Attaining Academic Credit
Unit of Credit
The semester hour is the unit of academic credit earned at Quinebaug Valley Community College. One semester hour typically corresponds to a 50-minute (minimum) class meeting plus an additional two hours of work outside of class, or to a two-to three-hour laboratory each week for a traditional semester of 15 weeks. A course yielding three semester hours of credit, therefore, usually requires three 50-minute (or two 75-minute) class meetings plus six hours of preparation outside of class per week. When semesters are shortened, class meetings are lengthened.
Course Load
Usually students will not be permitted to register for more than 16 hours of credit per semester. Some full-time students, due to their academic background, will be limited to taking 12 hours. Students wishing to take more than 16 credit hours during the semester may, providing they have maintained an average of 3.5 or better during the preceding semester, register for one additional course with the approval of the dean of learning and student development or her/his designee.
Credit by Transfer
A student seeking transfer credit should be enrolled in a degree or certificate program. Ordinarily, only credits applicable to the students’ program at QVCC will be evaluated. A transfer student who changes programs while at QVCC or seeks a second degree from this college may request a reassessment of potentially transferable credit. At least 25 percent of the minimum credit requirements for the degree must be through coursework at Quinebaug Valley Community College.
Requests for evaluation of transfer credits should be made to the Learning and Student Development Office.
1. Credit from Other Collegiate Institutions
At all regional community colleges, degree credit shall be granted for credit courses completed at all institutions within the Connecticut state system of higher education and at all other accredited collegiate institutions in accordance with the policy adopted by the Board of Trustees of Community-Technical Colleges.
- Degree credit shall be granted for all credit courses which are applicable to the objectives of, or equivalent to the course requirements of, the curriculum in which the transferring student enrolls. Credit work which is not applicable or equivalent to curriculum requirements shall be accepted for credit at the discretion of the College. Degree credit shall also be granted on the basis of performance on examination in accordance with standards and limits approved by the Board of Trustees.
- Credit courses completed with grade of “Pass” (P) shall be accepted only for degree credit; the “Pass” grade assigned by other institutions shall not be included in computation of student grade point averages.
- Degree credit shall be granted for credit courses completed with a passing letter grade of “C” or better. Such credit courses shall be accepted only for credit, and letter grades assigned by other institutions shall not be recorded or included in computation of student grade point averages.
2. Credit for Recognized Courses from Non-collegiate Organizations
Students who have completed courses sponsored by employers, government agencies, labor unions, and professional associations may be eligible for transfer credit. The award of credit will be based on the recommendations of the American Council on Education’s National Guide to Credit Recommendations for Non-collegiate Courses and Connecticut Department of Higher Education guidelines.
3. Military Credit
Veterans also may attain credit for military training, education, and M.O.S. qualifications as recommended in the American Council on Education Guide to Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services.
Credit by Examination
Credit by examination will be recognized by Quinebaug Valley Community College when applicable to the degree or certificate program in which a student is enrolled. Semester hours of credit earned by examinations are assigned the “P” grade. No quality points are earned. The student’s GPA is not affected.
1. External Examinations
- Degree credit will be granted on the basis of scores on the Advanced Placement Examinations administered by the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB). Students who earn scores of 3 or higher receive credit for the courses for which the examinations are stipulated as measures.
- QVCC will accept all College Level Examination Program (CLEP) General and Subject Examinations, awarding credit for scores earned according to current CLEP guidelines. Contact the Learning and Student Development Office for details.
2. College-sponsored Examinations
A student may, on the basis of previous study and experience, take a special examination for credit for some approved QVCC course without having enrolled in those courses. In some academic areas, examinations are scheduled on a regular basis. Other exams may be offered at the discretion of individual faculty members.
The student pays a $15 academic evaluation fee in advance for each examination. Students will not be permitted to earn credit by examination in a course for which they have already received a grade. Students must register for these examinations in advance in the College Learning Center. Credits earned in this manner are not guaranteed transferable.
Credit for Prior Learning Through Portfolio Assessment
Students who believe that through prior learning (e.g., self-directed study, on-the-job training, or past employment) they have acquired the competence ordinarily associated with satisfactory completion of approved QVCC courses may request evaluation of the experience through the Credit for Prior Learning Portfolio Assessment process. Students seeking credit for prior learning will be required to attend a pre-semester workshop and to register for QVCC’s Portfolio Development course (IS 150).
The Portfolio Development course will instruct students in how to clarify, organize, assess, and document learning they have acquired through prior experience, and will assist them in the preparation of a learning portfolio. The portfolio will then be submitted to a specially appointed assessment committee, which will determine what and how many credits the student will be awarded. No more than 50 percent of an approved associate degree program will be awarded for prior experiential learning. Students will be assessed a fee for portfolio assessment.
Students wishing more information about the CPLPA process should contact the dean of learning and student development or the CPL coordinator, Dr. Scott DeShong.
Independent Study
By arrangement between individual students and faculty members, the College offers independent study courses designed to provide an opportunity to pursue topics in depth beyond that usually required or available in formal classes. Topics will vary with the student and the subject. Independent study is conducted under the guidance and at the discretion of a faculty member qualified in the subject area of the student’s interest. These courses will be identified as “independent study” on transcripts and may yield a variable number of credits (ordinarily from 1-4 credits). Independent study is considered part of a regular course load and regular academic calendar deadlines and requirements will apply. Interested students may obtain information from the dean of learning and student development.
Tutorials
Tutorials are independent studies covering the full content of an approved QVCC course. A student may apply for a tutorial when circumstances make it necessary for her/him to take a course at a time or in a semester when it has not been scheduled. Tutorials carry the department and course number designators of the approved course as it appears in the catalog, but are assigned section numbers from 90-95.
As with independent study, students taking a tutorial will work with the approval and under the direction of a faculty member qualified to teach the desired course. Tutorials are available only in selected courses and by individual arrangement.
The Connecticut General Assembly Legislative Internship Program
In recognition of the need to provide educational opportunities which are not available to college students in the traditional academic setting, the General Assembly established an internship program to acquaint students with both the formal and informal aspects of the legislative process. Accordingly, the program encourages a high level of personal interaction among legislators and interns who serve as aides to their assigned legislators. A major objective is to prepare interns to perform necessary support services, such as bill analysis and tracing, spot and in-depth research, drafting of new releases and speeches, liaison work, and constituent casework.
Students at QVCC may participate in the program and may earn from 6 to 15 college credits. See POL* 290 and 294. The selection of students is made by the General Assembly’s Committee on Legislative Staff Internships. The committee interviews each candidate and selects approximately 90 interns, both full-time and part-time, to serve for a legislative session. Appointments are announced in December following November interviews.
Interns are assigned to legislative leaders, committee chairs, ranking members, and other legislators. A workable and mutually beneficial relationship between the legislator and the intern is a prime goal of the internship program. Every effort is made to match both legislator and intern.
For further information please see Jayne Battye, political science faculty.