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Advantages of the Graduate ABLE Option | Assessment of Experience
Changing Admission Status | Degree Status
Documented Competency (DC) | Requirements
Financial Aid
Requirements
To be considered for admission to either M.A. degree through the ABLE option, students must:
- have completed at least two full years (60 semester units) of college credit, including the required general education transfer requirements (see page 6), and completion of high school or GED
- not have a Bachelor’s degree
- have ten or more years of leadership/professional-level work experience in a human services position, assuming increased responsibilities during this time and demonstrating the ability to function effectively in a complex setting
- demonstrate clear-cut ability to provide leadership to a professional field, and/or peers, and/or community
- have the ability to conceptualize and theorize about their work and their understanding of human development and to communicate this conceptualization
Students are admitted provisionally by interview. They will be considered for full admission upon successful completion of the one-unit Assessment of Experience class and all general education requirements.
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Assessment of Experience
Assessment of Experience must be taken during the first semester in which it is offered following provisional admission. Students not completing the Assessment class may not enroll in further Pacific Oaks course work until the class is completed unless they change to B.A. traditional admission. Students admitted to the M.A. program through the ABLE option document 30 upper division undergraduate units through the assessment process.
In HD 698, the Assessment of Experience course, students document that their life/work experience has given them knowledge and skills equivalent to a B.A. in Human Development from Pacific Oaks. Competencies to be demonstrated in the Assessment of Experience class include:
- DC 401 Early Years Theory
- DC 402 Later Years Theory
- DC 403 Constraints on Human Development
- DC 404 Work with Behavioral Data
- DC 405 Sensory Experiences
- DC 406 Working with Adults
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Documented Competency (DC)
Documented Competency (DC) units must be paid for by the completion of the Assessment of Experience class or according to a prearranged payment plan in order to enroll for the following term. Documented Competencies will appear as units on the student’s transcript.
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Changing Admission Status
Changing Admission status from B.A. ABLE to M.A. ABLE or to traditional admission requires consent of the ABLE Coordinator and a Change of Admission Status form filed with the Admission Office. Since this may affect the financial aid award, any student considering such a switch must talk with a Financial Aid counselor before initiating any change.
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Degree Status
Students do not earn a B.A. degree. The degree requirement is waived on the basis of documented experience, and the student is admitted directly into graduate standing.
The total number of units that a student admitted through ABLE must complete at Pacific Oaks to earn a graduate degree is determined by the following formula:
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# of Units Transferred to Pacific Oaks
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Minimum # of Units to Complete at Pacific Oaks*
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60
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42
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80
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39
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100
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36
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120 or more
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33
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*Completion of the M.A. in Marriage and Family Therapy degree program will require a minimum of 50 units of course work.
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Required graduate units include one unit for the Assessment of Experience class. Students follow curriculum requirements for the M.A. degrees and specializations in which they are enrolled.
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Financial Aid
Since Assessment of Experience counts as 1 unit toward the BA, students applying for financial aid may not be eligible for aid during their first semester. Financial aid will be granted for regular classes, including the Assessment class, but not for payment of the documented units (BA equivalency) in the Assessment class. A student applying for financial aid should consult with both advisor and financial aid counselor.
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