Purpose

To provide a pathway to earning credit for prior learning and experience.

Scope

This policy applies to graduate and undergraduate students

Policy

3.1 Earning Credit by Examination

External Examination (CLEP or DANTES)

Undergraduate students may earn up to 27 hours of undergraduate credit by successfully completing a College Level Examination Program (CLEP) exam or a DANTES standardized test. Credit is granted for these exams based on the scoring recommendations set by the College Board Assessment Program.

Students with CLEP or DANTES credit should consult the Lindenwood registrar to determine whether their achievement on the exam(s) qualify them to earn university credit.

Notes:

1. Students may not use CLEP or DANTES credit in the place of the following requirements or courses: student teaching, internships, studio courses, laboratory courses, or private music lessons.
2. Students may not receive credit for courses they have previously audited or attended unofficially.
3. CLEP credit will not be awarded to non-native English speaking students who complete a CLEP exam in their native language.
4. Lindenwood University does not currently administer College Board Examinations; the student must arrange to have test results sent directly to Lindenwood for evaluation.

Students who pass a CLEP/DANTES proficiency examination have two options when applying for credit. The student may request that the test score be used to waive an equivalent course at the university. In this case, no credit is awarded to the student, and no credit is posted on the student’s transcript. A waived course applies no credit toward graduation. For advising purposes, a note will appear on the student’s transcript for advising purposes, indicating that a course has been waived. There is no additional cost for a course to be waived.

Alternatively, the student may request that the exam score be posted to the transcript as university credit. In this case, the credit applies toward the total number of credit hours required for graduation and becomes equivalent to a course taken at Lindenwood.

Internal Examination

In addition to the standardized CLEP/DANTES exams described above, students may seek credit for (or waiver of) university coursework by means of taking and passing internally administered proficiency exams. Students should approach their respective departments to learn more about the proficiency exams that have been created for this purpose within their college.

A student who passes an internally administered proficiency exam may (1) request to have the course waived, in which case no credit will be granted or (2) request credit for the exam and have the appropriate credit posted to the transcript for a fee of $100** per credit hour. In this case, the student’s cumulative grade point average is not affected because only credit (no grade) is recorded for a course completed in this manner.

3.2 Experiential Learning

For some students, professional experience or life experience may be accepted as university credit and be recorded as such onto the student’s Lindenwood transcript. Credit earned in this fashion is referred to as credit for experiential learning.

The following skills or experiences may be considered equivalent to university credit for purposes of receiving experiential learning credit:

• Professional skills acquired on the job.
• Participation in business seminars.
• Experience in community affairs.
• Professional training in particular fields.
• Non-credit-bearing coursework that contain academic content.

Notes:

1. Credit is awarded only for university-level knowledge and the learning gained from the experience. Experiential learning credit is not granted for non-university level learning, having completed routine professional tasks, having acquired outdated or forgotten knowledge, or for private experiences.
2. Limits for experiential credits earned may be imposed on the acquisition of such credit for certain technical skills and specialties.
3. Credit is not given for learning that duplicates a university course the student has already taken.

Undergraduate students may request to receive up to 27 hours of credit for experiential learning and Graduate students may request to receive up to 6 hours of credit for experiential learning, depending on the requirements of their degree programs. The total number of credit hours awarded for experiential learning may vary according to the time spent on particular activities and the nature of the learning experience. For graduate students, the total number of credit hours awarded for experiential learning will be counted toward the maximum number of credits allowed as transfer credit. The current transfer credit limit for graduate students is 9 credit hours.

Note: Lindenwood cannot guarantee how any other university might interpret transfer credit earned from the Experiential Learning Credit program.

Students who wish to have experiential learning credit posted to their Lindenwood transcript must pay a fee of $100 per credit hour**. Credit will not be applied to the transcript until the fees are paid.

3.3 Experiential Learning Requiring a Portfolio

If the student does not have one of the professional credentials on file with Academic Services or does not have credit from a course that is specifically listed as being accepted for experiential learning credit, that student may be required to create a portfolio in order to earn university credit for the experience before that credit is posted to the student’s Lindenwood transcript.

The portfolio must validate the student’s experience by providing proof (by certificate, diploma, syllabi, letters of testimony, and/or samples of work accomplished) that such experience led to university-level knowledge. An essay describing the knowledge gained in the learning experience must accompany all other documentation provided.

The manager of alternative credentials will help the student develop a portfolio. The manager will identify potential experiences that may be posted to the student’s transcript as university credit and discuss the organization of the portfolio with the student.

Students wishing to receive experiential learning credit in their majors must apply for this credit before taking courses in their majors. Once the portfolio has been approved, the student will be charged a portfolio fee of $310 plus $100** per credit hour. Credit will not be applied to the transcript until payment is received. Financial aid may be applied to experiential learning, but the student must be enrolled in classes at the time the request for funding is made.

**these fees are subject to change, please consult the current academic catalog.

Please direct any questions about this policy to Academic Services.