarded. Your official RWU record will indicate this credit came in from prior learning.
University Student Conduct Rules
The work submitted for portfolio must abide by University rules concerning Academic standards relating to plagiarism and academic integrity.
The Portfolio Process
To begin the Portfolio Process you must be accepted and enrolled in courses. However, you can plan ahead by reaching out and/or looking at the requirements and process breakdown on the PLA Portal. If you are shopping around, or just going through the application process to be admitted to RWU | UC, you can submit an inquiry form as part of your application to UC, and someone will reach out to discuss the portfolio, or click on the links below to learn more about the portfolio option. If you are a current student, you can also reach out to your advisor.