MCCS logo not subject to CCBY license Understanding

MCCS logo not subject to CCBY license Understanding our Prior Learning Assessment Program SPRING 2016

What is Prior Learning Assessment (PLA)? The process and procedures we use to evaluate college-level learning students have gained outside of our credit classrooms. Learning may come from employment, military service, non-credit trainings, outof-college study, or civic activities, as examples. Photo credit: “The Edge of Learning”, Alan Levine, CCBY 2. 0

Helping students get college credit for what they already know CMCC EMCC KVCC YCCC MCCS PLA Standards NMCC WCCC SMCC

Elements of contemporary PLA programs • STANDARDS • PROCEDURES • TRAINING • PROMOTION • ADVISING • DATA

Prior Learning Assessment CAEL and University of Maine logos not subject to CCBY license

Why PLA? Photo credit: “Why? ”, Sebastion Wiertz, CC BY-ND 2. 0 • RECRUITMENT • RETENTION • COST-CONTAINMENT • COMPLETION

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PLA credit earners persist at higher rates. From Fueling the Race to Postsecondary Success, CAEL, 2010

PLA credit earners complete degrees at more than twice the rate of non-earners. From Fueling the Race to Postsecondary Success, CAEL, 2010

Which students are typically PLA candidates? Adults Ø Adult students w/employment, training, foreign language experiences Ø Foreign-educated New Americans Photo used with permission by Zachary Danforth – Photo not subject to CCBY license

Which students are typically PLA candidates? Direct from High School Ø High school grads with a related Career & Technical Education program completion, or AP or IB exams Ø Home-schooled grads with in-depth study eligible for CLEP/DSST exams Photo used with permission by Jacob Beaulier – Photo not subject to CCBY license

Important things to know about our updated PLA Standards Credits assessed on evidence of college-level prior learning, not simply experience/”time on the job” Learning assessed against catalog courses = “course equivalency model” - no guesswork or blocks of credit Faculty/Academic Affairs instrumental in course descriptions, learning outcomes & review against outcomes

Methods for earning Prior Learning credits Reviews Exams Transfer Credit • CLEP • Military Review • DSST • Credential Review • AP • Portfolio Review • IB • World language achievement • Challenge Exams

Transfer Credit Official college transcripts (in English) should be submitted for review Review of Transfer Credit will be done in a way that best maintains a student’s financial aid eligibility

National Exams CLEP – College Level Examination Program, offered by The College Board www. collegeboard. com

National Exams DSST - DANTES Subject Standardized Test, offered by Prometrics www. getcollegecredit. com

CLEP and DSST Testing Centers – Maine Testing Center Central Maine Community College Auburn CLEP Lewiston/Auburn College, Lewiston Noble Adult Education Center, No. Berwick DSST St. Joseph’s College of Maine, Standish University of Maine Augusta, Augusta campus University of Maine Augusta, Bangor campus University of Maine Farmington University of Maine Fort Kent University of Maine, Orono University of Maine Presque Isle University of Southern Maine, Portland York County Community College

National Exams (cont. ) AP - Advanced Placement, offered by The College Board collegeboard. com IB - International Baccalaureate, offered by the International Baccalaureate Organization ibo. org Language Achievement testing, offered by Brigham Young University or New York University byu. edu or nyu. edu

College Challenge Exam Scheduled in time to impact student’s next semester Limited to one attempt per course Add/Drop policies & deadlines apply System-wide administrative fee is $100/exam attempted, for the review - not for the resulting credit Exams are graded as is standard for the course where a C or better, course credit awarded

Reviews Credential Review Military Review • Non-credit trainings • Basic training • Nationally-recognized certifications • Military service school • U. S. Armed Forces Institute correspondence courses • Special licenses • Secondary school career programming • Registered Apprenticeship Portfolio Review • Written narrative plus pieces of evidence, • Submitted for Faculty review of learning against a course(s)’s learning outcomes • Administrative fee is set System-wide at $125/portfolio

More from MCCS PLA Standards Advisors provide guidance - not assurances - until learning is formally reviewed PLA satisfies any program requirement PLA credit = no quality points, not in GPA NEASC standards: 25% max for PLA credits in Certificate programs, and 75% max for PLA credits in Degree programs

Final points from MCCS PLA Standards Attention needed on credit load requirements in relation to veterans’ benefits Standard PLA coding on MCCS transcripts Campus-based reviews - Challenge Exam, Credential Review, Portfolio Review - will be accepted among sister campuses without further proof by students Campus’ academic appeals process applies to PLA credit Colleges cannot guarantee transfer out of PLA credits to colleges, other than to MCCS

What’s next for your campus? Procedures Promotion Training Photo credits: “Panflute Flowchart”, Jeremy Holmes, CC BY-SA 2. 0, “Learn”, Jason Taellious, CC BY-SA 2. 0, and “Market”, Mickey Champion, CC BY-NC-ND 2. 0

and… Advise Students Data Analysis Photo credits: “Tech Mentors 2012”, Keri-Lee Beasley, CC BY-SA 2. 0 and “Data Slide”, Tom Woodward, CC BY-NC 2. 0

Goal: PLA programs fully updated & implemented for Fall Semester, 2016 Photo credit: “Hockey at the Olympic Park - Goal!”, Paul Hudson, CCBY-NC 2. 0

FMI, please contact the PLA Point Person on your campus: CMCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] EMCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] KVCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] NMCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] SMCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] WCCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] YCCC: [CONTACT INFO INSERTED HERE] MANY THANKS TO THIS GROUP (PLUS REGISTRARS AND OTHERS!), WHO WORKED AS A TEAM TO DEVELOP THE MCCS PLA STANDARDS.

This workforce product was funded by a grant awarded by the U. S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The product was created by the grantee and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U. S. Department of Labor. The U. S. Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability, or ownership. Except where otherwise noted, this work by Maine Community College System Consortium is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4. 0 International License.