Undergraduate Catalog 2024-2025 > Academic Policies and Procedures/Academic Services > Academic Procedures > Earning Credits for Prior Learning and Experience

Earning Credits for Prior Learning and Experience

In addition to the standardized CLEP/DANTES exams described below, students may seek credit for (or waiver of) university coursework by means of taking and passing internally administered proficiency exams. Students should approach their respective departments to learn more about the proficiency exams that have been created for this purpose within their college. A student who passes an internally administered proficiency exam may (1) request to have the course waived, in which case no credit will be granted or (2) request credit for the exam and have the appropriate credit posted to the transcript for a fee of $100 per credit hour. In this case, the student’s cumulative grade point average is not affected because only credit (no grade) is recorded for a course completed in this manner.

Lindenwood University accepts College Level Examination Program (CLEP) and Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) credit earned in several areas of study. Lindenwood students who take CLEP or DANTES exams should request official score reports be sent to the Office of Academic Services for an evaluation of credit. Credit will be awarded based on the current minimum score matrix available on the university’s Academic Services webpage and approval of the academic college affected.

Effective July 1, 2023, students no longer pay a per credit hour posting fee to receive credit for CLEP or DANTES exams completed on or after July 1, 2023.

Notes: (1) Students may not use CLEP and/or DANTES credit in the place of the following requirements or courses: student teaching, internships, studio courses, laboratory courses, or private music lessons.

(2) Students may not receive credit for courses they have previously audited or attended unofficially.

(3) CLEP and/or DANTES credit will not be awarded to non-native English speaking students who complete a CLEP exam in their native language.

(4) Lindenwood University does not currently administer College Board Examinations; the student must arrange to have test results sent directly to Lindenwood for evaluation.

(5) Students may only earn up to 27 credit hours of experiential learning from all sources. Credit earned from CLEP and/or DANTES examinations is included in the 27 credit hour experiential learning credit limit.

Students who have earned the Missouri Seal of Biliteracy may receive up to 12 hours of college credit. Six of the credits awarded through this process will be accepted as Foreign Language coursework within Lindenwood’s General Education curriculum (GE-HC: Foreign Language / Human Diversity).

The number of credits granted will be determined by the score attained and by the specific assessment used to confer the Seal at the granting school:

• STAMP4S Exam: With a score of at least Intermediate Mid in all test areas, 6 hours of credit; with a score of at least Intermediate High in all test areas, 9 hours of credit; with a score of at least Advanced Low in all test areas, 12 hours of credit.
• AAPPL Exam (ACTFL Assessment of Performance toward Proficiency in Languages): With a score of at least Intermediate 3 in all test areas: 6 hours of credit; with a score of at least Intermediate 4 or 5 in all test areas: 9 hours of credit; with a score of at least Advanced: 12 hours of credit.
• Other exams may be accepted dependent upon available subject matter expertise in the relevant language(s).

Transcription fees for credits awarded will be waived.

Note: Students who have earned the Missouri Seal of Biliteracy in Spanish and wish to continue their Spanish coursework at Lindenwood University must take the University’s Spanish placement test (online and at no cost to students) to determine at which level they will continue their Spanish language study.

For some students, professional experience or life experience may be accepted as university credit and be recorded as such onto the student’s Lindenwood transcript. Credit earned in this fashion is referred to as credit for experiential learning.

The following skills or experiences may be considered equivalent to university credit for purposes of receiving experiential learning credit:

• Professional skills acquired on the job.
• Participation in business seminars.
• Experience in community affairs.
• Professional training in particular fields.
• Non-credit-bearing coursework that contain academic content.

Notes: (1) Credit is awarded only for university-level knowledge and the learning gained from the experience. Experiential learning credit is not granted for non-university level learning, having completed routine professional tasks, having acquired outdated or forgotten knowledge, or for private experiences.

(2) Limits for experiential credits earned may be imposed on the acquisition of such credit for certain technical skills and specialties.

(3) Credit is not given for learning that duplicates a university course the student has already taken.

Students may request to receive up to 27 hours of credit for experiential learning, depending on the requirements of their degree programs. The total number of credit hours awarded for experiential learning may vary according to the time spent on particular activities and the nature of the learning experience. Some national and state certifications and licensures may be eligible for more than 27 hours based on industry standards and levels of assessed learning.

Students may satisfy some of the requirements for their majors through experiential learning credit; however, a student must complete the greater of 18 credit hours or 40 percent of all coursework toward the major must be taken at Lindenwood University.

Note: Lindenwood cannot guarantee how any other university might interpret transfer credit earned from the Experiential Learning Credit program.

Students having the experience or credentials below may apply for experiential learning credit without submitting an additional portfolio of supporting documentation. (Any documentation that is required for the final approval of credit is listed along with each item below.) The application for university credit for the following credentials will be evaluated upon presentation of proof of the required certification or transcripts.

The American Council on Education (ACE): Lindenwood University accepts the recommendations for credit as set by (ACE). To earn experiential learning credit, the student must provide the ACE transcript or certificate verifying that the experience or training is or has been recognized by ACE.

• Certified legal assistant: Up to 24 hours of credit may be awarded. Copy of certificate required.

