Prior Learning Assessment (PLA)

Earn college credit. Save time. Save money.

You’ve gained skills and knowledge in your life and on the job. Why not earn credit for what you already know?

LearningCounts.org presents CAEL 100 to help you document these skills so you can apply your knowledge toward college credit.  To earn credit for what you already know, you only need to demonstrate that the knowledge you have is at the college level. LearningCounts.org helps evaluate the level of your learning through a process called Prior Learning Assessment (PLA). 

The PLA can evaluate your level of learning from activities like:

• Military service
• Community service (volunteers and leaders)
• Work experience
• Job training programs
• Independent study
• Hobbies

CAEL 100 is your online course for the PLA

CAEL 100 was written and produced by the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL), the creators of LearningCounts.org. CAEL is internationally renowned for its reputation in best practices for prior learning assessments, so you can be confident that the education you will receive through CAEL 100 is coming from a leader in the field and will have the respect of schools receiving your transcript of completion.

Did you know that students who earn PLA credit are 2 ½ times more likely to stay in school and graduate?

Show what you have learned with CAEL 100

In our 6-week long, online CAEL 100 course, a course instructor will help you to prepare, create, and collect all of the pieces you will need to assemble a portfolio of prior learning. In this course, you will:

• Identify and reflect on all areas of your learning
• Generate college-level writing
• Build a strong portfolio that is assessed by faculty experts
• Earn 3 semester credits towards your undergraduate degree or certification

The portfolio you make to document your skills will reflect who you are, and can take a variety of formats. You can write about your learning, make a video of yourself performing a task, provide a product of your work, or have a third party verify your knowledge.

Your portfolio will be evaluated by a college faculty member. If what you have submitted is at the same level as what a successful student in a college-level course could produce, a faculty expert will recommend that you be awarded college credit.

This online course will guide you through thinking about all possible areas of college level learning you have experienced – learning from professional training, civic and military engagement, volunteering, and online coursework. Plus, you’ll earn 3 semester credits towards your undergraduate degree or certification.

Costs

CAEL 100 costs only $500 for the online portfolio development class. Additionally, there is a charge of $250 per 6 credits you’re awarded in any single discipline.* That’s considerably less than you might pay for the equivalent credits at a traditional university. (There is no limit as to how many credits you may earn, or how many disciplines.)

Added Benefit – Create and distribute your online portfolio at No Extra Charge

You can build, store, and distribute your portfolios to instructors, colleagues, and potential employers for two years as part of the course fee.

*The average per credit cost for the LearningCounts.org portfolio development course "CAEL 100 – Prior Learning Assessment, Theory and Practice" and the review of written portfolios is based on the number of faculty reviews requested and ranges from 41 to 83 dollars per credit hour.