YorkSt JohnUniversity

The following paper sets out agreed admissions policies for applicants without normal school leaving qualifications and who are wishing to return to study after a period out of education, and for candidates wishing to enter the University on the basis of prior certificated learning or accredited prior experiential learning (APEL). It also sets out arrangements whereby support could be given to students wishing to access the University on the basis of APEL
POLICY FOR THE CONSIDERATION OF APPLICATIONS FROM CANDIDATESNOTOFFERINGSTANDARDSCHOOL LEAVING QUALIFICATIONS.
1. The University welcomes applications from applicants who do not offer standard school leaving qualifications. Such applicants will normally have been out of full time education for a period of at least 2 years.
2. The normal requirement that a candidate matriculates i.e. holds passes in at least 2 A2 levels or their equivalent together with GCSE grade C English Language or equivalent will not normally be waived for an applicant moving directly from post 16 school or college education.
3.The University will admit applicants without standard qualificationswhom it identifies as being capable of benefiting from the chosen programme of study. To do so the admissions tutor will seek to establish the applicant holds:
  • appropriate subject knowledge or skills where relevant
  • intellectual capacity
  • ability in written and oral communication
  • where appropriate, numeracy skills
  • match between the skills and experience of the applicant and the skills profile and desirable characteristics for the programme.

4. Evidence may be presented by
  • previous professional experience and/or professional qualifications
  • University alternative entry system
  • previous study e.g. OU credits, other HE module taken on a free-standing basis
  • portfolio for APEL purposes
  • success in an HE access course
  • special University admissions tests as recommended by the Programme Team

5. Other offerings will be considered on their merits.
6. The decision to admit an applicant to a programme without conventional qualifications will be for the Subject Director in consultation with Admissions staff.

Page 1 of 5

Policy for the consideration of applications for admission to the University on the basis of transferred credit.
1. The University operates a curriculum which is specified in terms of a graduate skills profile (from September 2000) and learning outcomes specified on a module by module basis.
  1. The University welcomes applications which include requests for advanced standing and which can be accommodated within the parameters set by the General Regulations. The University’s General Regulations specify that ‘Entrants may be exempted from any module and assessment, normally to a maximum of one third of those specified for the programme of study.’ (General Regulations paragraph 8)
  2. The normal position of the University will be that the import of credit will be confined to level 4 in an undergraduate degree programme unless a specific articulation agreement has been approved. It will not normally be the University’s policy to remit level 6 credit.
Within a masters programme, a dissertation will not be remitted.
3. The University will welcome applications based on prior certificated learning or prior experiential learning.
4. Whereas the University will recognise courses from most recognised higher education institutions for general credit, all applications for entry with advanced standing will additionally be required to demonstrate their value as specific credit. In order to do so, the applicant will have to demonstrate the equivalence of the experience offered to that against which the credit will be offset. This will be in terms of satisfying the learning outcomes and the skills profile specified by the University.
5. Normally, credit imported towards the award of a qualification will have been obtained no more than five years previously at the time at which the application is made and should be no more that five years old at the time of the completion of the award towards which it counts. Consideration will be given to credit which is older than 5 years if a case can be made that the subject matter of the module is still current and the study skills associated with it are viable
6. In order to facilitate the transfer, it may be possible to specify entry to an ad hoc variant of a programme or to specify some additional experience to ensure that learning outcomes are met.
7. Classification of the University’s degrees will normally be based solely on credit obtained at the University for reasons of consistency of marking. In certain cases, it may be necessary to propose variations on normal degree classification arrangements e.g. classification on the final year results only.
8.Where a University module has been taken on a free-standing basis for the purposes of demonstrating ability to study at the appropriate level, consideration will be given to the transfer of that credit towards
9. A course of full time study is 120 credits at each undergraduate level. The University will expect a student applying for a course of full time study on the basis of a funded place to pursue a programme amounting to 120 credits. If exemption from a particular course element is negotiated on the basis of imported credit, it will be expected that a suitable alternative course element will be substituted in negotiation with the Subject Director. The University has an obligation to return students to the funding council as either full or part time students. This status has implications for the institution and personal funding. Where a student wishes to be counted as full time, the maximum credit which can be imported to any year of programme is 20 credits. If a student wishes to be considered for the import of a greater number of credits,they will study part time for the remainder of the year and join the full time programme in due course. The same restrictions do not apply to part time study. With the agreement of a Subject Director it may be appropriate for a fulltime student to substitute an Independent Learning Unit for a specified module which will allow a student to draw on prior experience while remaining within the normal parameters of study.
10. A candidate for a self-supported course of part time study will not be expected to make a substitution for an exempted module.
11. Applications for the import of credit will normally be made at the time of application to the University. The University will not normally enter into negotiation with students once they are on course.

