PLA by ACE

Lone Star College System is one of 1,800 members of the American Council on Education (ACE).  The Center for Adult Learning and Educational Credentials (CALEC) at ACE helps adults earn college credit for learning they have acquired through workplace training, military service or other education acquired outside the formal classroom. There are three branches of the Adult Learning and Educational Credentials: 

1.  The College Credit Recommendation Service evaluates educational and training programs offered at the workplace and makes recommendations for college credit awards. Teams of subject matter experts from colleges and universities review the education and training courses and programs to determine whether they cover the subject in sufficient depth and whether appropriate emphasis is given to major topics.

Recommendations are published annually in the National Guide to Educational Credit for Training Programs.  Students desiring credit for workplace education or training programs should go to ACE’s website at http://www.acenet.edu/clll/corporate/index.cfm  to determine whether the organization they trained with is an ACE participant. To determine if an examination carries ACE College Credit Recommendation, go to:  http://www.acenet.edu/Content/NavigationMenu/ProgramsServices/CCRS/index.htm   If ACE does not recognize the workplace education or training, see other possible credit articulation options in this manual.   If the organization is a participant in the ACE College Credit Recommendation Service, students will be advised by ACE to join the Registry of Credit Recommendations for a one-time fee of $40.00. They can then request that a transcript be sent to the college Admissions Office ($15.00 per transcript). For transcripts, the student must contact the ACE College Credit Recommenda-tion Service Office at (202) 939-9434 or at credit@ace.nche.eduFor more information, see ACE’s website at http://www.acenet.edu//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home

2.  The College Credit by Examination Program evaluates national examinations and examination programs to equate them to college credit. College credit is assigned to examinations on the basis of the examination results being comparable to traditional study. 

Examinations evaluated by the Credit by Examination Program are published in the Guide to Educational Credit by Examination, which contains information on more than 350 exams. This publication includes information such as the content and technical review summaries, general subject area and/or course equivalents, evaluator's judgments about test quality, minimum scores suggested for credit, and recommendations for the type and amount of credit that is awarded. The Credit by Examination Program has evaluated many types of examinations and examination programs including the Professional Secretary International, the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES), and many others.

3. Military Evaluation Program
All of the branches of the armed forces have specialized training programs available to their recruits. There are several ways that a service member can receive college credit or programs and courses completed while in the military.

The Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services contains recommendations made by expert evaluators who review and recommend credit for formal service-school courses, demonstrated proficiency in military occupations, and college-level tests.

The Guide is now available online. We recommend that before searching the Guide Online, you fully read the instructions and the list of frequently asked questions: http://militaryguides.acenet.edu/

1. Students seeking Lone Star College System course credit for experiences in the Army, Army National Guard or Army Reserves only should obtain an AARTS transcript by completing a DA Form 5454-R, “Request for Army/American Council on Education Registry Transcript” available at http://aarts.army.mil/. For experience and training credit in the Navy, Naval Reserves, Marines or USMC Reserves, students must complete a request form available at https://www.navycollege.navy.mil/

2. Students seeking credit for Air Force experiences and training must contact the Community College of the Air Force or order an official transcript. This transcript does not have to undergo the ACE evaluation process. Refer to the section in the Lone Star College System catalog entitled "Transfer of Credit from Other Institutions." The AARTS transcript contains a complete record of a service member’s educational experience. It helps colleges interpret military forms, certificates, and training course descriptions and recommendations to grant college credit to qualified service members. Recommendations made by ACE are included on the AARTS transcript. Regular Army enlisted soldiers and veterans entering active duty after October 1981 are eligible for this service, as are Army National Guard personnel entering active duty after October 1981 and on active rolls as of January 1993. Army Reservists entering active duty after October 1981 and on the active rolls as of April 1, 1997 are also eligible. Starting in Spring 2005, the DD214 can be accepted instead of a military transcript for KINE 1111 credit only.

 The AARTS transcript recognizes completion of formal service-school courses, proficiency in military occupations, and passage of college-level exams, including CLEP, DANTES, or Regents College Examinations (formerly ACT-PEP).

PLA is also available for education gained through the following types of military experience: Service-School Courses. ACE evaluates and makes recommendations for the following:

• Courses offered by the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, Army Reserve and National Guard.
• Courses that are at least 45 contact hours in length since 1981; at least 60 contact hours from 1973 to 1980; and at least 90 contact hours prior to 1973.
• Correspondence courses with proctored end-of-course examinations offered by the Coast Guard and Marine Corps. Demonstrated Proficiency in Military Occupations ACE evaluates and makes recommendations for the following occupations:
• Army enlisted and warrant officer Military Occupation Specialties (MOS)
• Navy rates, ratings, warrant officer, limited duty officer specialties and selected Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC)
• Coast Guard enlisted ratings, warrant officer specialties and officer aviator designations
• Selected Marine Corps MOSs College-Level Tests College-level testing programs that ACE recognizes are:
• College-Level Examination Program (CLEP)
• Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) subject standardized tests (DSST)
• Regents College Examinations (formerly ACT-PEP)