Assessment of Prior Learning (APL) allows undergraduate students to request college credit for learning that takes place outside of academic settings.  Through a partnership with the Community College of Vermont (CCV), Goddard College will support your plan to develop your APL portfolio to demonstrate and document college-level learning that will move you more quickly to your diploma. Goddard accepts up to 45 APL credits, the equivalent of 1-3 semesters.

Undergraduate students who pursue APL can save thousands of dollars in tuition and time required to complete their degrees.

Who’s it for?  

APL is great for undergraduate students who have:

  • Completed certificates or training programs
  • Developed expertise professionally
  • Pursued personal curiosities in depth
  • Learned from volunteer activities
  • Have completed less than 60 semester credit hours from accredited colleges.

How it works:

CCV’s APL program is affordable, flexible, and very robust.  They serve all colleges in the Vermont State College System as well as several outside the system (Sterling, Norwich, Champlain, Bennington, Landmark, as well as one or two from other states who are familiar with CCV). Students can attend their program either in person or online, so it fits well with Goddard’s low residency model

Enrollment in CCV’s APL

  • Any undergraduate student can enroll in  CCV APL, as non-degree and continuing education learner
  • Those who enroll do not need to enroll in a CCV diploma program
  • Those who already have an AA degree or 60+credits, can still do CCV APL (though it’s important to check in with your faculty advisor first, to see if the gain would be worth the cost) 
  • Learners can enroll in APL courses as non-degree learners for lowest tuition rate at CCV
  • In addition to APL development, this program may allow Goddard students to address dangling credits or pursue inter-semester study.

 To learn more about APL

  1. Attend a Webinar: CCV offers free introductory webinars describing their process bi-weekly, except January, July, and August, when they are offered every week.  https://admissions.ccv.edu/portal/pla_webinar
  2. If you’re a current Goddard student, contact your faculty advisors to talk about how APL might fit with program requirements

Steps to Achieve Credit through APL

  1. APPLY: complete a free 10-minute application 
  2. CONTACT CCV ADVISOR: Speak with CCV academic advisor regarding fit (if no prior ENG course, writing/tech skills to be vetted with Accuplacer and/or Directed Self-Placement for approval/readiness to participate) 
  3. PARTICIPATE IN APL at CCV in one of two formats
    1. Full version: learners enroll in a 15-week, 3-credit course offered in the fall and spring –EDU 1240 Offers no limits on credit request and 2 to 3 sections to choose from.  Cost is under $1500 for in-state and NEBHE; out-of-state is $1780 (all under our rates, as configured now); note: Dates for Spring: classes start 1/25/22-5/9/22.
    2. Mini-version: learners enroll in an 8-week 1-credit course in the fall, spring and summer—EDU 1225 Focused Portfolio Development–FPD (credit request limited to 16 credits) for about $580 in-state and NEBHE; out-of-state, about $860 (quite a bit  under our rates, as configured now) for Spring, runs 02-01-2022 to 03-22-2022.
  4. CREDITS RECOMMENDED: Learners receive credit transcripts from CCV APL and have credit recommendation transcript sent to Goddard
  5. SPECIAL CASES: CCV received a recent grant for those pursuing CCV-AA in Early Childhood Education to cover all APL FPD expenses if they have 1 year experience in the field (might be useful for EDU-SEA folks)

For more information visit the CCV website or contact Goddard Admissions

CCV contacts and useful links

Melissa DeBlois

Director of Prior Learning Assessment

melissa.deblois@ccv.edu

802-654-0508

Tomás Hedin

Records Specialist

tomas.hedin@ccv.edu

802-828-4064

Does financial aid cover APL?

Yes, as long as you are enrolled during the process. You can discuss this with Goddard’s financial aid counselors at the residency to see if you need to reconfigure the numbers to add APL into your financial aid package. If you are approved to submit materials while on leave, you will need to pay out-of-pocket and can speak to Student Accounts regarding that process.

Are there any reasons NOT to do APL?

This is a great question! Here are some reasons students give for not choosing to do APL.

  • Doesn’t fit into a busy schedule of school, work, and family
  • Can’t find the materials to document the learning
  • The prior learning doesn’t meet degree requirements for graduation
  • Want to focus on current passions and goals, not look backward
  • Love the Goddard experience and do not want to hurry the process
  • Want to focus on senior study research
  • Extra work on top of a semester’s work
  • Too much writing