Prior Learning Assessment

Your success is our top priority at the University of Arizona Global Campus (UAGC). If you have work experience, previous corporate training, continuing education units, or other sources of prior learning, they may be assessed for potential college credit. If your learning does not otherwise carry college credit, accepted through the official transcript evaluation process, you may request to have them reviewed through the UAGC Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) program. Students may earn credit through the PLA program in different ways based on the type and source of prior learning.

Check out the PLA Documentation Guide and the PLA Student Handbook to learn how the PLA program works.

Sponsored Professional Training

If you earned a certificate, completed a course, or have a documented completed training, your learning may be assessed by providing documentation of training content, hours, and a summarization of learning outcomes and application to a UAGC course. You will need to document what you've learned in a short Credit Rationale Paper. Examples include:

• Standardized corporate trainings
• Certificate programs
• Seminars

For a select number of trainings and/or certifications, UAGC Academics has determined that the quality of the external assessment meets the proof of learning requirement. For these high-quality Industry Certifications, no Credit Rationale Paper is required. Upon review of your documented trainings and certifications, the UAGC team will identify any Industry Certification opportunities. You should anticipate writing a paper for all submissions, unless otherwise informed by the UAGC PLA team.  

Experiential Essay

Adult learners come to UAGC with a wealth of professional knowledge, and you deserve credit for your expertise. The Experiential Essay offers you a convenient way to turn your experience into credits that may be applied to your degree.

As an Experiential Essay is different from a research paper, all students wishing to pursue this option are required to write their first essay in our Experiential Learning Credit (ELC) Workshop – a self-paced, 5-module workshop that breaks your first essay into 5 stackable parts. By the end of the workshop, you will have your first essay ready for UAGC Academics to assess for possible credit. 

Upon completion of the workshop, additional essays may be submitted upon approval of the UAGC PLA team. 

Here's how to get started with PLA:

Students must be in an undergraduate or select master’s* degree program with their official transcript evaluation completed.

1. Review the PLA Information Center via myUAGC > myUAGC Essentials > My Account > My Degree > PLA Information Center.
2. Complete a Learning Inventory Form, identifying your prior learning opportunities for review of alignment with your unique remaining degree requirements.
3. Send your completed Learning Inventory Form and supporting documentation to pla@uagc.edu requesting a review for PLA credit opportunities.
4. Once the alignment review is complete, a member of the team will reach out to discuss your unique opportunities to pursue PLA credit.

Upon completion of the Experiential Learning Credit Workshop, additional essays may be submitted. See the UAGC Catalog for more information.