INFORMATION FOR
DCAL@wpunj.edu
(973) 720-2354
Johanna Prado
Associate Director
pradoj2@wpunj.edu
The Center for Degree Completion and Adult Learning recognizes that not all learning has resulted from the traditional classroom. We strive to work with students who come to us with a vast array of work experience and training to help them get course credits through the Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) portfolio. This form of CPL provides students an opportunity to earn credit for learning outside of the confines of a traditional classroom by illustrating what they know through the assembly of a professional, guided portfolio. This path may save students both time and money as they work toward their degree.
The CPL portfolio process might be right for you if you have developed college-level knowledge, skills, and abilities, and are able to demonstrate that these skills meet the learning objectives of an academic course. This prior learning may be a result of your:
To be awarded credit for prior learning, you must be able to prove that you have met the learning objectives required in a bachelor’s level course. This is done by creating a portfolio.
Your portfolio is a collection of materials or artifacts compiled to exhibit previous college-level learning relevant to your academic degree plan. Each component in the portfolio plays a role in demonstrating mastery of course objectives. Learn more about the components of a portfolio below!
The Educational Goal Statement
This gives you the opportunity to examine your personal motivation in the context of learning and application of knowledge. This document provides prior learning evaluators with insight and helps them provide appropriate feedback to facilitate life-long learning.
The Autobiography
This focuses on your professional and personal learning endeavors since high school. In writing the autobiography, you will analyze your past experiences in terms of critical incidents that led to learning. This part of the portfolio helps the evaluator understand when, how, and why the learning has occurred.
The Resume
This allows you to highlight more detail about your responsibilities and accomplishments that have supported learning. The resume provides the evaluator with a timeline and demonstrates the progression of learning.
The Narrative
This component is unique for every portfolio because the focus is on the learning objectives for a specific course. You must address each course objective found on the course syllabus, and demonstrate that you have mastered the objectives to the same extent as students who have completed the course. The narrative may be lengthy depending on the course.
Documentation
You will need to supply documentation to support the narrative. Documentation is as individual as the learner. It may include items such as sample work products, training certificates, workplace evaluations, letters of recommendation, and/or photographs.
There is a flat fee of $480 per portfolio to cover the assessment service.
You must submit a separate portfolio for each course where you seek to petition for credit. We strongly encourage you to work on one portfolio at a time, as this allows you to use feedback from the initial portfolio to inform the development of additional portfolios.
All Credit for Prior Learning fees will be posted to the student's account upon submission of the portfolio and application form. The CPL fee is not refundable. If the student does not receive credit as a result of the evaluation there is no appeal of the fee charged.
Credit petitioned via CPL portfolio must be for a specific university course within your academic program, but cannot be applied toward seminar, capstone, and/or independent study courses. The university awards credit for college-level learning that can be assessed and documented. Credit is awarded for learning, not experience. Evidence is critical for a successful portfolio. Your prior learning must be:
Q. Are CPL credits transferable if I leave WPU?
A. That decision would be made by the college/university you plan to attend.
Q. All of my previous college credits did not transfer in. Can CPL help me?
A. It is possible to use one of the CPL options (portfolio assessment, credit by examination, military training/experience) to show you have met the outcomes for the course. The department for that specific course will make that decision.
Q. Can CPL credits be substituted for any WPU course?
A. No, there are some courses that are unique and necessary to the goals of the degree.
Q. I have 20 years of work experience. How much credit can I receive?
A. To receive credit you will have to create a portfolio for the demonstration of college-level learning and not experience alone. You will have to present your training transcripts and provide documentation. Talk with the Associate Director of the Center for Degree Completion and Adult Learning to learn more.
Q. Do I pay a per credit fee for a portfolio assessment?
A. We do not charge a fee per credit for portfolio assessment. There is a flat fee of $480 to cover the cost of the portfolio assessment service. The fee is charged prior to the assessment of the portfolio.
Q. If I am not awarded credit after a portfolio assessment, will I get a refund?
A. No, the fee covers the cost of the assessment service provided and is not refundable.
Q. Who evaluates my prior learning portfolio?
A. Faculty members in the department will review the Credit for Prior Learning portfolio and award credit.
Q. If I am not awarded portfolio assessment credit, can I appeal the decision?
A. Yes, you may. William Paterson University adheres to the standards of conduct advanced by the Council of Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL). If you do not successfully pass credit by portfolio, you have the right to appeal by first resolving the disagreement with the Associate Director of the Center for Degree Completion and Adult Learning and the instructor; then through the Academic Appeal Process.
