PLA Programme

Our recognised university provides a viable alternative for many working adults who cannot afford the time away from jobs and families required, or the expenses dictated by traditional universities. Our University recognizes that "prior learning"—through previous study, work, or personal experiences—may be equivalent to college-level credit. The University is committed to the belief that students deserve credit for college-level learning no matter how it was acquired. Every person’s experience is distinct, and the portfolio process allows you to package your specific set of skills. Subjects of submitted portfolios include professional studies, advanced studies, business administration, science and arts. Many people have developed learning outside of the traditional classroom and this knowledge is as valuable as knowledge gained through more formal learning situations. Through an online prior learning assessment programme, you can earn college credit for your previous studies and life experience. Whether you learned through another educational programme, through independent study, or through experience, we can award you credit. Credit is granted for verifiable learning. This learning can be identified and assessed in a variety of ways to determine if college credit should be awarded. The evaluation of prior learning and the development of an individualized degree programme go hand in hand and credit is awarded when it fits appropriately into a student's degree programme. The Prior Learning Assessment Portfolio is a collection of qualifications, skills and knowledges, and supporting evidence which documents how your prior job, volunteer, military, corporate training, or other relevant experience aligns to the learning objectives of specific academic courses or programmes. Reviewed by expert faculty member subject matter experts, these portfolios provide an accepted basis for awarding credit for prior college-level learning gained outside the traditional classroom. Application to the PLA process does not guarantee credits will be applied.

We provide the opportunity, using your professional expertise, skills, knowledge and life experience, to earn a university own (grado propio) Bachelor's, Master's or Doctorate degree.

Our students are able to earn credits toward their degree through our Prior-Learning Assessment (PLA) programme, significantly expediting degree completion and reducing tuition costs. Portfolio provides a unique way to document college-level learning through previous experience. There is no limit to the amount of credit a student can earn through prior learning assessment. At our University we value experiential learning and will assist you with the development of a portfolio that addresses as many subjects and courses for which students are capable of demonstrating their knowledge. A portfolio enables you to identify and articulate this knowledge and, potentially, earn credit for it. Students learn the process of identifying areas of course-equivalent learning and portfolio development skills through the Portfolio. Once you have studied a course as part of a previous qualification, you are not required to take a particular course or module of our University degree. Prior learning can be evaluated and validated against particular learning outcomes of courses or modules within your degree syllabus. An academic subject specialist will consider your earlier learning, and will confirm the credit value if the learning is relevant to your programmeme of study.

Making a claim involves producing evidence of the learning you have achieved so you can start your new learning from where you are now. You can only claim for prior learning that is relevant to your proposed award. This evidence must demonstrate that your learning is equivalent to the learning of the individual units that make up the degree for which you have been registered. The sort of evidence depends on the type of prior learning for which credit is being claimed.

Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) is a process of identifying and measuring previous learning that has the potential to receive academic credit and could reduce the amount of courses to take to complete a degree programme.

College credit for life experience is defined by the U.S. Department of Education as credit earned by students for what they have learned through independent study, noncredit adult courses, work experience, portfolio demonstration, previous licensure or certification, or completion of other learning opportunities (military, government, or professional). In France the system of PLA, called VAE, is highly developed and applied, where all degree levels Bachelor, Master and Doctor are subject to official degree award by public universities.

It is a method of higher education supported by UNESCO guidelines and by the European Qualifications Framework EQF as well as by National Qualifications Frameworks in various countries, and regulated or legally possible in many national study systems and legal frameworks, including Mexico. In Mexico a University with official recognition (RVOE) and incorporated into the national education system can also offer the university own programmemes and award degrees without official recognition (RVOE) as long as the students are made fully aware of this fact. The degrees are awarded legally and can be used in most jurisdiction globally and may also be professionally recognised individually by empoyers or certification agencies. Grado propio or university own degrees are a common feature in the international higher education landscape and widespread.

According to CAEL “Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) is the process of earning college credit for college-level learning acquired from other sources, such as work experience, professional training, military training, or open source learning from the web.” CAEL postulates: “When people receive college credit for what they have learned from life and work experiences, they earn their degrees and credentials faster, saving money on tuition. They also learn the value of their experience, which gives them confidence to complete their degrees.”

