Charter Oak State College conducts Special Assessments of already completed state or national certifications or licensures to determine whether the subject matter, depth, breadth, and academic rigor of the licensing or certification examination is equivalent to college-level learning. Credentials of the following types, which have not been evaluated by the American Council on Education (ACE), National PONSI, or the Connecticut Credit Assessment Program (CCAP), may be submitted by currently matriculated Charter Oak students for review:

• Licensure or certification in a specialty on the state or national level
• Licensure or certification from a professional organization
• Completion of a course sponsored by a noncollegiate organization 

The assessment is conducted by a member of the Charter Oak faculty or a specialist in the field recommended by the faculty. The faculty assessor does the following:

• Reviews the documentation and evaluates the materials for range and quality to determine if the knowledge acquired justifies an award of college credit;
• Recommends the award of credit for a course, identifying the number of semester hours and level of credit; OR
• Denies credit, giving reasons; OR
• Requests further information if documentation demonstrates that there is potential for an award of credit pending receipt of additional data.

Please note that credentials submitted for assessment must include some form of testing or other assessment. Certificates of attendance do not qualify for Special Assessment, and Charter Oak does not review programs or certificates administered by accredited educational institutions. Students must receive prior approval before submitting materials for Special Assessment and must supply all required documentation. For more information, a fee schedule, or an application form, contact the Assessment Coordinator at 860.832.3846 or by e-mail mlegrow@charteroak.edu .