Advanced Standing Information
Students may be eligible for advanced standing when previous studies, training, or work experience has provided them with the knowledge and skills required in a course. Each student is responsible for contacting the Counseling Center to determine the appropriate procedure for evaluation before registering for classes. Students must be officially enrolled in a curriculum in order to be eligible for advanced standing credit.
Blue Ridge Community College may grant credit in appropriate courses on the basis of proficiency examinations, including the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), when the student scores at or above the minimum level recommended by the American Council on Education; and the Advanced Placement Program (AP) when the student scores a 3, 4 or 5. The College may also grant credit in appropriate courses based on an evaluation of the student’s work experience. The process of awarding “Credit for Life Experience” follows guidelines established by the Council for the Assessment of Experiential Learning (CAEL). Where advanced standing requires the administration of a comprehensive institutional examination for credit (credit-by-exam), such an examination will normally be administered during the first nine weeks of the semester in which the course is offered.
Students who plan to transfer to another college or university are responsible for determining if the institution they plan to attend will accept advanced standing credits awarded by Blue Ridge Community College.
Blue Ridge Community College has a time limit for accepting credit for technical courses taken previously at BRCC or other institutions. The Dean of Student Services, in consultation with the appropriate faculty, will determine if courses taken more than five years before the student was accepted in the program at BRCC can be used in the student’s current program of study. The student may be encouraged to take credit-by-exam or credit for life experience, if deemed appropriate.
Please refer to the booklet, College Credit Through Advanced Standing, available on the BRCC website, for specific advanced standing guidelines and procedures.