Do you have prior experiences and skills?

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Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition (PLAR) is a process that identifies, assesses and recognizes prior skills, competencies and knowledge. These may have been acquired through formal, informal, nonformal, or experiential learning via post-secondary education, work/industry experience, training, independent study, or volunteer activities. PLAR is assessed on an individual basis by your academic department and has a non-refundable fee.

Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition for Health Care Aides is available to students applying towards the Practical Nurse program.

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Health Care Aide to Practical Nurse PLAR Requirements:

As a Health Care Aide worker, you may be able to use your prior experience towards your Practical Nurse program. Students who meet the eligibility criteria can earn recognition towards:

COMM1101 Interpersonal Communications
NURS1202 Nursing Foundations 1

You must have the following documentation ready to submit:

Alberta Health Care Aide Directory: Your Alberta HCA Directory must be in PDF form with the issue date and expiry date showing ‘Certified Status’. A directory status of ‘substantially equivalent’ or ‘Deemed competent’ will not be eligible.
Letter of Portability and/or Letter of Employment: A letter from your employer stating the following:
- Minimum of 1,000 verified work hours as a Health Care Aide
- Position held and start/end date of employment
- Type of facility and where you were placed/employed (long-term care, private home, etc.)
- Your supervisor’s title and contact information
Job Description: The job description should include the following:
- Job title matching the position in your Letter of portability and/or letter of employment
- Tasks that you performed
- Assigned responsibilities'
Submit Official Transcripts: Request your official transcript to be sent directly to Bow Valley College. If you graduated from the Bow Valley College Health Care Aide program, your results will be on file.
- Physical Copies: Must be in a sealed, stamped envelope
- Electronic/PDF copies: sent by a post-secondary employee through verifiable means. Send these to transfercredit@bowvalleycollege.ca
- Authorized transcript/credential distributors: For online verification (e.g., MyCreds)
Submit an HCA to PN PLAR request form available to accepted students through BVC Central.

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Please note: If you have already submitted an official transcript at the point of admission you will not be required to resubmit them.

What are the eligibility requirements? >

How to request PLAR

Step 1: When to apply

You will have the opportunity to apply for PLAR once you are accepted into your program. We recommend that you begin your application as soon as you receive your acceptance letter.

PLAR requests have different deadlines and can take more then a month to process. Ensure you submit your request early to allow enough time to complete the process.

Step 2: Review the course learning outcomes in your program

Review the course description and course learning outcomes you would like to PLAR in your program. Compare your previous education, work experience, skills and knowledge with that of the course to ensure it is equivalent.

‍Please note: Not all courses are eligible for PLAR. You can check if a course is eligible for PLAR by checking the Course outlines under the course description.

Step 3: Prepare all your supporting documents

Get ready to submit a detailed cover letter along with any additional supporting documents that support your request.

A cover letter is your way to introduce yourself, reflect on past experiences and education and to explain how you meet the learning outcomes of each course. A strong cover letter is detailed and specific to the learning outcomes.

Collect any supporting documents that demonstrate proof of meeting the learning outcomes of the course you are requesting. This can include but is not limited to: a portfolio of work, certificates of achievement, work Experience, resume, volunteer experience, job description, independent study etc.

Tips to Consider:

Do you have any work experience and how many years?
Do you have any volunteer or hobbies that are related?
Are there any industry courses taken through work?
Are you a member or part of an association?
How long ago were these experiences and how have you kept up these skills?
Are the experiences you have related directly to the subject matter requested?

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Tips to consider:

Do you have any work experience and how many years?
Do you have any volunteer or hobbies that are related?
Are there any industry courses taken through work?
Are you a member or part of an association?
How long ago were these experiences and how have you kept up these skills?
Are the experiences you have related directly to the subject matter requested?

Step 4: Submit a PLAR request form

Once you have everything ready and received your acceptance into your career program you will need to submit a PLAR request form available through BVC Central. The Transfer Credit & PLAR team will go through your request and all your supporting documents. They may be in touch with you if your claim is insufficient or you are required to submit more supporting documents.

Once your package is complete it will be sent and reviewed by the Academic department. The program chair will set up a meeting with you to go over your request and determine if you are eligible to take the PLAR assessment.

Step 5: Pay your PLAR fee

All eligible PLAR courses have a non-refundable fee. This fee must be paid prior to taking the PLAR assessment. The program Chair will provide details about the PLAR fee, and you will be required to make the payment within two weeks through Registrar's Office.
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‍Domestic: $200 plus $50 per credit
‍International: Determined by the International Tuition Fee Modifier

(International tuition cost (course) divided by Domestic tuition cost (course) multiplied by the total domestic PLAR cost of the course)

Step 6: Taking the PLAR assessment

The method used to assess your PLAR will vary on which course/s you are requesting. The assessment will ensure you meet the learning outcomes for the course and may include:

Portfolio assessment
Assignment
Examination

If you successfully pass your PLAR assessment you will receive a grade of “PL” on your Bow Valley College transcript.

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Have any further questions?

Please email transfer credit at transfercredit@bowvalleycollege.ca

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Prior Learning Assessment & Recognition

Do you have prior experiences and skills?

How to request PLAR

Have any further questions?

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