05 January, 2023

In November 2022, the Extended Campus team took home an Award for ‘Adult Education – Workplace Learning Award’ as part of Cork’s Lifelong Learning Festival for the consistent support put in for the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

The RPL workshops delivered through the Covid pandemic provided accessible information through online workshops as learners engaged with the university, to organise their RPL applications.

Workshops were extended to those seeking opportunities to re-engage with MTU. Queries received spanned from those seeking to return to higher education to full-time and part-time programmes, including those seeking Springboard + programmes and to those who were displaced because of the war in Ukraine. Learners were also seeking to re-engage with higher education because of the continuing pandemic, and their increasing vulnerability as employees which made them seek information about MTU, its programmes, and the potential to have their prior learning recognised.

Learners received ongoing mentoring support to avail of non-standard and advanced entry opportunities across the disciplines. This enabled people to build on the learning they had already acquired through the workplace, or through voluntary activities and other relevant learning. In addition, MTU was able to formally acknowledge the prior learning of individuals through exemptions for individual modules, ensuring what was already known was formally included.

The workshops provided learners with comprehensive information about what was possible with RPL in an informal, responsive manner which is directly tailored to the individual and their circumstances. The driving principle behind the workshops was to provide basic information to all learners of the university about RPL and the possibility to attend higher education. it was important that all should understand the opportunity to obtain formal recognition for learning already acquired thereby empowering to the citizen in recognising the extent of their learning achievements and how they can be valued within education.

Increasingly, the RPL workshops are witness to the importance of education in supporting learners so they can acquire the skills that will help their transitions to meaningful and worthwhile careers. In this, the opportunity to have any relevant prior learning be recognised in the context of an award in higher education is very valuable. Extended Campus is honoured to have driven this initiative and grateful for this award and all the opportunities to come with it.

#Lovetolearn

The Extended Campus Team