Policy and Strategic Planning

Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition

Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) is a process of identifying, assessing and recognizing skills, competencies and knowledge to facilitate transitions into further learning and work. 

Skills, competencies and knowledge may be acquired through learning that is

  • formal
  • informal
  • non-formal
  • experiential

These can be gained through work experience, training, independent study or volunteer activities.

Situations where PLAR may be used include

  • capturing an individual’s independent learning that is equivalent to the skills, competencies and knowledge that person would have learned in a high school or post-secondary course 
  • capturing individual’s on-the-job training that is similar to the skills and knowledge they would have gained through a formal program
  • recognizing a person’s foreign credential that is equivalent to a local credential
  • recognizing credit for a course a learner took at a private provider that is equivalent, but non-transferable, to an accredited institution
  • converting non-formal learning acquired by an individual into advanced standing for that person in a post-secondary program.

Example of a possible PLAR scenario:

After working in a hospital as a health care assistant for the past ten years, Maria decides to go back to school to obtain a nursing degree.  The post-secondary institution she plans to attend assesses the skills and knowledge she has gained through her work and grants her advanced standing in her nursing program.

PLAR at Alberta post-secondary institutions:

Each post-secondary institution in Alberta has its own PLAR policies and practices.  Contact the institution you are interested in to find out more information.

Advancing PLAR in Alberta: An Action Plan

In October 2008, Alberta Advanced Education and Technology released the Action Plan for Advancing Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition (PLAR) in Alberta. The ministry launched the action plan at the Canadian Association for Prior Learning Assessment (CAPLA) Conference in Banff on October 21, 2008.

The goal of the action plan is to ensure that Albertans will benefit from greater access to quality prior learning assessment and recognition practices.

Strategies outlined in the PLAR Action Plan are designed to

  • increase awareness and understanding of PLAR among the public, post-secondary institutions, employers and community organizations
  • promote the development of quality and consistency standards of PLAR practices
  • establish a formal PLAR network and enhance the capacity for PLAR across the province 

Read more about PLAR in Advancing PLAR in Alberta - An Action Plan.

Additional Resources

The Alberta Council on Admissions and Transfer has been leading several PLAR initiatives across the province over the past several years: