The document outlines five critical factors for prior learning assessment (PLA) programs: institutional mission and commitment, institutional support, program practices, professional development, and program evaluation and improvement. It provides key questions under each factor to help institutions assess how well their PLA program incorporates these essential elements, such as whether the institutional mission supports PLA, how PLA is financially supported, what types of PLA assessments are accepted, and how program data is collected and evaluated. The presentation encourages downloading an inventory of additional key questions to further guide analysis of a PLA program.

1. Key Questions for the Five
Critical Factors of a PLA
Program
Presented by
Nan Travers, Ph.D.
SUNY Empire State College
Prior Learning Assessment Professional Development Series

2. Five Critical Factors of PLA
Programs
Institution Mission
& Commitment
Institutional
Support
Program Practices
Professional
Development
Program Evaluation
& Improvement
(Hoffman, Travers, Evans, & Treadwell, 2009; Travers, 2014)

3. INSTITUTIONAL MISSION & COMMITMENT
PROGRAM FACTOR ONE

4. Institutional Philosophy, Mission and
Policies
• Philosophy
• What is the philosophy regarding PLA at your campus?
• In what ways does your philosophy embrace PLA?
• Mission
• Does the mission support prior learning to be assessed for credits in
your programs?
• Policies
• How do your academic policies support PLA?
• How do your FA policies support the cost of PLA?

5. INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT
PROGRAM FACTOR TWO

6. Financial Support/Business Model
• What types of financial supports need to be in place?
• How are the administrative functions covered?
• How are the costs for PLA advising and ongoing supports for students
covered?
• How will evaluators be compensated for individualized assessments? For
Professional Learning Evaluations? For Course Challenges?
• What types of charges will students need to pay for PLA services?

7. Administrative Support
• How is the administration supportive?
• What are the messages that the administration shares
with regard to PLA?
• What do the faculty believe regarding PLA?
• How supportive are the faculty?
• Who are the PLA Champions?
• What are the faculty concerns? How can they be
addressed?
Faculty Buy-In

8. Technology
• What systems support the student through the PLA
process?
• What systems track student progress through the PLA
process?
• How are the PLA data stored in student records?
• How are the credits posted on the transcript?
Marketing
• How do students learn about PLA options?
• At what point in the students’ life cycle do students learn
about PLA options?

9. PROGRAM PARAMETERS
PROGRAM FACTOR THREE

10. Which students can use PLA credits?
• Matriculated
• Non-Matriculated
• Non-Credit
• Certificate programs
• Admissions and placement
• GPA requirement

11. What types of PLA assessments are
accepted?
• Standardized exams
• Military Credits (ACE)
• Pre-Evaluated Credits (ACE, NCCRS)
• Pre-Evaluated Credits – Institutional Professional
Learning Evaluations (PLE)
• Course Challenge
• Individualized Prior Learning Assessment

12. Whose Authority Awards the Credits?
• Chief Academic Officer or Designee
• Program Chairs
• Faculty Committees
• Individual Faculty
• Others?

13. Which Disciplines Accept PLA Credits?
• All academic disciplines
• Only specific disciplines
How many total credits can be used
toward the degree?
• Limited number
• Advanced Standing/Transfer Credits
• Residential Credits
• Is there a different number of credits allowed toward the
degree based on type of PLA?

14. How are the credits used in the
degree?
• Elective credit
• Curriculum/program requirements
• General Education
• Advance Standing
• Residency requirements
How are the credits transcribed?
• PLA
• Institutional Credits
• Transfer Credits

15. Individualized Portfolio PLA
What are the academic structures used to ensure
quality and integrity?
In what ways are the assessment processes aligned to
assessment criteria?

16. Portfolio Process
• What is the process by which students have individualized learning
evaluated?
• How are students supported? What types of informational materials are used?
• How is the portfolio structured to ensure the academic quality of the
request? What is required in a PLA request? What evidence of learning is
required?
• How are academic learning expectations defined?
• What are the assessment criteria being used to evaluate the learning?
• Who are the Evaluators? What are their qualifications?
• What is the PLA Portfolio Evaluation Process?
• Who’s authority awards the credits?
• What is the outcome from the evaluation?

17. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
PROGRAM FACTOR FOUR

18. Who is involved in PLA?
• Administration
• Advisors
• Student Services
• Institutional Support Offices
• Faculty
• Faculty Evaluators
• PLA Program Oversight
• Students
• Partners

19. What training topics are covered for all
roles?
• The philosophical background of why the
college is engaging in PLA
• Policies and procedures of the PLA process
• Overview of different PLA techniques and
sources of learning
• Overview of how PLA can meet learning
outcomes and be applied to credentials

20. PROGRAM EVALUATION
PROGRAM FACTOR FIVE

21. Program Feedback and Evaluation
Processes
Who
• Students
• Faculty
• Evaluator
How
• Persistence/Completion data
• Surveys
• Interviews
• Focus Groups
• Outside Evaluation
How are data collected on PLA outcomes?
What types of data analyses are conducted with PLA data?

22. Remember, these key questions and many
others are available in the
Inventory for the
Five Critical Factors of a PLA Program
which can be downloaded from our website or
by request through suny.real@esc.edu.

23. Thank You!
For more information on Prior Learning Assessment
• View additional videos
• Contact SUNY.REAL@esc.edu
Prior Learning Assessment Professional Development Series