Admissions Process for Part-Time Study
All part-time undergraduate students must apply through Undergraduate Admissions.
New students should follow these easy steps to become part-time students at Sacred Heart University:
Create an account, complete an internal online application and make an appointment to meet with a part-time admissions counselor. The application form is available online at Apply Now. If an individual is a first-time student, they must submit a high school transcript. Candidates who have engaged in college level coursework should submit a copy of their college transcript(s) to Undergraduate Admissions.
Unofficial transcripts can be emailed to enroll@sacredheart.edu A final official transcript must be submitted to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions for credit evaluation and inclusion in the student’s academic record. Part-time students may register for up to 11 credits.
Candidates applying to the Associate of Science in Radiography or Associate of Science in Nursing should refer to the following link for a list of the most updated requirements:
https://www.sacredheart.edu/admissions--aid/undergraduate-admissions/part-time-admission/associate-degree-admission//.
All admissions requirements must be fulfilled prior to being awarded financial assistance. All students taking courses on campus must be in compliance with state law before registering. For information regarding immunization requirements, contact the University’s Health Services Office at 203-371-7838 or visit the Health Services website: Health Services.
College Credit by Examination—National Testing Programs
EXCELSIOR, CLEP, and DANTES
These are national programs awarding college credit by examination.
The University may award credit for CLEP, DANTES, and certain EXCELSIOR exams. Accapetance of credit may be at the discretion of the program. College credit is awarded when a student successfully passes an exam. Credit is awarded only in areas where the student does not have prior credit applied toward a degree.
Students may not take exams in a graduating semester.
Assessment of Prior Learning Program
Recognizing that higher education also occurs outside the classroom, the University may award academic credit to students for what they have learned through life and/or work experience in very exceptional circumstances. This experience can be the result of self-education, professional certification, in-service training programs, volunteer work, or management work.
In order to apply for credit, the student must be enrolled at the University in the semester in which the portfolio is submitted. Credit is awarded only for experience that is comparable to the University’s courses and programs. This credit can be used in the core curriculum, in the major, or as free electives as long as the student completes at least 30 credit hours in the classroom, with half of the required major courses taken in the classroom at Sacred Heart University. No more than 60 credits can be awarded for prior learning and CLEP, DANTES, and EXCELSIOR combined. Credit for prior learning is not awarded in areas where national testing programs are applicable.
For this process of Prior Learning Assessment (PLA), Sacred Heart University recommends the PLA program at Charter Oak State College from which SHU accepts transfer credits.
The process includes enrolling in a portfolio course that is designed to help students analyze their experience, relate it to specific college courses, determine what the learning objectives and/or topics covered in the course would be, and choose appropriate supporting documentation. It guides students through the process of constructing a résumé, identifying areas where they have college-level knowledge, writing a biographical overview of their relevant background, analyzing course knowledge components, and completing a narrative essay that will do the following:
- Describe what the student knows
- Relate that knowledge to every course knowledge component that the student has identified
- Specify when, where, and how the student acquired that knowledge
- Present each piece of supporting documentation and describe how it supports the student’s claim to knowledge
A portfolio(s) is then submitted for evaluation. Credits earned can then be transferred to SHU.
For additional information on the Assessment of Prior Learning program, contact Undergraduate Part-Time Admissions.