Examine Your Experiential Learning

1. Review your work, professional, community, religious, volunteer, personal training and experiences to determine what you have learned.
2. Review that learning to determine if it is learning at a college level and corresponds to Carlow University’s mission and curriculum. If so, consider ways in which you might demonstrate what you have learned and your current skills or knowledge.

Determine Your Status

1. Review your transcript and determine the number of Carlow credits and number of transfer credits that you have earned.
2. Review the curriculum guide for your major and identify all of the courses or requirements that you have completed in the Core Curriculum, Major Requirements and Electives. Determine how many elective credits you have either earned through courses at Carlow or through transfer credits.
3. Examine the remaining course titles or requirements, those which you have not yet taken, to determine if there might be any overlap between the courses and your experiential learning, training, workshops, etc. Also determine if you have elective credits yet to fulfill.

Reasonable Overlap

If there is reasonable overlap between courses and your experiences, continue forward:

1. Review the University Catalog and examine course syllabi for descriptions, goals and objectives (available in Grace Library 427). You may also want to review the textbook (for what the course covers, not to learn the course material) and consult with faculty for each of the courses.
2. Determine how your experiential learning might match the goals and objectives for each course.
3. For each course, draft or outline a statement which briefly describes your learning and accomplishments in relation to those course goals. Be certain to:
   1. demonstrate college level learning and experience
   2. list trainings, workshops, application of skills or knowledge, reflection, and conceptualization
   3. demonstrate the connection to a Carlow course or curriculum goal.
4. Review your transcript and earned credits to be certain that you are not using experiences from or learning in completed coursework for any portfolio credit that you may be seeking.
5. Create a chronology – a time order list and description of experiences and trainings or learning opportunities, detailing what you did when.
6. Discuss any draft, outline, and chronology with the Experiential Learning Portfolio Reviewer.
7. Plan to take courses that do not overlap any of skill areas which might be included in the portfolio.

Complete Portfolio

1. Write detailed but focused essays which describe your experiential learning for each of the skills or "areas of competence" to be included in the portfolio. Be certain that you explicitly demonstrate your learning and accomplishments; any team projects should include clarification as to what role you played in that team activity.
2. Gather documentation, samples of work, letters from supervisors, etc., for each of the essays. Documentation does not replace the demonstration of learning in the essay; it supports or attests to the learning that you describe.
3. Plan the format and layout for the essays and documentation so that materials are clearly organized and represent your strengths.
4. Assemble these parts in a binder:
   1. Title page with name, date, phone, address, student ID number
   2. Current Transcript
   3. Goals Statement
   4. Table of Contents or Index
   5. Chronology
   6. Area of Competence Essay 1
   7. Documentation supporting Essay 1
   8. Area of Competence Essay 2
   9. Documentation supporting Essay 2
   10. Etc. until all essays are presented
5. Submit the completed portfolio to the Experiential Learning Portfolio Reviewer for circulation to the faculty before you have earned 30 Carlow credits or within one year after submitting the portfolio application fee (whichever comes sooner).

Wrap Up

1. While waiting for the portfolio to be reviewed, do not take courses for which you might receive portfolio credit.
2. Faculty in the disciplines appropriate to your portfolio review and assess it. All of your work and documentation is considered confidential material and is not shared for purposes other than evaluation for credit worthiness.
3. A maximum of 30 credits can be earned via portfolio or via a combined portfolio, challenge, CLEP, or block credit.
4. Once the portfolio is reviewed, you receive a letter from the Academic Dean notifying you of credit awarded. You will be billed a fee on a per credit basis.
5. Portfolio writers may appeal a decision and request a second review of their portfolios; however, no new material can be added.
6. Portfolios are stored for one year and returned to the writer.

Note: Restrictions on earning credit apply in a few circumstances; for example, Social Work credits and Senior level seminar course credits cannot be earned through the portfolio. Check with a faculty advisor to determine if there are specific program or course restrictions before pursuing a portfolio.

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