Policies

Course Requirements The student is required to complete the sequence of courses as outlined by the curriculum pathway. Transfer of Nursing Credit Students seeking to transfer credit from nursing programs at other institutions will be considered on an individual basis.

You will receive a notification informing you of all transfer credits applied to your program. If you are transferring to MECC from another place of training, or you have not been enrolled for at least one year, a Request for Change of Program/Place of Training will be required.

Credit for Prior Learning through an administrative determination by faculty of the college or by a college-approved learning assessment service that the occupational experience of an individual is at least equivalent to the course(s) to be exempted. Credit by be awarded based upon an individualized portfolio evaluation, which may be conducted by faculty at the individual colleges or by using the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning’s (CAEL) guidelines, and/or CAEL’s LearningCounts.org prior learning assessment service. Credit may be granted for prior learning for non-collegiate education, training, and/or occupational experiences as recommended by college faculty, the American Council on Education (ACE), the National College Credit Recommendation Service, or another college-approved organization. In addition to the above, each college shall develop procedures for the award of academic credit to any enrolled student who has successfully completed a military training course or program as part of the student’s military service that is applicable to the certificate or degrees requirements and is: Recommended for academic credit by the national higher education association that programs academic credit recommendations for military training courses or programs: Noted on the student’s military transcript issued by any of the armed forces of the United States; or Otherwise documented in writing by any of the armed forces of the United States. The procedures for awarding credit through Advanced Standing are as follows: The determination of such credit must be made by qualified faculty members at the institution or according to procedures and standards approved by qualified faculty ensuring that assessment procedures are appropriate for the credit awarded. If documentation and interviews are used in lieu of examinations, the institution must demonstrate that these methods provide assurances of academic comparability to credit earned by traditional means. At least 25 percent of the credit hours required for an undergraduate degree are earned through credit instruction offered by the institution awarding the degree. Students having reason to believe that previous educational studies, training programs, or work experience may entitle them to an adjustment in the required courses in a particular curriculum, should contact their academic advisor or the appropriate faculty member to determine procedures before registering for classes and to complete the appropriate documentation. A student who is currently enrolled in a class and wishes to apply for advanced standing must complete the process and drop the class within the add/drop period. General Examinations CLEP Score CR. Course Equivalent Business Information Systems & Computer Applications 50 3 ITE 119 Introductory Business Law 50 3 BUS 241 Principles of Management 50 3 BUS 200 Principles of Marketing 50 3 MKT 100 Composition and Literature American Literature 50 3 ENG 241 Analyzing and Interpreting Literature 50 3 ENG 125 College Composition 50 6 ENG 111 & ENG 112 English Literature 50 3 ENG 243 World Languages French Language (Level I) 50 6 FRE 101 & FRE 102 French Language (Level 2) 59 9 FRE 101 , FRE 102 & 201 German Language (Level 1) 50 6 GER 101 & GER 102 German Language (Level 2) 60 9 GER 101 , GER 102 , & 201 Spanish Language (Level 1) 50 6 SPA 101 & SPA 102 Spanish Language (Level 2) 63 9 SPA 101 , SPA 102 , & SPA 201 Level 1 - Equivalent to the first two semesters (or six semester hours) of college level foreign language coursework. Level 2 - Equivalent to the first three semesters (or nine semester hours) of college level foreign language coursework. History and Social Sciences American Government 50 3 PLS 135 History of the United States I: Early Colonization to 1877 50 3 HIS 121 History of the United States II: 1865 to Present 50 3 HIS 122 Human Growth & Development 50 3 PSY 230 Introductory Psychology 50 3 PSY 200 Introductory Sociology 50 3 SOC 200 Principles of Macroeconomics 50 3 ECO 201 Principles of Microeconomics 50 3 ECO 202 Western Civilization I: Ancient Near East to 1648 50 3 HIS 101 Western Civilization II: 1648 to Present 50 3 HIS 102 Science and Mathematics Biology 50 6 * BIO 101 & BIO 102 Calculus 50 4 MTH 263 Chemistry 50 6 * CHM 111 & CHM 112 College Algebra 50 3 MTH 161 College Mathematics 50 3 MTH 154 Pre-Calculus 50 3 MTH 162 The scores and credit hours that appear in this table are the credit-granting scores and semester hours recommended by the American Council on Education (ACE). The scores listed above are equivalent to the grade of a C in the corresponding course. Note: Students planning a transfer to another college or university are responsible for determining if that institution will accept CLEP credit. *No credit is awarded for laboratory component. Effective June, 2018

Students who do not meet SAP standards may be considered for institutional and/or foundational funds on an individual basis. Attempted credits from all enrollment periods at the College plus all accepted transfer credits are counted; whether or not the student received financial aid for those terms is of no consequence. Transfer Students: Transfer credits officially accepted by the College will be counted in determining the maximum number of allowable credit hours for financial aid eligibility. Transfer credits are excluded.