Procedures

12. An applicant who wishes to apply to the University for entry to an undergraduate or postgraduate programme with advanced standing on the basis of imported credit should contact the Admissions Office or will be referred by the Subject Director concerned.
13. The applicant will be asked to supply details of the credit gained or about to be completed. This will typically be in the form of module or course specifications and details of assessment requirements (including marking scales used at the institution at which the credit has been or will be obtained).
14. The Subject Director in consultation with Admissions staff will decide whether there is sufficient match between the credit proposed for transfer and the course elements(s) from which exemption is sought and considered at this point.
15. If a sufficient match is identified, the application will go forward. In order for the application to go forward, the following conditions must be met:
  • The applicant must have been interviewed, by telephone or in person. The Admissions Office provides a template for this. The interview should be used to inform the admissions decision and also to ensure a shared understanding with the applicant of the implications of admission with advanced standing and any likely conditions relating to this.
  • An official transcript of results must be supplied to confirm the award of credit
  • A reference must have been supplied. This should address the general suitability of the applicant for admission to the relevant programme of study
  • If the applicant is seeking to transfer from another higher education institution, the Admissions Office will check whether the applicant is in good standing to ensure there are no circumstances that might affect the University’s decision to admit the student (e.g., involvement in academic misconduct; disciplinary offences).
An application for Transfer with Credit Form will be completed. This will include:
  • details of the programme applied for

  • details of the programme elements from which exemption is requested

  • details of the credit proposed for import together with attached evidence

  • details of conditions specified for the transfer of credit

  • details of any ad hoc variation of programme.

16 At the time at which it is agreed that credit can be imported, the Subject Director is asked to specify the consequences for the other modules taken and for examination. The Quality & Standards Committee has agreed that where credit is imported within a level of an undergraduate programme or a single level award, the other modules which will be studied within the University must be passed. The imported credit can contribute credits towards progression but should not be issued to offset failure in any other module, e.g. if a student is permitted to import 20 credits within level 1 of a programme of study and a failure of 20 credits can normally be carried within the regulations, the remaining 100 credits will be passed in the case of terms specified for entry with imported credit.
17. The application will be authorised by the Admissions Manager on the advice of the Registrar. (Unless a general admission arrangement for a programme has already been approved by the Quality & Standards Committee[See 19 below].)
18. The applicant will also be required to complete the normal application process either directly to the University or through UCAS as appropriate.
19. Approval by the Admissions Manager will not be required for the Application for Transfer with Credit Form for students moving to the upper levels of a programme at the University on an approved pathway at an institution with which the University has an agreement. Such pathways will have been specifically approved by the Quality & Standards Committee. A similar arrangement might also apply where a particular experience has been approved by the Quality & Standards Committee as being deemed to attract credit. The Admissions Office will keep a record of such agreements.

Applications based on prior experiential learning

1.An applicant wishing to offer prior experiential learning will normally do so in the context of admission to a complete programme of study. Typically, a student may not be matriculated or may wish to demonstrate graduate-equivalent status for entry to a postgraduate programme. APEL may be a means of demonstrating ability to study the desired level. Evidence of match between experience and pre-entry characteristics at the appropriate level would be required. This would typically work at the level of an access course for entry to level 1 of a programme, the equivalent of 120 credits of experience at level 2 for entry to level 2 or the equivalent of the ability to study at level 3 for entry to a postgraduate programme.
2.A similar operation would have to be performed for an APEL-supported request for remission from a course element.
3. The evidence might be presented in the form of a portfolio
4. Applicants seeking to enter the University offering evidence of APEL might be directed to an appropriate portfolio development module.
5. Where the University is asked to accredit prior experiential learning (APEL) a candidate will produce a portfolio of evidence which must be matched against the learning outcomes for the module or part programme. This will be done by the Subject Director and the recommendation should be approved by an independent Subject Director and the Head of School. If the credit from which remission is requested is at level 2,the external examiner for the programme should be consulted, especially if a mark contributing to a final degree classification is derived from the portfolio. The evidence produced for the purposes of APEL should be comparable in scope with the assessment requirements of the module from which remission is sought, and should
  • demonstrate the match between the experience and the learning outcomes and reflect upon the experience;
  • set the learning in the appropriate academic and theoretical context and demonstrate understanding.

6. The Subject Director, in consultation with an independent Subject Director and the Head of School, will be responsible for the assessment of the evidence offered against the learning outcomes for the programmes or modules to which entry is sought or from which exemption is sought.
7. If a sufficient match is identified, the application will go forward. An Application for Transfer with Credit Form will be completed. The application will be authorised by the Admissions Manager on the advice of the Registrar.
8. The Applicant will also be required to complete the normal application process either directly to the University or through UCAS as appropriate.
Fees for the Assessment of an APEL Portfolio
9.Fee equivalent to 1/3 of the equivalent module fee for the credit sought will be charged for the assessment of the portfolio. The fee will be used to reimburse the School assessing the portfolio. No additional portfolio assessment fee will be charged for those taking the APEL accredited module.

QA Ref:SRA7

Maintained by:Registry

Last Update:February 2017

Page 1 of 5