If you have questions regarding credit for prior learning, you should begin by carefully reviewing the contents this CPL web site to familiarize yourself with the various options and tools available.
If, after reviewing the website, you have specific questions, please contact St. Cloud State's CPL coordinator, Steve Anderson.The cost of pursing CPL will vary depending on the means by which a student seeks an assessment. For instance, if undertaking a portfolio review, the student will be required to pay for a one credit course; in other instances, such as taking a CLEP test, the student will pay the fees charged by the external company administering the exam.
If credit for prior learning is granted for a course, a fee of one-third per credit will be assessed. For example, a three-credit course will cost the student the equivalent fee of one credit.
There are a number of courses across St. Cloud State's curriculum that are prepared to assess students’ prior learning experiences for possible credit. Each course is listed below, along with the process students will need to follow.
Please note, though, that other courses not listed are also eligible for CPL.
Please contact the CPL coordinator or the chair of the department in which you are seeking credit for prior learning.
Credit for Prior Learning will be awarded based on a score of 70% (50) or higher on the Financial Accounting CLEP exam. In addition to the CLEP exam the student will have taken a high school accounting course or have an equivalent of two full years work experience in accounting. Both experiences need to be verified.
Three credits will be awarded in lieu of ACCT 291 – Accounting I.
A student who would like to explore earning credit for prior learning for ACCT 291 should contact the chair of the Department of Accounting at acct2b@stcloudstate.edu. The student and chair will meet to discuss the student’s readiness to move forward in the process.
All St. Cloud State University Policies and Procedures in regard to Credit for Prior Learning need to be followed.
More information on the Financial Accounting CLEP Exam is available through Collegeboard.
This process is established for BIOL 266 Medical Terminology by challenge exam. Other courses and assessment mechanisms may be added later following review by department faculty.
Students may seek exemption from the required first-year composition class, ENGL 191, if they meet one of these criteria:
The exemption exam has two parts:
Prior to the examination date, compile the portfolio. The portfolio, which will be submitted at the start of the exam, must include college academic writing samples that demonstrate achievement of the ENGL 191 course objectives. At least one sample must be an argument assignment (preferably 5-10 pages in length) that includes analysis of a subject and research to support the claim made in that writing.
The portfolio may include additional content to support and contextualize the writing samples.
The Department of Environmental & Technological Studies has developed the following processes to award credit for prior learning. Do not submit any original documents (copies only), as the portfolio will not be returned to you. It is strongly recommended that you maintain a back-up copy of the portfolio. Submit the portfolio to:
ETS Department Chairperson
216 Headley Hall, SCSU
720 4th Ave S
St. Cloud MN 56301
ets@stcloudstate.edu
The department has develop the process for 2 construction courses to be reviewed for credit for prior learning. ETS 134: Introduction to Construction Technology credit must be awarded before ETS 336 will be considered for review. Both courses can be reviewed at the same time.
Review will generally take between 2 and 3 weeks. Review may be slightly linger during breaks and summer months. The portfolio should be designed to document experiences that meet the specific Student Learning Outcomes. It is not a scrapbook of all life experiences.
The process is designed to award credit for life experiences. This can be from a variety of experiences but is not from a specific course taken at another school. Credit for that experience can be done via transfer process. However, informal or non-credit trainings can be used to document knowledge of meeting student learning outcomes.
If you have any questions, contact the ETS Department Chairperson at 320-308-3235.
ETS 134. Introduction to Construction Technology
ETS 336. Residential Construction
Application details
Speakers of Somali may be tested through the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). The test can be taken through the Arch Language Network in St. Cloud. Some students have used this option successfully to count towards one year of a world language in lieu of a minor.
Students may also take the CLEP exam through St. Cloud State’s Testing Center, where they can earn credits for 101, 102 and 201—depending on their scores—in Spanish, French and German. Official test results should be sent to the Office or Records and Registration, where they will be recorded on students’ transcripts.
Another option is that students may be granted up to 20 credits in any language taught at St. Cloud State University, including Japanese, Chinese, and Russian, using the Credit for Prior Learning form. Professors fill out the form and will specify the classes for which the student will earn credit. This pathway is most suitable for native speakers of a given world language who are declared or intended majors and minors in need of lower division credits.
For those students who have taken the AP World Language exam (language portion), the following scores and their resultant earned credits are as follows (Spanish is used only as an example):
On the literature exam:
If after reading about the various CPL options available to students at St. Cloud State, you still have questions, please contact the CPL coordinator, Steve Anderson.