The ACE Equivalency Exchange is an innovative credit for prior learning (CPL) equivalency directory designed to strengthen how CPL is understood, applied, and supported across higher education.
Credit for prior learning from workplace training or professional certifications saves learners time and money in attaining their degrees and creates flexible college pathways for adult learners. While many colleges accept CPL, reliable and accessible information about it isn’t widely available to learners, and the existing process is difficult to navigate. Some of the main challenges learners have described include a lack of transparency in the process and a lack of guaranteed credit acceptance.
The American Council on Education (ACE) is addressing this challenge by creating an opportunity for colleges and universities to publish their CPL transfer equivalencies, for free, through the
ACE National Guide and
Credential Registry, empowering learners with information about participating institutions that will honor their prior learning.
How it Works
Through a secure, standardized data exchange, this program enables ACE and partner institutions to work from shared evidence to better support adult learners and continuously improve CPL practices at scale. Participating institutions receive National Guide data via API and send credit award data back to ACE via API. ACE has received generous support from Walmart to scale these efforts and is inviting colleges and universities to be early adopters of the ACE Equivalency Exchange.