APEL A vs APEL C: What’s the Difference?

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26 Feb 2026

6 Min Read

The Taylor's Team (Editor)
IN THIS ARTICLE

If you have spent years building your career without completing a formal degree, the question may have surfaced more than once: did you miss your opportunity?

 

Today, you may be leading teams, managing operations, solving complex problems and making decisions that carry real consequences. Your experience is substantial and your capability proven. Yet when it comes to further study, career progression or professional mobility, one requirement may continue to surface: formal academic qualification.

 

In exploring your options, you may have come across the term APEL. But what does it actually mean? More importantly, what is the difference between the two?

What Is APEL and What Does It Actually Recognise?

APEL stands for Accreditation of Prior Experiential Learning. It is a formal assessment pathway recognised by the Malaysian Qualifications Agency (MQA) that allows individuals to use prior learning gained through work and life experience as a basis for academic recognition.

 

In practical terms, APEL provides a structured mechanism to evaluate knowledge and competencies acquired outside traditional classroom settings. This includes learning developed through employment, professional responsibilities, industry certifications, workplace training and other forms of informal or non-formal development.

DBA student in the class

Over the course of your professional life, you may have built analytical judgement, operational insight, strategic thinking, technical expertise or leadership capability. These are not simply workplace functions; they represent accumulated knowledge and applied learning. The purpose of APEL is to assess whether that learning meets the standards expected within higher education.

 

The assessment process is systematic and evidence-based. You are required to document your experiential learning and demonstrate how it aligns with clearly defined academic outcomes. Depending on the pathway, this may involve aptitude tests, portfolio submissions, interviews or challenge assessments. The emphasis is not on how long you have worked, but on whether what you have learned can withstand formal academic evaluation.

 

With this foundation in place, it becomes clearer why APEL is structured into two distinct pathways: APEL A and APEL C — each designed for a different stage of your academic journey.

What Is APEL A?

APEL A, or APEL for Access, is designed for working adults who wish to pursue a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree but do not meet conventional academic entry requirements. It provides an alternative admission pathway if your professional experience is substantial, yet your formal qualifications do not align with standard entry criteria.

 

For Bachelor’s degree entry, you must be a Malaysian citizen aged at least 21 in the year of application and possess relevant work experience. For Master’s degree entry, you must be a Malaysian citizen aged 30 and above, hold at least STPM, a Diploma or an equivalent qualification, and demonstrate relevant professional experience. Relevant work experience will be calculated starting from the minimum age of 18 years. These criteria ensure that you have both the maturity and foundational readiness required for advanced study.

Taylor's PPE student

Meeting these requirements does not automatically guarantee admission, as APEL A involves a structured assessment process to determine your academic readiness.

 

You will be required to sit for an aptitude test that evaluates language proficiency, numerical literacy, critical thinking and digital literacy. In addition, you must prepare a portfolio documenting your prior experiential learning and demonstrate how it aligns with the intended learning outcomes of the programme you wish to enter. If you are applying at Master’s level, an interview component will also form part of the evaluation.

 

Each assessment element carries specific weightage, and you must achieve at least 50 percent in every component to pass. Upon successful completion, the Malaysian Qualifications Agency confers an APEL A certificate, enabling you to enrol in the approved programme at the designated institution. The APEL A certificate is valid for five years from the date of issuance. If the certificate expires before enrolment, you may submit a new application for reassessment in accordance with the prevailing guidelines.

 

It is important to understand the scope of APEL A clearly. It does not shorten your degree and it does not grant subject exemptions. Its purpose is singular: it converts demonstrated professional competence into formal academic eligibility.

What Is APEL C?

APEL C, or APEL for Credit Award, is designed for students who are already enrolled in an accredited programme and wish to obtain credit exemptions for specific modules. Instead of assessing your eligibility for entry, APEL C evaluates whether your prior experiential learning is equivalent to the learning outcomes of particular subjects within your degree.

 

Unlike APEL A, APEL C is open to both Malaysians and non-Malaysians, provided you are a registered student in the applicable programme. To apply, you must demonstrate that your prior informal or non-formal learning directly aligns with the module for which you are seeking credit.

 

The assessment process may take the form of a challenge test or a portfolio submission. A challenge test is a proctored evaluation designed to determine whether you have achieved the intended module learning outcomes. Depending on the discipline, this may involve written assessments, oral examinations or performance-based evaluations. Alternatively, you may be required to prepare a portfolio that documents and evidences your relevant professional experience in relation to the specific module.

Industry partnership in Taylor's University

To be awarded credit, you must achieve at least 50 percent of each module’s learning outcomes. The maximum credit transfer permitted under APEL C is 30 percent of the minimum graduating credits for your programme. Awarded credits will appear on your transcript as credit transfer and will not contribute to your CGPA.

 

It is important to recognise the limits of APEL C. It does not replace your degree, and it does not remove core academic requirements such as final-year projects or dissertations where applicable. Its purpose is to prevent duplication. If you have already achieved equivalent learning through professional experience, APEL C allows that achievement to be formally acknowledged within your academic journey.

 

For working adults balancing career and study, this can translate into reduced study load, more efficient progression and better alignment between your professional background and academic pathway.

Which One Applies to You?

The difference between APEL A and APEL C is not about which pathway is better. It is about where you currently stand in your academic journey.

 

 

For APEL A
 

You should consider APEL A if you do not meet conventional academic entry requirements but possess substantial and relevant work experience. This pathway applies before you enrol in a programme. Its purpose is to determine whether your professional learning is equivalent to the qualifications typically required for admission. If you are seeking entry into a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree and your formal academic background does not align with standard criteria, APEL A provides a structured route to demonstrate readiness and gain access.

Taylor's lakeside campus
For APEL C
 

You should consider APEL C if you are already enrolled in a programme and believe that your prior professional experience aligns with specific modules within your course. This pathway applies after admission. Its purpose is not to grant entry, but to evaluate whether certain subjects can be exempted because you have already achieved equivalent learning outcomes. If you want to avoid repeating content you have effectively mastered through work, APEL C allows that expertise to be formally assessed and potentially credited.

 

In simple terms, APEL A helps you begin your academic journey, while APEL C helps you optimise it. Understanding this distinction ensures that you choose the pathway that matches your current position and your intended outcome.

Turning Experience into Your Next Qualification

Your professional experience represents more than years in the workforce. It reflects accumulated knowledge, refined judgement and capabilities developed through sustained responsibility. APEL ensures that this learning does not remain informal. Whether through APEL A or APEL C, your experience can be formally evaluated against academic standards and recognised within a structured higher education framework.

Ready to Take the Next Step?

 

At Taylor’s University, APEL A and C provides access to 35 undergraduate and postgraduate programmes, giving working adults a recognised pathway into higher education based on experience, not just formal qualifications.

 

If you are unsure whether APEL A or APEL C applies to you, speak to our Education Counsellors today. They can guide you through eligibility requirements, assessment components and the most strategic route for your goals.
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