Nicole Kontak Executive Director Transfer Credit & Articulation ELEVATING TRANSFER: PRIOR LEARNING ASSESSMENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA Nicole Kontak Executive Director Transfer Credit & Articulation

OUTLINE PLA Types Credit by Exam Military Credit PLA Gap at UA Information Gathering Faculty Meetings Institutional Policy HLC Proposal Faculty Governance Approval Current Status, Future Plans, and Recommendations

Workforce Training, Certifications, etc. Non-Regionally Accredited PLA TYPES Credit by Exam Military Credit Workforce Training, Certifications, etc. Non-Regionally Accredited Not technically “PLA”, but part of broader conversation

Cambridge International Examination Program CIE CREDIT BY EXAM Advanced Placement AP Cambridge International Examination Program CIE International Baccalaureate IB College-Level Examination Program CLEP DSST In no case may the sum of credits earned through the above examinations exceed 60 units applied toward an undergraduate degree.  https://catalog.arizona.edu/policy/proficiencycompetency-and-exemption-examinations-special-examination-credit-or-grade

Recruit or basic training 1 year or more 8 units 9 months 6 units MILITARY CREDIT American Council on Education (ACE) recommendations and university transferability guidelines to assess credit  Recruit or basic training 1 year or more             8 units 9 months                      6 units 6 months                      4 units 3 months                      2 units Less than 3 months     no credit Military Experience (ME) as documented on the JST transcript, and course work on the JST transcript, will be awarded credit based on ACE recommendations and university transferability guidelines. Max 30 units of ACE-recommended military credit https://catalog.arizona.edu/policy/credit-us-military-service-and-training

Non-Regionally Accredited PLA GAP AT UA Non-Regionally Accredited Nationally Accredited institutions System already set up to address this gap Workforce Training, Certifications, etc. Portfolios

PLA INFORMATION GATHERING Definitions Competency based learning Experiential learning Prior learning Literature Opinions Research Articles Manuals CAEL Ohio University System Colorado Community College System Lincoln University Marymount California University Lone Star College System

FACULTY MEETINGS UA ATF Members: Fall 2017 General Concerns: Cheating/misrepresentation Implications for accreditation College accreditation Special accreditation Implications for graduate school Implications for rankings Grading Recommendations Standardization 3 units max Not to be used to satisfy pre-reqs General elective, lower division only PLA Matrix for ATF meetings

FACULTY MEETINGS Prior Learning Task Force Fall 17/Spring 18 Define Standards for Awarding Transcript Process Evaluation Course equivalent, requirement, and/or Elective credit? Student Process Cost? Content needed

FACULTY MEETINGS UA ATF Members: Spring 2018 PLA 6 units max No gen eds No pre-reqs NRA 12 units max Faculty evaluation CHEA

Non-Regionally Accredited Courses Institutional Policy Institution PLA Non-Regionally Accredited Courses Indiana University Purdue University Indiana Life and work experience only given for degree in General Studies Regional University of Central Florida Unclear: Possible petition UCF is generally unable to accept credits from non-regionally accredited institutions with the exception of limited courses from the list below. Oregon State University By Petition: https://osucascades.edu/sites/osucascades.edu/files/Admissions/nonregionally_accredited_college_or_professional_technical_credit_petition.pdf University of Kansas Unclear: No vocational Regional only Georgia State University Unclear University of Colorado, Boulder Non-transferrable/Case by case If course work was completed at a school not regionally accredited, a student may specifically request that their course work be considered for transfer. The University of Colorado Boulder will utilize the recommendations of American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) when making its decision.  These recommendations include, but are not limited to: Seminole State College of Florida Case by case: Prior Experiental Learning: https://www.seminolestate.edu/policies-procedures/policies/instructional/4.031 individual basis at the request of the student University of Idaho University of Texas, Arlington must request to transfer coursework from those institutions, as well as provide course descriptions and syllabi for all courses requested. The courses submitted will be reviewed by faculty in the academic department most closely related to the content.   Austin Peay State University http://www.apsu.edu/policy/2s_academic_policies/2023-awarding-credits-earned-through-extra-institutional-learning-university.php Case by case using form Weber State University Petition Plattsburgh SUNY Case by Case Boise State University Must be verifiable: https://registrar.boisestate.edu/transfers/prior-learning-credit/ Case by case-college approval University of Missouri Unclear: Possible appeal Appeal University of Louisville

