Life happens. Perhaps you started a degree years ago, gained invaluable experience in the military, or earned professional certifications along the way. You don’t want to start from scratch—and you don’t have to. Online degree programs are increasingly designed to recognize and reward your prior learning, helping you save significant time and money . This guide will walk you through the process of transferring credits and maximizing your prior learning for an online degree.
The “Credit for Prior Learning” Advantage
Many universities offer Credit for Prior Learning (CPL) or Prior Learning Assessment (PLA). This means you can earn college credit not just for previous college courses, but also for professional experience, military training, and industry certifications . For working adults and transfer students, CPL can be a game-changer, allowing you to “maximize academic, professional and military learning — so you can save time and money, and make the most out of your hard work” .
The potential savings are substantial. The University of Louisville, for example, offers PLA programs that can translate into up to $25,920 in tuition savings for students in its Organizational Leadership and Learning program . Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota similarly recognizes that “your past credits never expire and are always eligible,” accepting technical college credits and even standardized test credits like CLEP and DSST .
How Many Credits Can You Transfer?
This is the most critical number to understand before you apply. Each university sets its own cap on transfer credits.
- Generous Caps: Many programs allow you to transfer up to 90 credits toward a 120-credit bachelor’s degree. Examples include Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Champlain College Online, Texas State University, and American Public University .
- Drexel’s Unusually High Cap: Drexel University’s BS in Interdisciplinary Professional Studies goes even further, allowing students to transfer up to 135 credits out of the 180 needed for the degree .
- Military-Friendly Room: Western Governors University (WGU) is recognized for having significant room for military credit, permitting up to 75% of a degree to come from transfer credits .
- Community College Transfer: If you’re transferring from a community college, you may be limited to 60 credits in some cases, such as the University of Louisville .
How to Maximize Your Credit Transfer
1. Start with the Degree Map, Not Just the School
The cleanest habit for maximizing transfer credits is simple: compare the degree map, the transfer cap, and the credit policy before you enroll. Schools that publish those limits up front save you from a rude surprise later, and that surprise often costs a full term . Check if the university accepts ACE and NCCRS credit recommendations, as schools that accept both give you more ways to turn prior learning into credits .
2. Get Your Official Military Transcript (JST)
If you have military experience, your Joint Services Transcript (JST) is your golden ticket. Technical military careers often produce the most credit—aviation, medical, electronics, and cyber roles can earn 60 to 90+ credits of ACE-recommended credit . You can get your JST for free at JST.doded.mil. Do not pay a third party to hand you a document the government already gives you .
A school’s acceptance of ACE and NCCRS matters because “military training does not arrive in one neat package.” Schools that accept both can review more of your background, including training tied to leadership, project work, or general education .
3. Research Articulation Agreements
An articulation agreement is a formal partnership between colleges that specifies how credits from one institution will transfer and apply toward a degree at another . If your community college has an articulation agreement with your target university, transferring credits becomes much smoother. ETSU, for example, has agreements with many community colleges in Tennessee and several surrounding states .
4. Request a Pre-Evaluation
Some universities offer a preliminary transfer credit evaluation before you even apply . This is a powerful tool that can give you a realistic estimate of how many credits will count toward your specific degree, helping you make a more informed choice about where to apply. “A school that accepts 90 credits is better than a flashy name that only takes 24” .
5. Understand the Fine Print
Be aware of potential catches:
- Residency Requirements: Some schools still require a certain number of “in-house” credits, even with a full JST review .
- Program Caps: Some majors, like nursing or teaching, may have stricter limits on what transfer credits they will accept for their core requirements .
- New Training: If you finished new training, pull a fresh JST. “New ACE entries can appear after you complete another block of training, and old copies do not update themselves” .
Conclusion
Transferring credits to an online degree program is about strategic planning. By choosing a transfer-friendly university, understanding its caps and policies, and maximizing credit for prior learning—whether from prior college work, military service, or professional experience—you can significantly reduce the time and cost of earning your degree. Do your research, request pre-evaluations, and take control of your educational journey.