Investigating Credit for Prior Learning (CPL)
This page provides general information about a learning activity that’s common in many Educational Planning courses.
Since educational planning course content depends on the mentor/advisor and the student, understand that your course may have different and/or specific expectations related to this topic.
Credit for Prior Learning and Educational Planning
Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) – credit that you may receive for college-level knowledge you’ve gained on your own, through work, training, and/or self-study – is often part of an educational planning course.
Educational Planning courses may review the concept of CPL and you may discuss your ideas for credit through CPL with your mentor/advisor. You and your mentor/advisor may decide to make the creation of individualized credit requests for prior learning (iCPL) part of your course work for Educational Planning.
You also have the option of taking a 2-credit course called Prior Learning Assessment, in which you create three iCPL requests. This course counts toward educational planning credit.
How CPL fits into your Degree
If you’re considering pursuing credit for prior learning, you and your mentor/advisor should discuss how that potential credit may fit into your degree.
Know that credit gained through CPL may be used in multiple ways in your degree, as long as you have room for it. It may:
- fulfill a knowledge foundation for your degree focus/concentration
- fulfill a general learning requirement
- count as elective credit to reach the required credit total for your degree
The most important thing to consider is whether you have room for credit from CPL in your degree. That’s what you determine in consultation with your mentor/advisor.
Investigating Credit for Prior Learning
Considering whether you have gained college-level knowledge takes a lot of thought and reflection.
It’s easy to identify what you’ve done, but you only have the possibility of getting credit for what you’ve learned from what you’ve done – that’s a very important distinction.
For example, if you’ve pursued photography for many years and have taught yourself about how cameras operate, digital photography, image composition, lighting, lenses, and more, you may have gained college-level knowledge that will successfully enable you to pursue credit for prior learning.
On the other hand, if most of your photos are done on your phone, which auto-corrects lighting and images, and you haven’t learned much about how digital photography works, it may not make sense to pursue credit through prior learning, even though you’ve taken good images for the past ten years.
One quick way of getting a sense of whether you have gained college-level knowledge is to ask AI what is usually included in a college course in [X]. Know that you do not have to match what AI says; just use it as an aid to get a sense of the scope and possible topics of knowledge in a field as a way of initiating your investigation into CPL.
Key Takeaway
Consult the chapter on Credit for Prior Learning in this text for fuller information, links to useful university pages, videos, and more resources to help you investigate credit for prior learning.
Again, make sure to talk with your mentor/advisor about credit for prior learning possibilities. The pages in this text are designed to help you have a fruitful conversation with them on this subject.
Key Takeaway – Looking Forward
You may need to explain your credit for prior learning in the rationale essay that accompanies your degree plan if you are using that prior learning credit to fulfill a knowledge foundation or general education requirement.
