College credit for missionary work

[Calm]

I think it’s a brilliant idea, encourages kids to expand their lives beyond school.  Hopefully this becomes commonplace in universities.

https://www.ksl.com/article/51300131/university-of-utah-to-give-college-credit-for-missionary-military-or-humanitarian-service

Quote

SALT LAKE CITY — The University of Utah will soon be offering academic credit to returned missionaries, active duty military and veterans and other eligible students who have performed humanitarian service in their communities and beyond.

On Wednesday, the state's flagship university announced it would award credit hours for "prior learning and service" — helping students save money while accelerating their path to graduation.

University of Utah students can receive up to 12 hours — the equivalent of one semester — "for what they have already learned and put into practice across the globe, recognizing the value of prior learning experiences as an invaluable benefit to the university's campus community — and rewarding students for it," according to the school's announcement.

 

Edited April 24, 2025 by Calm

[Robert F. Smith]

Good idea, although the credit for  military service has long been available (I got several credits from BYU for my USMC service).  Looks like they may offer more credits now.

[Tacenda]

On 4/23/2025 at 9:59 PM, Calm said:

I think it’s a brilliant idea, encourages kids to expand their lives beyond school.  Hopefully this becomes commonplace in universities.

https://www.ksl.com/article/51300131/university-of-utah-to-give-college-credit-for-missionary-military-or-humanitarian-service

 

I like it too, especially the humanitarian parts. 

[Robert F. Smith]

11 hours ago, Tacenda said:

I like it too, especially the humanitarian parts. 

Yes.  It is possible to obtain credit for Peace Corps/VISTA service, https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED358765 .

By the way, the guy who first invented the Peace Corps was a Latter-day Saint -- the same guy who designed the post-WW II German Govt.

[Damien the Leper]

On 4/23/2025 at 8:59 PM, Calm said:

I think it’s a brilliant idea, encourages kids to expand their lives beyond school.  Hopefully this becomes commonplace in universities.

https://www.ksl.com/article/51300131/university-of-utah-to-give-college-credit-for-missionary-military-or-humanitarian-service

 

Will they also honor non-LDS missionary work?

[Calm]

35 minutes ago, Damien the Leper said:

Will they also honor non-LDS missionary work?

It’s University of Utah, so I would assume so.  They are a public university so must treat religions consistently.  And it is written generically:  “Students who served religious missions.”

I can see different amounts of credit being given based on how long and where any mission takes place.  Chartering a bus for a week or weekend to be driven over to Utah to protest a pageant, conference, temple open house or to use a protest at someone’s funeral for political or allegedly religious purposes*** isn’t likely going to get credit even if it’s labeled a mission. LDS missionaries who don’t learn a second language and whose mission isn’t significantly different than their home culture probably don’t get as many credits as those who have greater cultural and language experiences, but they would likely get credit for leadership skills and humanitarian if the mission gave them opportunities.
 

***an interesting article on how such protests were legally discouraged:  https://journals.law.harvard.edu/jol/2024/04/20/taking-on-the-military-funeral-protest-a-multifarious-statute-leans-in/

Edited April 26, 2025 by Calm

[JAHS]

"For example, a returned missionary might get 12 hours in, say, general education and then another 16 hours of credit in language. That's almost a year of credit," said Randall. 
For many students, that could translate into thousands of dollars in tuition savings."

After my mission I was able to get this credit by attending the third year German course and if I got at least a B grade I could simply pay a small fee for the other two years. 

[Rain]

36 minutes ago, JAHS said:

"For example, a returned missionary might get 12 hours in, say, general education and then another 16 hours of credit in language. That's almost a year of credit," said Randall. 
For many students, that could translate into thousands of dollars in tuition savings."

After my mission I was able to get this credit by attending the third year German course and if I got at least a B grade I could simply pay a small fee for the other two years. 

That's what I did with Spanish, except I learned it in high school.