DANTES February, 2022
INFORMATION BULLETIN
Transforming Credit for Military Learning into Service Member Success By: Doug Johnson, Military Training Evaluation Program Manager, DANTES
In this issue: Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) - the Key to Success /
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The Modernized ACE Military Guide - Something for Everyone! / Military Service Members Put Your Learning to Work / Hot News /
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1Contact Information /
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Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) – the Key to Success
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ervice members and Veterans can earn real college credits for knowledge gained through military education, training, and occupational experiences thanks to Credit for Prior Learning (CPL), also known as Prior Learning Assessment (PLA). Colleges and universities recognize and help students translate learning achieved outside the classroom into credit that can shorten time to a degree and reduce costs. Did you know, adult students who receive CPL credit...* • • •
Complete credentials at a rate 22% higher than those who do not? Earn their degrees 9-14 months sooner on average? Save anywhere from $1,500 to $10,200 on their education costs?
Despite these fantastic benefits, only 11% of adult students earn college credit through CPL. To help increase that number, DANTES and its partner, the American Council on Education (ACE), have been working diligently to make it easier for colleges and universities to evaluate military learning and award college credit. The new Modernized ACE Military Guide was launched on 1 April 2021, with a suite of dedicated tools for academic institutions to support the work of evaluating military learning and awarding of academic credit to service members and veterans. Simply put, helping to solve college and university challenges in evaluating military prior learning, leads to more degree-related credit and a bigger head start for Service members and Veterans. working to achieve their educational goal *Note: all data sourced from “The PLA Boost” report released by CAEL and WICHE
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Click on the picture below to download the CAEL infographic
Fact Sheet December 2020
THE PLA BOOST
Results from a 72-Institution Study of Prior Learning Assessment and Adult Student Outcomes
For more than 50 years, colleges and universities have used a range of different methods to award college credit for learning that takes place outside of the classroom—particularly learning from work, life, and military experiences. These methods—often called prior learning assessment (PLA) or credit for prior learning (CPL)—value the learning that many students bring with them to college. CAEL and WICHE recently partnered with 72 postsecondary institutions to explore the benefits of PLA for adult learners. Data on more than 230,000 adult students showed that having PLA credits is associated with better student outcomes like higher credential completion, cost savings, and time savings. Further, PLA boosted completion rates for adult students of color, low income adult students, and adult students across the academic performance spectrum. The evidence showed that PLA has strong potential to be a tool for closing equity gaps in postsecondary achievement, provided it is made more accessible to students who could benefit the most.
PLA boosted credential completion Adult students credential completion rates:
49 %
27%
with PLA
without PLA
Using propensity score matching to control for other factors, PLA boosted adult student completion rates by:
17%
All PLA methods
30%
PLA methods excluding credit rec's for military
Yet PLA used by only about 1 in 10 adult students
11%
Adult students earned college credit for their prior learning through PLA
PLA has potential to close equity gaps in postsecondary completion Using propensity score matching to control for other factors, PLA boosted completion rates for key adult student groups by:
24%
Hispanic adults
19%
Pell Grant recipients
14%
Black adults
25%
Adults at community colleges
The boost to completion was even higher for these groups for certain PLA methods.
PLA students earned credits for nearly a semester of full-time study On average, adult students earned:
15
PLA credits
12
PLA credits through methods other than credit rec's for military
Adult students with PLA saved money
$1,500 to $10,200
Estimated adult student savings through PLA, across sectors
Yet PLA use was lowest for adult students who were: ■ Black or American Indian/Alaska Native ■ Female ■ Pell Grant recipients
Resulting in time savings for degree earners
9 to 14 Months Time saved by adult degree earners with 12 or more PLA credits
Institutions won, too
17.6 More Credits Average additional course credits taken by adult PLA students
The full report, related research, and other documents can be found at the CAEL and WICHE websites: cael.org/pla-impact and wiche.edu/recognition-of-learning. This fact sheet was revised on 12/1/2020 due to a discovery of a data matching error. Take-up rates, completion outcomes, PSM results, and additional course credits are unchanged; changes were made to the findings for average PLA credits, time savings, and cost savings. ©The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning, 2020
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The Modernized ACE Military Guide – Something for Everyone!
