Undergraduate Catalog Overview

These policies appear on pp. 55-56 in Old Dominion University's 2008-09 Undergraduate Catalog.  Five experimential options are listed in the catalog; the four appearing below are the most frequently requested:

Experiential Learning Credit Options at the Undergraduate Level
     Old Dominion University offers a program for assessing college-level knowledge gained through work, life experience and self-study prior to attempting a specific ODU course. Students may initiate assessment of prior learning through a variety of assessment tools, including departmental examinations, portfolios, external examinations, performance assessment, or documented training programs, as determined by academic departments. The program, Experiential Learning, facilitates the assessment of such learning. A student may earn a maximum of 60 semester hours at the undergraduate level through experiential learning credit. However, in unusual situations when a student can demonstrate a more extensive knowledge base that would be applicable to a degree program, the student can apply to the Office of Experiential Learning for an exception to the 60-credit-hour maximum. The director will forward suitable requests to the appropriate department. Experiential learning credit may be granted through the following mechanisms:

1. External Examinations. Satisfactory scores on the College-Level Examination Program (CLEP), Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES), International Baccalaureate (IB), Advanced Placement (AP) and professional certification examinations evaluated by the American Council of Education (ACE) for college-level credit. It is strongly recommended that students who wish to challenge particular courses do so through CLEP or DANTES examinations for which Old Dominion University awards academic credit. Qualifying scores through the Advanced Placement Examinations Program or Admissions Testing Program of the Educational Testing Service (ETS) are approved by departments. CLEP, DANTES, AP and IB scores received should be reported to the Office of Admissions.
2. Departmental Examinations. Upon approval of the chair or dean (designee) of the college in which the course is offered, a student may take a comprehensive examination in an academic course in which he or she can demonstrate proficiency and upon passing the examination receive credit for that course. A request for testing should be made through the Experiential Learning Office, which forwards the request to the chair of the department involved. A course may be tested through departmental examination one time only.
3. Credit for Training. Military and professional training is evaluated and recommended for college credit by the American Council on Education (ACE).  The relevant academic department will recommend specific academic credit for posting to the student's record.
4. Portfolio Development. Upon approval of the chair or dean (designee) of the college in which the course is offered, a student may develop a portfolio for a course or courses offered by Old Dominion University to gain college-level credit. Portfolios are submitted to the director of experiential learning.

The following regulations for experiential learning credit will apply: 

1. All experiential learning options will be granted with credit.
2. Experiential learning credit will be granted upon the written recommendation of the chair of the department or designated faculty assessor having jurisdiction over the courses involved with the chair's approval.
3. The applicability of experiential learning credit toward specific degree program requirements is subject to departmental approval.
4. A student may not fail a course at Old Dominion University and later receive credit for the same course through an experiential learning option.
5. A student may not enroll in a course for credit or audit at Old Dominion University and subsequently seek credit through an experiential learning option.
6. No letter grades will be entered on the student's transcript for experiential learning credit; this credit will be treated in the same way as transfer credit: a "P" (Pass) will be assigned and it will not count in the student's grade point average.
7. A student must request experiential learning credit as early as possible upon admission to degree status.
8. Experiential learning credit does not count toward the University's residency requirement. A student earning experiential credit must meet the minimum residency requirements of 25 percent of the total number of credits required for the degree at Old Dominion University, which shall include 12 residency hours of upper-level courses in the department of the declared major. The student should be aware that some program residency requirements exceed the University minimum residency requirements.
9. A student in a certificate or endorsement area may earn a maximum of six credit hours through experiential learning credit to apply to a certificate, endorsement or teacher licensure program. Experiential learning hours gained in these programs would be applicable to approved degree programs at Old Dominion University. In an approved undergraduate degree program, a student who has previously earned six credit hours of experiential learning credit for a certificate area may be eligible to attempt additional experiential learning credit toward a degree program.

     The privilege of seeking experiential learning credit is available to both full-time and part-time degree status students only. A student should consult with the degree program advisor, site director, distance learning representative, and the Office of Experiential Learning at the beginning of his or her academic career at Old Dominion University to determine how experiential learning may be applicable to the degree. For further information, visit the Experiential Learning web site at www.uc.odu.edu/elt.
     For information about experiential learning options for graduate students, please see the section of the Graduate Catalog on Experiential Learning Credit Options at the Graduate Level.

Procedures for Portfolio Development

Students wishing to receive academic credit through portfolio development should do the following:

• Consult the Office of Experiential Learning for guidelines on preparing a portfolio documenting "experiential learning" experiences relating to the course for which credit is sought.
• Submit the portfolio to the Office of Experiential Learning and include appropriate fees.
• The director will review the portfolio and forward it to the appropriate department chair for evaluation.
• The department chair, or a designated faculty assessor(s), will examine the portfolio and determine an award of credit. The decision will be forwarded to the director who will then notify the student and the University Registrar of the results.

     If the conclusion for the portfolio assessment process results in a negative decision of the award of credit, a student may appeal the decision to the college having the responsibility for the course(s) for which credit is sought. The basis for a portfolio assessment appeal is the student's charge that the assessment decision was awarded through prejudice or caprice. The burden of proof rests with the student.
     Students must initiate appeals in writing within three weeks of receiving the completed portfolio evaluation form. The appeal must be written to the director.
The director will forward the appeal letter to the appropriate department chair. The chair will review the student's appeal. The chair will get input from the student and from the faculty assessor and may form an independent committee to review the appeal. The chair makes the decision on the validity of the appeal. If the chair concludes there is no cause for complaint, the student has the right to appeal to the dean of the college.
     If the faculty assessor is the chair, the student may go directly to the dean. The dean will follow the procedures as outlined above. The decision of the dean of the college is final.

Experiential Learning Fees

     Students participating in the Experiential Learning program are responsible for assessment fees as follows: 

1. External Examination
   - Students are responsible for the testing fees for external examinations such as CLEP and DANTES, and should check with the Testing Center at Old Dominion University for fee information. There is no additional experiential learning assessment fee for the granting of academic credit for external examinations.
2. Departmental Examination
   - The experiential learning assessment fee is equal to 30% of the current approved in-state on-campus rate for undergraduate and graduate courses.
3. Training Evaluation
   - The type of training determines the experiential learning assessment fee for training evaluations. For example, Old Dominion University already articulates military training, and therefore, there is no additional experiential learning assessment fee for the granting of academic credit. The assessment fee for training not previously evaluated by Old Dominion University is equal to 20% of the current approved in-state on-campus rate for undergraduate and graduate courses. For information about training programs that have been evaluated by Old Dominion University, see the Experiential Learning web site at www.uc.odu.edu/elt.
4. Portfolio
   - A one-time workshop materials fee.
   - Portfolio assessment fee equal to 50% of the current approved in-state on-campus rate for undergraduate and graduate courses.

     Fees are based on the credit hours attempted and are not refundable if the student does not receive credit as a result of the evaluation. There is no appeal of the fee charge. The fees must be paid at the time the student submits the completed portfolio, departmental examination or training documentation for evaluation.
     For more information call (757) 683-3697, visit the web site at www.uc.odu.edu/elt or email universitytesting@odu.edu.