Institutional Policy ABOR Peers PLA Non-Regionally Accredited Courses All University of California Institutions Not awarded for any UC institution Reviewed on a case by case basis University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Not awarded Regional or National University of Iowa Career-Technical Credit: Up to 16 semester hours as elective credit toward a degree in the Colleges of Liberal Arts & Sciences, Education, or Business. Does not count toward the 24 transferable hours needed for admission Accept recommendations by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admission Officers or the American Council on Education University of Maryland-College Park Michigan State University University of Minnesota-Twin Cities Ohio State University-Main Campus Regional or National (recognized by CHEA) Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus The University of Texas at Austin University of Washington-Seattle Campus University of Wisconsin-Madison University of Florida Regional or National (recognized by Dept of Ed) Texas A&M University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Spring 2018

For non-regionally accredited coursework: HLC For non-regionally accredited coursework: HLC Policy: Publication of Transfer Policies, Number: FDCR.A.10.040 states: “Each institution shall determine its own policies and procedures for accepting transfer credits, including credits from accredited and non-accredited institutions, from foreign institutions, and from institutions which grant credit for experiential learning and for non-traditional adult learner programs in conformity with any expectations in the Commission’s Assumed Practices. An institution’s periodic review of its transfer policies and procedures should include evaluation of their clarity to those who administer them, to the students who follow them, and to employers and other stakeholders. It should also include the consistency of their interpretation and application throughout the institution, as well as their responsiveness to new types of learning opportunities outside institutions of higher education”.

HLC Regarding credit for prior learning (PLA): HLC states that institutions must establish a policy and involve faculty to evaluate any PLA credit. The policy must establish how the credit is being assigned (how PLA is defined), by whom, whether the credit awarded applies to degree requirements as electives or general education towards the major, and what kind of threshold for “academic rigor” is associated with that assignment of credit. Any PLA credit assigned on a transcript does not carry a grade nor does it configure into a student’s GPA. Core Components (CC) and Assumed Practices (AP): CC 4.A.2. – You must have formal process to evaluate all the credit you allow on an academic transcript; AP A.5.d. – You must establish formal policies on acceptance of the PLA credit, with no promises until that credit is evaluated and approved; AP B.1.b. – There must be a minimum of 15 of the 60 credits earned (associates) or 30 of the 120 (baccalaureate) earned at the institution itself, that is, not by PLA; AP B.1.g. – You must establish the ‘maximum allowable credit’ under PLA; this must be documented, evaluated and appropriate for level of degree awarded; and typically, may not be any more than 25% of the degree, as established by common practice; AP B.1.h – You must establish a minimum requirement for general education, and if PLA is accepted here, how much and according to what threshold of rigor and academic success.

HLC LIAISON: PLA Max units Rigor May not be more than 25% of degree Rubrics and assessment materials General Education & PLA

Proposed Effective Dates PROPOSAL 14 pages Background Rationale Process Meetings & Task Forces Proposed Effective Dates Policy Draft Language: Undergraduate Transfer Credit Policy Draft Language: NRA Policy Draft Language: PLA PLA defined specifically due to current UA policy on max units for military & exam credit Management of Policies ABOR Peers HLC People Involved

Undergraduate Council Policy Subcommittee Spring 2018 FACULTY GOVERNANCE Undergraduate Council Policy Subcommittee Spring 2018 Moved to fall for further discussion PLA: Overall support NRA: Concerns about proposed 12 unit max Questions: Why aren’t ASU & NAU doing it? What kinds of PLA has Maricopa proposed accepting? Among UA peers that review/award PLA & NRA on a case-by-case basis, what are the credit maximums? Fall 2018 MCCCD Examples of PLA and NRA Routed NRA syllabi to evaluators PLA: Approved at 6 units max NRA: Revised to 9 units max Approved at 6 units max

Undergraduate Council FACULTY GOVERNANCE Undergraduate Council Proposal narrowed to 1 page NRA: Request of 2 courses, 10 unit max (approved) College Academic Administrators Council (CAAC) Provost Council Faculty Senate

https://transfercredit.arizona.edu/content/credit-prior-learning APPROVED POLICY PLA https://transfercredit.arizona.edu/content/credit-prior-learning NRA https://transfercredit.arizona.edu/content/non-regionally-accredited-course-work

CURRENT & FUTURE Currently 2 PLA Submissions 0 NRA Submissions Next Steps Collect submissions Potentially revise policy Recommendations Transcript PLA Guide Standardization Rubrics Assessment materials Grading Scores

Transfer Credit & Articulation Questions Nicole Kontak Executive Director Transfer Credit & Articulation nicoler@email.arizona.edu