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he Modernized ACE Military Guide offers something for everyone – military-connected students, education counselors, college and university registrars, and military education leaders. Military-connected students and veterans can upload their own Joint Services Transcript (JST) and share it with their education counselors to get a head start on the transfer credit process. Colleges and universities can set up institution accounts to evaluate and make credit awards, track past awards, and import their decisions into their own systems. Military education leaders can search for individual courses and occupations and gain more information about how credit awards are helping military students and veterans. Visit the Modernized Military Guide at https://militaryguide.acenet.edu/ today!
Military Service Members: Put Learning to Work Believe it or not, building a foundation for military learning started on the first day a service member took the oath of enlistment and boarded that strangely uncomfortable bus ride to basic training. Since then, they have been exposed to a myriad of formal training and learned many new skills on the job. All these experiences have helped to build the foundation which will assist them succeeding in a post-secondary environment. For military-connected students, the modernized Military Guide provides tools to make it easier for a school to give a service member credit that helps get them the degree they need and the civilian career they want, not just elective courses. Simplifying the credit search experience and adding the ability to upload a Joint Services Transcript (JST) helps solve the college or university challenges with evaluating military prior learning, and leads to a wider array of options when they begin pursuing their education!
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Click link below to see ACE Military Guide!
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o make the most of prior learning service members must be prepared! The three-step process recommended is: Determine, Evaluate, and Learn (DEL), basic guidelines to help them on the pathway to educational success.
Transfer Military transcripts: • Include a description of military schooling and work history in civilian language. • Display degrees, apprenticeships via the United Services Military Apprenticeship Program (USMAP), and certifications/licensure and tuition assistance courses (past or current) for Marine Corps, Navy, and Coast Guard Joint Service Transcripts. • Serve as an advising tool working with academic and career counselors. • Help prepare a resume and explain military work experience to civilian employers.
1 – Determine Long and Short-Term Goals The last couple of years has shown that life can be unpredictable. Will we ever go back to normal operations? No one knows! Regardless, It’s up to the service member to set goals and chart their course. Whether they are looking to save time to degree completion, lower the cost of tuition books and fees, or getting help with career planning, leveraging prior military experience is a valuable and important 3 – Learn How Credits Transfer tool to propel a member toward educational success. Acceptance of recommended transfer credit is determined by the receiving institution. When the college 2 – Evaluate Military Training and Experience or university determines whether (and how much) The Joint Services Transcript (JST) provides docucredit to apply to an individual record, that credit will mented evidence of service members professional then appear on the service member college/univermilitary education and training and occupation experiences. When evaluating prior military learning sity transcript. Typically, grades are not included with experiences, members should ask two key questions: the transfer process, so they are not factored in as part of the grade point average (GPA). First, am I getting maximum education credit for
what I’ve learned through my military training and on the job experiences? Second, am I wasting both time and money taking courses that may have already gained credit recommendations through ACE? It is important that service members audit their military transcripts for accuracy and understand the details of this specialized tool. This critical step of auditing supports research of degree programs, job pathways, certificates, or professional licenses for alignment. It is also an important action in determining potential gaps that a member will have to mitigate to meet goals.
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Academic institutions establish their own transfer credit policies and procedures. It is recommended that service members immediately identify and locate these policies to help them understand the process and set a plan for making the most of their credit recommendations. When researching these policies, members will want to pay attention to the details listed in the institution’s catalog or bulletin. Often, the transfer policies will be general in nature. As they continue to research transfer information, look for more specific requirements for credit being transferred from another accredited academic institution, the military, professional training, or testing.
When service members meet or speak with an academic adviser, they should consider these steps: •
Review their degree plan and identify potential academic courses for transfer. Consider the level of the credit recommendation and analyze the appropriateness to the degree plan. Identify the comparability of the course in terms of the credit recommendation. For example, how does the content of the institution’s academic course compare to the ACE Military Guide exhibit in terms of the learning outcomes and topics? Take ownership during the transfer process by following up with the transfer, registrar, or admissions department. Monitor curriculum plan, transfer approvals, and documentation within formal university systems (degree audit).
