Credit for Prior Learning Act

More help for students' prior learning

If enacted, the bill would let your school include up to $2,000 per award year in its Cost of Attendance to cover reasonable costs, like test fees, for prior learning assessments that yield eligible credits. The $2,000 limit would be adjusted for inflation after the 2025–2026 award year and would take effect on July 1, 2027. The bill would define eligible credit for prior learning as evaluations of learning done outside college that check evidence of learning (not time or experience), meet expert-accepted standards, and give academic credit without requiring extra courses. Accrediting agencies would need to confirm schools use public standards that assess skills and knowledge at levels accepted by subject matter experts. Colleges would also have to report how many students get credit for prior learning and the average credits awarded, each broken down by race, income, and Pell Grant status.