Sources of Credit

Overview
The following are frequently cited as sources of credit for the Big 3 schools.

The following are frequently cited as sources of credit for the Big 3 schools. Because of the number of credit options available and the frequency at which credit-recommendations change or are updated, it is impossible to make this an exhaustive list of every option available, but these are some very common options we frequently discuss on the forum.

Please also see: Several Sources Of Cheap Credit and Free Sources of Credit

Note: Each school has its own academic transfer policies and you should confirm any choice of alternate credit with an advisor at your school.

Upper Level vs. Lower Level
In the tables below, some attempt has been made to list whether or not upper-level credits are available through a given institution. This does not guarantee that any UL courses will actually transfer as UL. Some schools may bring in certain UL credits as LL or vice-versa.

Credit by Exam

 * AP Exams (ACE-approved; available for high school students only; accepted by all of the Big 3 )
 * CLEP (College Level Examination Program; accepted by all of the Big 3 )
 * DSST (DANTES Standardized Subject Test; accepted by all of the Big 3)
 * NYU Foreign Language Proficiency Testing (up to 16 credits transfer to all of the Big 3)
 * TECEP (Thomas Edison Examination Program; accepted by all of the Big 3)
 * CSU Global (CSU Global's Self-Study Assessments program; accepted by all of the Big 3. Only available to CSU Global students and not to the general public.)

Other possible options:
 * Distance Learning: Community Colleges (take a class at your local or online CC, transfer it to the Big 3, as long as the CC is regionally accredited and the course is applicable to your degree plan)
 * Other courses that are reviewed and approved by ACE or NCCRS.

Military Service, Professional Licenses & Misc. Training

 * LearningCounts (Prior Learning Assessments allow you to obtain college credit for knowledge, experience or non-credit training courses you've taken. Learning Counts self-paced course costs $149 and then each portfolio costs $125 each.  LearningCounts partners with many colleges, but also uses NCCRS for credit recommendations.  See this discussion for more (although some of the information from the external link is outdated).
 * Military service and training can be worth ACE-approved college credit at many schools, including the Big 3 .  Click each branch's name for the link to where you'll be able to obtain your service transcript to submit to your school:  Air Force & Air National Guard, Army & Army National Guard, Coast Guard, Navy & Marine Corps.
 * Professional licenses and certifications can be worth college credit at some schools.  Always check with your school's policies to see if they are accepted and how they will transfer in.  For Excelsior College check out this page; for Charter Oak State College click here; for Thomas Edison State University see this page.
 * In addition to various certifications being worth credit on their own merit at some institutions, many Microsoft exams are directly worth ACE credits.

Examples of Colleges Offering Distance Learning Courses
The following are commonly used for coursework credit that is then transferred into the Big 3.

Cost per credit does not include fees nor textbooks. Cost per credit also assumes out-of-state tuition. In-state tuition may be lower.

Obscure Credits
Sometimes, a degree requires that courses that are especially expensive or difficult to source. If you can't find what you're looking for elsewhere, check out this page of obscure credits. Some of the courses on that page may duplicate some of the courses listed above but an effort has been made to categorize them based on subject instead of simply by name/cost.

What it is:

 * PLA is accredited college credit for college-level knowledge gained independently outside of the accredited academic environment that has not been specifically pre-evaluated by an acceptable credit review organization such as Ace, NCCRS, or your own institution.
 * Examples would include: On-the-job-training/experience(OJT), courses taken from non-accredited sources whether it be a non-accredited academic institution, open courseware (OCW or MOOC), continuing education, or independent study from tutors, mentors, and/or textbooks.
 * PLA can be documented through a narration summary of what you know, how you know it, and back-up evidence that it was you who gained the knowledge.
 * PLA credits are generally tied directly to a similar, by title and/or syllabi, accredited college course outcomes.
 * You demonstrate your knowledge by crafting a portfolio of documentation that is assessed by a subject matter competent reviewer that determines whether you have met the minimum proficiency level (grade C or better knowledge) of a specific college-level course.

What it is not:

 * You cannot earn PLA credit based on any length of time experience. E.g: You were secretary to a lawyer for over 5 years and experienced many legal issues.  The time is not important.  What academic legal knowledge that fulfills the outcomes of college-level courses can you demonstrate by documentation?
 * Because time experience alone has no theory/principles component of learning, you generally cannot earn PLA solely for general life experience or internships or practicums. (even though these might have an equivalent college course number, credit hours, and be required at some accredited institutions for certain majors).
 * PLAs are not graded credits and won't count in your overall GPA  So if you have GPA requirements over a certain number of hours credit, PLA won't fulfill your academic requirements.
 * PLA may not help you get into graduate school, earn a teacher's license, or qualify for another professional license except under certain circumstances. E.g: A portfolio/departmental test/audition (such as for studio and performing arts majors) or standardized tests (such as GRE, LSAT, Praxis, etc.) are the established practice for entry into your professional school or employment.
 * PLA is probably not the simplest nor easiest way to earn credit.  You can expect to spend as much as 35 hours with 10-30 pages for your portfolio narration,  You may spend weeks gaining evidence such as letters of recommendation, old photos, performance videos, etc

Who should consider PLA?

 * You want to complete your degree offline and there are no other options for certain required courses, or
 * Your college degree is a terminating event. I.e. you are sure that the degree you are pursuing is the last in your career plans, or
 * Earning your PLA will be faster/cheaper than other methods; e.g: credit-by-exam, online courses, etc, E.g: You have a lot of credits needed and you have a lot of potential PLA credit possibilities.
 * And you know for certain that your institution will accept specific PLAs into your degree plan - this is the root cause of most disappointing PLA experiences.  Verify with your enrolled advisor before spending any time and/or money on what you personally believe to be acceptable prior non-accredited learning

PLA FAQs

 * Does the college-level knowledge for a PLA have to be only in the past?
 * No, there is no reason you could not build your portfolio for your "prior learning" in parallel with your actual acquisition of it. In fact, this is the way to get the credits you need when there are no other options for you. Just be sure you complete the learning in the same time span as you get for taking the PLA course, which varies by the institution, or that you start the learning before registering for the PLA course. Never, never, use this method for critical degree requirements without first clearing your plan with your enrolled advisor!

FEMA Independent Study (limited utility)
Thomas Edison State University and Charter Oak State College no longer accept FEMA credits.

With some hassle and great expense, Excelsior College will take FEMA IS courses, but doing so is potentially cost-prohibitive.

Frederick Community College grants credits for some combinations of FEMA IS courses. The fees are around $88/credit, paid to transfer the courses to Federick Community College from FEMA.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency operates an online Independent Study program offering approximately 120 courses online for free.

See Federal Emergency Management Agency Independent Study Program for more information

Courses That Are NOT Accepted
Any course that is not from a regionally accredited school, or in the case of either ACE or NCCRS reviewed, limitations on the amount and/or type of credit accepted will probably be imposed. This includes any course that provides "Continuing Education Units" (CEUs) for completion. There are occasional exceptions, however, so it can't hurt to ask a school adviser if you have a specific course that you feel strongly about because they will be greatly difficult or time-consuming to replace. For example, credit may be granted for some certifications. Also, there are limitations for the total number of credits accepted from Community Colleges; In the final analysis, the acceptance for credit by a receiving accredited institution is completely at their policy discretion