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By compiling and organizing this information, the service member will be ready to maximize college credits, as well as have a better idea of the remaining courses needed for degree completion. Over 28,000 visitors have accessed the MMG since the launch on April 1, 2021. • Service members and Veterans have used the tool to upload their Joint Services Transcript (JST), viewing the analysis, and sending results along to a counselor or advisor for their assistance in their education journey!
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Academic Institutions: Start Fresh with the Modernized ACE Military Guide This next evolution in military-connected student support allows academic institutions to maximize results and foster clearer pathways to higher education for adult learners. The Military Guide’s re-imagined search function, data integration capabilities, and innovative decision-support workflow are built to facilitate an efficient and flexible credit for military learning processes. Institutions can create accounts for all manner of stakeholders – transcript evaluators, registrars, admissions counselors, faculty members, military services staff, and more! Activate your FREE Military Guide Institution Account today! •
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Who: Over 730 institutions representing all 50 states have requested accounts – 35% of whom had never previously used the ACE Military Guide What: Users report multiple work hours saved for review of a single student’s military learning experience, thanks to streamlined upload and analysis capabilities. According to a few higher ed users:
“[In the past] it was a very tedious process because it wasn’t automated -- so this system has really taken us to the 21st century as far as being technologically advanced. We have gone from something that would literally take sometimes upwards of weeks, to something that is literally a day to do”
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“I was just blown away at how seamless and user-friendly it was; I think the thing that has taken us the longest is to identify who’s going to be the approving authorities and getting them training on recommendations, but it was a whole lot more seamless than I thought it would be” • •
When: Launched April 1, 2022 Where: Sign up for a free account at the link below -- from there the Military Guide team will support your institution with onboarding and training materials!
https://americancounciloned. formstack.com/forms/ace_military_guide_institution_account_request?_ga=2.212460701.80009747.16418408461158077139.1571329202
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Why: Hear why you should explore the ACE Military Guide directly from fellow higher ed professionals in this testimonial video! Click link below to see the ACE Military Guide
Military Education Leadership:
Evaluating Military Occupation and Training for Academic Credit Subject-specific recognition of prior learning and experience can be difficult for formal education systems to crosswalk to established curricula. Too often, students with significant prior learning are required to repeat coursework to meet program requirements; a lack of clear guidance on the transferable value of educational experiences hampers their ability to make informed choices about how to invest their learning dollars and time. DANTES and ACE have teamed together create a standardized academic taxonomy for credit for prior learning based on rigorous evaluation and validation of learning in diverse contexts. ACE regularly brings together Subject Matter Expert (SME) faculty evaluators across hundreds of disciplines from across the country to participate in reviews, and their collective expertise has language of learning that can help bridge the divide between workforce and formal education.
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Education Counselors:
What’s New with the ACE Military Guide As a tool for Education Counselors in the field, the new ACE Military Guide can help to educate military learners about how to securely upload a copy of their JST (from public view), audit, review, and share transcript information with a Counselor (military education or civilian school counselor). In addition, Military Education Counselors can search the Military Guide from the public view by entering an occupation or training to share rich data for advising sessions. As military education counselors, you can help educate military learners on how to use the military guide during academic counseling sessions, giving you another tool to provide detailed information at your fingertips in a matter of minutes, and ultimately providing the tools to speed their progress towards achieving their educational goals. College credit recommendations reduce the number of classes a service member needs to satisfy degree requirements, thus saving time and money and avoiding TA costs. Credit recommendations evaluated by ACE are documented on the service members JST. To date, tens of thousands of credit hours have been awarded to military-connected students from all military branches, covering a mix of degree requirements, general education requirements, and elective courses. Despite the many benefits of the program, many service members are unaware that the program exists and as a result, fail to maximize their education credit potential. Similarly, military learners often waste time and money by taking courses that have already gained credit recommendation through military service.