The goal of recognition of prior learning is to promote the progress of studies and to enable students to take an individual study path. PLA is based on a working life and competence-oriented curriculum. Students have the opportunity to apply for the recognition of prior learning if they possess the kind of competence that meets the aims of their curriculum.

Many higher education institutions will award credit to potential students for knowledge they have gained through prior experiences. Colleges might look at your professional portfolio, skills you developed through work or even knowledge related to your military service. Different schools handle prior learning credits differently.

During your lifetime, you will have acquired various skills, competencies and experiences. This learning – which may have taken place outside of formal education and training – is valuable regardless of where or when it was obtained. You may have acquired skills or knowledge from a combination of training conducted while at work, experience you gained in the workplace, short courses or from community work in a relevant field. PLA permits you to gain credits within formal degree qualifications offered by the University based on the level and extent of your knowledge. Your prior learning will be measured against specified prescribed learning outcomes.

There are various forms of experience that lead to college level learning. These include your professional career, training, community and volunteer work, self-directed learning projects, personal life experiences and much more. Many degree students, especially mature students, already know and understand some of the things that are taught on their degree. Portfolio Assessment is a collection of materials compiled to demonstrate previous college-level learning relevant to a student's degree plan. The knowledge you've gained from a variety of areas such as corporate and on-the-job training, military training, community service, parenting, volunteer work, seminars, home management, workshops, travel study and independent research can be evaluated for credit toward your bachelor's degree through the Prior Learning Assessment programme.

Our University offers numerous options for you to apply prior learning toward your degree coursework. Whether you’re enrolled in an Associate, Bachelor’s, Master’s, or doctorate programme, you’re eligible to have your prior learning assessed.

PLA is a process through which students identify areas of relevant learning from their past experiences, demonstrate that learning through appropriate documentation, and submit their materials so that they can be assessed and possibly awarded academic credit relative to specific course objectives. Students can acquire learning from a variety of sources outside the traditional classroom, and they can earn appropriate credit in their work towards a degree for verifiable college level learning acquired through life or work experience, not for the experience itself. Students who acquire the level of knowledge that meets the expectations and the learning outcomes of a specific course may get credit for that course, provided the students can demonstrate proficiency in that specific course.

Students interested in portfolio assessment should first review their degree plan and discuss possible portfolio opportunities with their academic advisor. Requests for credit through assessment of prior learning must differ substantially in title, content and documentation from course credit achieved or attempted.

The prior learning assessment grado propio programmemes of the University are ideal for qualified professionals earning a university degree based on their qualifications, licenses, skills and experience and who do not need an accredited or recognised degree rather than a university own degree awarded by a recognised university to demonstrate their individual level of education in a given area or field of expertise. A grado propio or university own degree reflects that the graduate has earned a degree at postsecondary education level awarded by an officially recognised university.

The University offers a number of assessment options that might be appropriate for students who have acquired college-level learning from prior study or experience. Our University applies the university own standards, combining the following guidelines and frameworks: ACUERDO NÚMERO 286 (Mexican Secretary of Public Education), the French VAE: Validation des Acquis de l’Expérience, and the Irish HETAC Standards for PLA, and the US CAEL standards. Ireland and France are countries explicitely allowing for the recognition of prior learning at all three academic levels including EQF level 8.

This process assesses learning as interdisciplinary that corresponds to the content of courses taught at university; learning which can be documented by certificates, letters of recommendation, CEU (Continuing Education Unit) transcripts, it assesses learning that corresponds to course coursework from any accredited college or university or recognised learning programmeme, which can be documented.

The first stage in the assessment process is the determination of whether the learning has already been evaluated as part of an assessment of prior learning programmeme. If it is determined that credit has already been so evaluated, applicable credit is awarded based on the prior evaluations of the corresponding evaluators and no individual assessment is conducted. The University accepts any official validation of prior learning conducted in accordance with the laws of the country where the validation was issued, particularly the European Validation Framework, Canadian, Australian, US (California Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition (PLAR) Manual; Excelsior College Flexible Assessment; Thomas Edison State College Assessment of Prior Learning Handbook; Empire State College Credit by Evaluation; Ohio State University Portfolio Assessment; Charter Oak State College Portfolio Assessment), and similar standards based on CAEL recommendations are accepted.

The second stage in the assessment process is the determination of whether the learning claimed by the student can be evaluated by a combination of any of the university own degrees for which our University awards credit