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Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) are pairing up on a new bill that would pave a way for students to use financial aid to pay for prior learning assessments, a category of tests that grant college credit for learning outside a college setting, such as in a job.
Those tests usually cost money. The senators’ bill, the Credit for Prior Learning Act, would allow students to use up to $2,000 in federal financial aid to pay test fees. It was introduced at the end of June.
“The point of federal aid is to help hardworking and deserving American students overcome financial barriers to further their education — it’s common sense that they should be able to use that aid towards fees associated with credit for prior learning,” Sheehy said in a statement.
Klobuchar, who has sponsored a few other bipartisan bills in her Senate career related to non-traditional skills training, said the latest legislation is an effort to expand access to degrees for more workers.
“The bipartisan Credit for Prior Learning Act will ensure students receive credit for the experience and training they get outside of the classroom, so they can complete their degree faster and save on tuition.”
The bill is now under the purview of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, on which neither Klobuchar or Sheehy sit.
There is bipartisan interest in Congress in paths to the workforce other than a traditional four-year degree right after high school. And public opinion on the importance of traditional college has shifted as the cost of tuition and financial burden of loans have financially crippled many young workers in recent decades.
Only about a quarter of Americans surveyed by Pew Research Center in 2024 felt that a four-year college degree was extremely or very important to getting a well-paying job.
Prior learning assessments are helpful in particular for adults with job experience before they seek a college degree who want to convert their job skills into credit to speed up their degree, making it more affordable. Research has shown that adult students with prior learning assessment credits were much more likely to complete their degree than those without.
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