Credit for Prior Learning

Credit for Prior Learning may be obtained by the following methods:

• Advanced Placement (AP) exam
• College Level Examination Program (CLEP) 
• Credit for military training – as approved by the college
• Credit by examination administered by the college – see below for more information

Units earned through credit for prior learning, including credit by examination, are not considered for Financial Aid, Scholarship or Veteran Services eligibility and payments.

Students who are interested in obtaining credit through the CLEP process or credit for military training should send an email to dacpl@deanza.edu for more information.

Military Service Credit

Students may request college credit for military service by submitting a copy of their DD-214 form. Nine units of credit will be awarded for students who have at least one year of active duty. The units will include three units of Area E: Physical Education, four units of Area E: Personal Development, and two units of elective credit.

Credit By Examination

Students may file a request for credit by examination during any regular quarter for courses in which they are especially qualified through previous training or experience, and for which prior AP or college credit has not been awarded. This process is sometimes called “challenging a course.” Students may obtain the appropriate request forms from their counselor.

The decision to offer credit by examination rests solely on the discretion of the faculty for that discipline. Additional requirements include:

• A separate examination shall be conducted for each course for which credit is to be granted.
• Credit may be granted only to a student who is registered and in good standing at the college.
• Credit will be granted only for a course listed in the college catalog.
• The student’s academic record will be clearly annotated to reflect that credit was earned by assessment of prior learning.
• Grades will be assigned according to the college’s regular grading system, except that students will be offered a Pass/No Pass option if that is ordinarily available for the course.
• Students will be charged a fee of $31 per unit when seeking credit by examination.
• Credit by examination units shall not be counted in determining the 12 quarter hours of credit in residence required by state regulations for an associate degree.
• Students may not request credit by examination for courses for which they have already earned a grade.
• Credit by examination units may not be used to meet the 24 residency units required to earn a degree at De Anza.
• No more than 45 credit by examination units may be earned.
• Students who successfully challenge a course through credit by examination may not subsequently challenge a course normally preceding it (for example, challenging Chemistry 1B and then challenging Chemistry 1A).
• Transfer colleges and universities have the discretion to decide if they will accept credit by examination for requirements or units.

Courses are only subject to challenge if they have been recommended by a division and approved by the vice president of Instruction. Special limitations exist for challenging courses in sequence. The examination may include oral, written or skill tests – or a combination – and will be sufficiently comprehensive to assess the student’s knowledge and skills commensurate with a student successfully completing the course.

The credit by examination grade will be noted on the student’s transcript at the end of the quarter. Students who do not successfully challenge may not remain enrolled in the course. For a list of courses that can be challenged through examination, please see the Credit By Examination section of the college catalog.