The PhD by APEL (Accreditation Prior Experiential learning)

The Philosophy Doctor (PhD) represents the highest level of academic specialization for a single discipline. Through research work, candidates acquire a high specialization of knowledge and specific experiences that precisely culminates in the final Doctorate thesis. The award of the PhD is based on the evaluation of the thesis content and its structure.

There are some universities that allow the transfer of professional credits from the same academic branch up to a certain extent for the purpose of final evaluation. This allows some facilitation for the achievement of the final credits required for the PhD, which is usually 65. This assessment method answers to the acronym APEL (Accreditation Prior Experiential Learning). It is a flexible method of study that takes into account students' previous activities, general and professional skills and general curriculum. In this way, credits from private education, professional, cultural, scientific activities etc. are validated.  Usually, this method is used by distance learning universities considering the advantage of being more affordable for the students. If you want to take advantage of the APEL methodology, look for the right university. 

Remember that the decision to undertake a PhD involves the same steps as any other career decision: you need to inform yourself as much as possible about what a PhD really entails, considering whether it corresponds to your passions, whether it will be really useful to you and your career progression.