Connecting With ACE Military Guide Career Advisors: Connecting to Civilian Job Workforce
Business and industry can use ACE Military Guide data when evaluating learning outcomes for military service members to connect to the civilian job workforce. Every service member will transition at one point from the military. As a service member transitions, it is important that they have tools and resources to help them connect their military occupation and training to the civilian job workforce. As an employer it helps to understand all the competencies skills which a military learner can bring to your work environment. Using the public view of the ACE Military Guide allows users to evaluate military occupations and learning and understand the skills and work competencies associated quickly and easily. Visit https://www.acenet.edu/ militaryguide today to see how you can align military occupation and learning to competitive workforce competencies.
Here’s what service memembers can do today to make the Modernized Military Guide work for them!
Because of COVID-19, many academic institutions have been forced to re-think, innovate, and seek out more cost-effective ways to attract both traditional and non-traditional students into the classroom. As a result, student learners have had the flexibility of leveraging available education benefits, taking advantage of significant drops in tuition cost, and choosing the right schools that best fit their current situation and need. As the landscape continues to change within the world of academia, the future may still seem uncertain for many military learners. Regardless of the uncertainty, DANTES continues to provide a steady variety of resources to drive student success and assist military learners during their academic journey, to and through post service. • Military Learners - Upload your JST and see what credit recommendations apply to you, then share this information with your academic and education advisors. • Academic institutions – Sign up for your free account and see how easy it is to award credits to military-connected students using the tools and resources available, from onboarding training to webinars and community platforms to discuss innovative ways to better serve you and your military connected students. • Military Education Leaders – Explore the Modernized Military Guide and contact DANTES to get additional information about how your service members can benefit from ACE’s credit recommendations. • Education Counselors – Work with students and the Modernized Military Guide to see what credit recommendations they already have, and use the tools to see how those recommendations apply to degree programs and/or career choices. • Career Advisors – Explore the Modernized Military Guide to help Military Learners, Business and Industry Leaders translate their military occupation and training to the civilian job workforce.
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HOT NEWS Transcript Update
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he Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) is currently updating its score reporting system. During this time, DANTES personnel are unable to look up service member scores or transfer scores to the Community College of the Air Force, Joint Services Transcripts, and all other transcription/score reporting services. We appreciate your patience. Please follow the DANTES website for further updates at https://www.dantes.doded.mil/ EducationPrograms/get-credit/creditexam. html
SAVE THE DATE! Check out Remote Testing for DSST Exams
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oin DANTES Credit-by-Exam Program Manager, Matthew Schwantz, and Prometric’s Account Director, Patrick Cheicante, as they introduce the Remote Testing option for military members stationed around the world. Learn how to prepare, register and take your next DSST exam remotely. Test with convenience, plus save both time and money!
Please send transcript inquiries to DANTES_PLA@ navy.mil with the following information; - Full Name - CLEP or DSST exam - Title of your exam - Date the exam was taken As soon as the new system is online, we will be able to assist with requested information.
DANTES Counselor Support Network (DCSN)
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ANTES is continuously looking for ways to connect with the Services' Voluntary Education (VolEd) Professionals in an effort to help share program updates and to help you have the best information available to help service members reach their education and career goals. Join the VolEd group on LinkedIn, called DANTES Counselor Support Network (DCSN)! This group was created just for you as a way to share and collaborate. Visit the DCSN Group and sign up today! NOTE: A LinkedIn account is not required to join the group, you can also send an email to counseling@ navy.mil - but we do encourage you to join. We have lots of helpful information to share.
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https://www.linkedin.com/ company/10843412
For more info contact us: DANTES_Outreach@navy.mil Jeff Allen, Director Michelle Alexander, Editor Reproduction in whole or in part is permitted for any purpose of the United States Government, except that copyrighted materials cannot be reproduced without written permission from the copyright owner. The appearance of external hyperlinks does not constitute endorsement by DANTES of the linked websites, or the information, products, or services contained therein.
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