(International students requiring issuance of an I-20 or students receiving Federal or State aid are not eligible for these categories): Upgrading employment skills for present job Developing skills for new job Career exploration Personal satisfaction and general knowledge Transient student (student who maintains primary enrollment with another postsecondary institution and elects to enroll in the VCCS) High school student dual enrollment or dual credit Auditing a course Students desiring to attend a course without taking the examination or receiving credit for the course may do so by registering to audit through the registration process and paying the normal tuition. Advanced standing credit should not be awarded for a previously audited course.

For non-credit class enrollment, visit the Workforce Solutions web page at https://www.mecc.edu/workforce-solutions Admission Requirements Individuals are eligible for admission to the community college if they are high school graduates or the equivalent, or if they are eighteen years of age or older and able to benefit academically from study at the community college, as demonstrated by assessment in reading, writing, and mathematics. High School Graduates: less than 6 years since graduation Students who graduated from high school or the equivalent less than six years before enrolling at a VCCS college shall be placed into college level English and mathematics courses using the following means and measures: a) Any student who has earned an associate degree or higher or who has earned a C or better in college-level courses in math and/or English at a VCCS college or another institution will be considered ready for college level English and math courses provided they meet the prerequisites for the respective courses in their chosen program of study. Formal approval by the college president, or designee, is required for applicants who are below the junior or senior high school level to participate in dual enrollment. Transfer Students Normally, transfer students who are eligible for reentrance at the last college of attendance are also eligible for admission to Mountain Empire Community College. Transfer students who are ineligible to return to a particular curriculum in a previous college generally may not be allowed to enroll in the same curriculum in the community college until one semester elapses or until an approved preparatory program at the College is completed. The document required for acceptance of transfer credit from other institutions is an official transcript of all postsecondary credits previously earned. Credit from non-regionally accredited colleges and universities is evaluated based upon recommendations in Transfer Credit Practices of Designated Educational Institutions published by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. The academic school dean in which the student is enrolled will determine how the evaluated transfer credit may be applied toward the student’s program of study.

If you served in the Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, or Navy) request your Joint Services Transcript at https://jst.doded.mil/jst/ . If you served in the Air Force, request your military transcripts through the Air Force Transcript Portal at https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Barnes/CCAF/Display/Article/803247/community-college-of-the-air-force-transcripts . As transcripts are submitted, transcripts will be reviewed, and credits will be applied to your program of choice. You will receive a notification informing you of all transfer credits applied to your program. If you have any questions regarding your qualifications for veterans benefits or to explore your options for maximum use, please call the Veterans Administration toll-free number at 1-888-442-4551 or visit the website www.benefits.va.gov/gibill . If you are transferring to MECC from another place of training, or you have not been enrolled for at least one year, a Request for Change of Program/Place of Training will be required.

Credit for Prior Learning Credit for prior learning is the administrative placement of a student that awards credit for subject matter competency based on previous academic study or acquired through nontraditional means. This may include, but is not limited to, college credit and advancement based upon the administration and evaluation of locally-developed examinations; individual college participation in nationally recognized standardization exams; experiential learning; and training provided by non-collegiate institutions, such as armed forces service schools. College credit is a means of achieving Credit for Prior Learning through an administrative determination by the college that equivalent course coverage has been satisfactorily completed at a regionally accredited postsecondary institution. Credit by Local Examination is a means of achieving Credit for Prior Learning through satisfactorily demonstrating subject-matter competency by means of an examination developed, and evaluated by College faculty. Credit by Standardized Examinations Credit by Standardized Examinations is a means of achieving Credit for Prior Learning through a nationally recognized or college-approved external agency. External examinations used for this purpose include but are not limited to the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), DANTES Subject Standardized Test (DSST), of the Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Educational Support (DANTES), Excelsior Credit by Exam (ECE), the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB), Advanced Placement (AP) program, Cambridge Advanced (A/AS) examinations, the International Baccalaureate (IB) program, and the Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT). The colleges assume no responsibility regarding the acceptance of Advanced Standing credit by other institutions to which the student may transfer.

Students who desire to earn credit for a previously audited course must re-enroll in the course for credit and pay normal tuition to earn a grade other than “X.” Advanced standing credit should not be awarded for a previously audited course.