General Guidelines for PLA Requests
- Essays do not need to be lengthy - 2-3 pages are fine.
- Essay content should briefly describe where/how you learned, but then focus on what you learned. Include categories or areas of learning that you gained in this field.
- Use the Guides below as appropriate to help you write your PLA request/s.
- Once you and your mentor agree that your PLA request is ready to submit, your mentor will submit it via PLA Planner, where you can track its progress.
New PLA Guides
The College has prepared detailed guides in subject areas for which credit is most frequently sought through Prior Learning Assessment. These guides will help with the submission process for your individualized Prior Learning Assessment request. The guides below are meant to help you understand the knowledge and skills typically expected of someone who has a college-level understanding in a specific subject. This link will take you to PLA guides in:
- Administrative Services
- Business Communication
- Data Management
- Diversity in the Workplace
- Leadership
General PLA Guide
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Download General PLA Guide.docx
General PLA Guide.docx Details
- Thursday, 07 January 2016 [17.6KB]
Additional Subject-Specific PLA Guides
- Case Management
- Community Participation
- Conference Management
- Data Communication
- Human Resource Management
- Human Services
- Interpersonal and Small Group Communication
- Labor Management Relations
- Marketing
- Not-for-Profit Management
- Project Management
- Safety Awareness
- Safety Management
- Sales
- Small Business Management
- Social Gerontology
- Supervision
- Switching Systems
- Training and Development
Some Sources of Learning
Individualized Prior Learning Assessment
This is a link to the college's full guidebook for individualized prior learning assessment (iPLA).
Samples on this Page
The following are sample PLA requests for individualized prior learning assessment through Empire State College's PLA process. They range widely; some sample PLA requests are based on very individualized learning, and some are based on work experience and training. All are used with student permission.
Sample PLA Essays/Recommendations
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Download PLA Training.doc
PLA Training.doc Details
- Monday, 01 July 2013 [39.5KB] -
Download PLA Public Speaking.doc
PLA Public Speaking.doc Details
- Monday, 01 July 2013 [44KB] -
Download PLA Mentoring Adolescent girls.doc
PLA Mentoring Adolescent girls.doc Details
- Monday, 01 July 2013 [45KB] -
Download PLA Performing Arts.doc
PLA Performing Arts.doc Details
- Monday, 01 July 2013 [58.5KB] -
Download PLA Administrative Support.doc
PLA Administrative Support.doc Details
- Monday, 01 July 2013 [38.5KB]
PLA in Progress
This is one student's use of his online portfolio to think about a particular area of knowledge for which he wants to pursue credit. https://mahara.esc.edu/view/view.php?id=47565