Online Courses before Gra.duating from High School

Another Question....


Are there any programs that would alow someone to take courses for college credit before one graduates from high school. I am asking specifically for my son so as to help him get a "heads up" when he enters college in 2 years (and to save me some money as well).

Any feedback will be appreciated.


Thanks.

 

It's been awhile since I've looked at undergrad courses, but I don't recall any school having a rule that you had to be a HS grad to enroll.

Probably the cheapest & fastest way to earn college credit is through CLEP and DANTES exams. I wish that I knew about them when I was in HS.


Bruce

 

In California, any high school student in good standing, with an approval from their high school can go to any community college for free in the state. This includes online classes. I think they only allow them to take general ed, but it is a good start.

 

I have seen some schools require a high school diploma. Mine did not.

At university I knew a couple people who did not have enough BS high school courses to graduate but had the specific courses required for admission.

I have yet to see a framed high school diploma but maybe there are some out there.

 

Gina,

There are a number of programs that enable college credit to be earned while in high school. IB, AP, CLEP, Early Enrollment, and Dual Enrollment are some of the programs that come to mind. Early and Dual Enrollment, however, are predicated upon agreement between the high school (or school district) and the college. In Florida, we have a number of school districts and colleges with agreements.

Absent of such programs, another option is to simply take college level courses from a community college. Many community colleges will allow the student to take courses and place his or her credits in escrow until graduating from high school. After graduation and being fully matriculated in the respective college, the escrow credits are awarded under the student's degree program.

The above programs worked well for my son.... see the following thread under the Off-topic section for further discussion:

Student graduates from Excelsior two weeks before he graduates from High School

http://forums.degreeinfo.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8754

Be prepared to research the programs in advance (generally the school catalog is a good source) and explain such programs to the student advisors. During the discovery process with my son, many of the advisors were unaware or largely unfamiliar with their school's programs and guidelines. Accordingly, much explaining and pointing to the documented material was required.

I hope this helps.

Tom

 

Re: Re: Online Courses before Gra.duating from High School

Thank you exeryone for your posts! You have really inspired me (and my son) for persuing this further. Tom, the story about you son really is absolutely wonderful! Good Luck to you and him in all his endeavors. I would really be proud as well.

Tom..you mentioned to be prepared to research programs and deal with student advisors on this matter. My son is in a Catholic High School and I am not sure they would follow some of the same guidelines as NY Public Schoolds would. Any advice

 

Re: Re: Re: Online Courses before Gra.duating from High School

Probably the best way to determine what programs might exist through the Catholic High School is to directly speak with several of the advisors. Perhaps they have some form of agreement with area colleges or have programs such as IB or AP.

It is a good idea to review the catalogs from area community colleges and see what programs they have available. Pay close attention to any material that discusses matriculation requirements and escrow credit. From my experience, community colleges tend to be the more accommodating and have less stringent enrollment policies than many colleges and universities.

Assuming that the Catholic High School your son attends is as rigorous as many that I've heard about, your son would probably do well in taking a series of the CLEP exams near the end of his senior year. Generally, a student with good grades from a quality high school can CLEP out of a number of general education course such as math, English, science and foreign language. It is common to test out of at least 9 to 18 credit hours.

Of course, you cannot be awarded additional CLEP credit for courses already taken at the college level. Therefore, be sure to coordinate the courses your son would like to take at the college and course he intends to CLEP.

I'm not familiar with the programs at TESC; however, it appears that they allow high school students to enroll and earn significant credit by examination, and by taking courses. Since TESC is RA, I assume that most, if not all, of the credits would be accepted by a local community college, or a number of other area colleges and universities for that matter. Perhaps others out there with better knowledge of the TESC can offer additional insight.

The bottom line is that there are many ways to earn college credit while in high school. Accordingly, your son has a great opportunity to get an early start on his college degree program.

Give him my best wishes... I'm sure he will do great.

Tom