• Certified professional secretary in selected business and economic areas: Up to 14 hours of credit may be awarded. Copy of completion certificate required.
• Emergency Medical Technician (EMT-B): Up to nine credit hours may be awarded for the completion of training and certification for EMT. Student must present official current license.
• Information Technology Certifications: Up to 27 credit hours may be awarded for current certifications from ITIL, Cisco, Microsoft, CompTIA, EC Council, copy of certification or official transcript required.
• Life insurance license (completion or training) and certification for life insurance licensure: Up to three hours of credit may be awarded. Students may be eligible for an additional three credit hours in an area of specialization. Copy of license required.
• Medical Laboratory Technician (MLT): Official transcript from accredited school of MLT or school of radiology and completion of an accredited course of medical laboratory science required.
• Nursing (RN-BSN Track): Thirty-two (32) credits will be granted to students entering the RN-BSN nursing degree track based on the candidate’s professional experience as a licensed registered nurse. Proof of current and unencumbered registered nurse licensure in the state of declared primary residency is required for admission to this track and before awarding credits. A $250 administrative fee is charged instead of a per-credit cost for experiential credit. All students in this track will be charged the fee regardless of how previous nursing education credit was obtained.
• Paramedicine: Forty-five (45) credits will be granted to students entering the paramedicine degree (experienced track) based on the candidate’s professional experience as a licensed paramedic. Proof of current national registry or state paramedic license is required for admission to this track, and prior to awarding credits. A $500 administrative fee is charge in lieu of a per credit charge for experiential credit. All students in this track will be charged the fee regardless of how previous paramedic education credit was obtained. 
• Radiologic Technology: Up to sixty (60) credits may be granted with successful completion of the national license exam, becoming certified, and registered with the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists (AART). Proof of licensure and registry are required before awarding credits. A $500 Radiologic Technology Credit Transfer Fee is charged instead of a per-credit cost for experiential credit.
• Real estate broker’s license: Up to three hours of credit may be awarded. Copy of license required.

• Real estate sales license: Up to three hours of credit may be awarded. Copy of license required.

• Respiratory Therapist (RT): Up to 12 hours of credit may be awarded for the completion of training and certification in respiratory therapy. Official transcript from accredited school of RT required.

• Up to 27 Lindenwood experiential credit hours may be awarded to undergraduate students who have completed a certified police officer training academy. After submitting police academy training certificates along with transcripts verifying contact hours, students will be awarded Lindenwood credit hours as follows:

• 200 - 499 Academy contact hours = 12 Lindenwood credit hours awarded

• 500 - 799 Academy contact hours = 15 Lindenwood credit hours awarded

• 800 - 899 Academy contact hours = 21 Lindenwood credit hours awarded

• 900 and above Academy contact hours = 27 Lindenwood credit hours awarded

Hours for In-Service training are not accepted, and experiential learning credit will only be applied as free electives and not toward any requirements for the Criminology and Criminal Justice (CCJ) program of study unless a given student has declared CCJ as the minor. For students who have graduated from an academy with 900 or more contact hours, a total of 15 credit hours may be applied toward the police academy emphasis area of the CCJ degree. The remaining credits will apply toward experiential learning free electives. Additionally, credits will not be applied retroactively, meaning students who complete a police academy training program, while enrolled, as a student at Lindenwood University, will not satisfy the experiential learning credit requirements. Experiential learning is reserved for those who have completed services and gained experience in the appropriate area. However, students may enroll in the St. Louis County and Municipal Police Academy partnership course and earn 15 credit hours of the police academy emphasis area of the CCJ degree, even if the student chooses to attend a separate accredited police academy, as described above for the emphasis area.

• Stockbroker’s license completion of training and certification for a stockbroker’s license (series 6 or 7): Up to six hours of credit may be awarded. Copy of completion certificate required.
• Certified Surgical Technologist (CST): Up to thirty (30) credits may be granted with successful completion of the National Board for Certification for Surgical Technology and Surgical Assisting (NBSTSA). Proof of certification is required.
• YMCA leadership development courses: Up to five credit hours may be awarded. Submission of YMCA transcript required.

Training courses offered by specific companies or corporations may also be awarded credit for experiential learning. For a list of these companies and eligible courses, check with the registrar or the experiential learning coordinator.

Students who wish to have experiential learning credit posted to their Lindenwood transcript must pay a fee of $100 per credit hour. Credit will not be applied to the transcript until the fees are paid. 

The following organizations have agreements with the university that permit the application of experiential learning credit as follows:

• Military Service: Students seeking an experiential learning award for military experience, formal courses taken in the military, or for proficiency in a military occupational specialty must provide official military records. Military credits are posted to a student’s transcript at no charge, based on the recommendations of the American Council of Education. For credit derived from military experience or from formal courses taken through the military, veterans should submit a DD Form 95, DD Form 214, Joint Services Transcripts, depending on the branch of the military, or a transcript of in-service training.

If the student does not have one of the professional credentials listed on these pages or does not have credit from a course that is specifically listed as being accepted for experiential learning credit, that student may be required to create a portfolio in order to earn university credit for the experience before that credit is posted to the student’s Lindenwood transcript.

The portfolio must validate the student’s experience by providing proof (by certificate, diploma, syllabi, letters of testimony, and/or samples of work accomplished) that such experience led to university-level knowledge. An essay describing the knowledge gained in the learning experience must accompany all other documentation provided.

The experiential learning coordinator will help the student develop a portfolio. The coordinator will identify potential experiences that may be posted to the student’s transcript as university credit and discuss the organization of the portfolio with the student.

Students wishing to receive experiential learning credit in their majors must apply for this credit before taking courses in their majors. Once the portfolio has been approved, the student will be charged a portfolio fee of $310 plus $100 per credit hour. Credit will not be applied to the transcript until payment is received. Financial aid may be applied to experiential learning, but the student must be enrolled in classes at the time the request for funding is made.