High School / Higher Ed Options Defined

Advanced Studies:

• All students enrolled in Advanced Studies classes are signed up for college credit.
  
  
• Advance Studies programs are designed for high-achieving students whose academic needs are not met in the traditional high school setting. 
  
  
• Classes are taught by qualified high school instructors or college instructors through college partnerships with the high school. 
  
  
• Aims Community College also offers CTE programs as Advanced Studies.

Advanced Placement (AP):

• AP classes are offered in about 62% of U.S. high schools today and are intended to be comparable to typical introductory college-level courses.
  
  
• Elective AP exams are offered by the College Board to assess student performance in specific subjects after course completion. 
  
  
• AP tests are scored on a numeric scale at, 1 to 5, with a score of 3 considered passing and the following general meanings:
  
  
• High school AP courses don't have to meet the college requirement requiring faculty to hold a master's degree or a minimum of 18 graduate-level hours in the subject he/she teaches.
  
  
• Students must petition a post secondary institution to accept AP credit. 

Articulation:

• High school departments are required by Perkins guidelines to seek out articulations or pathways for their students with institutions of higher education.  Once a high school forms an articulation, articulated high school courses can be documented as transfer credit to the postsecondary institution.  The student will not need to repeat a course taken at the high school that has been approved by an articulation agreement.  
  
  
• Students need to petition the college for acceptance of articulated classes and follow the guidelines for acceptance set up in the receiving schools articulation agreements.    

Concurrent Enrollment

Concurrent enrollment is when a high school student enrolls in a college course for college credit only.

Dual Credit

By participating in the dual credit program, students can make substantial progress toward their college degree before finishing high school.

• A dual credit course is a college course taken by a high school student for which the student earns both college and high school credit at the same time.
  
  
• Some courses are taught at the high school campus during high school hours while others are taught at the College during the day, evenings, or weekends.
  
  
• Students do not have to sign up for college credit if taking the course on their high school campus.
• How is Dual Credit different from high school AP courses? Both courses are taught at the college level, but by participating in a dual credit class you get college credit immediately upon successful completion of the course. In an AP course, you must pass the end-of-course exam to be eligible to apply for college credit once you graduated from high school. Usually, a student who took an AP course while in high school and passed the end-of-course exam must petition the college after attending one semester to accept the AP course as college credit. In most cases, the college will accept it for college credit. The bottom line is you don't have to wait to be awarded college credit and it applies toward the High School Early Graduation Scholarship Award.
  
  Another difference is that dual credit course are taught by faculty who hold at least a master's degree with a minimum of 18 graduate-level hours in the subject he/she teaches. High school AP courses don't have to meet this requirement.

• What is the difference between Dual Credit and Concurrent Enrollment?

Both programs are for high school junior and senior-level students desiring to attend college while in high school. Dual credit enables a student to earn both college and high school credit at the same time. Concurrent enrollment is when a student enrolls in a college course for college credit only.

Fact College Fast Jobs: (FCFJ is like a 5 year PSEO*)

This program enables students enrolled in “Target High Schools” to receive a high school diploma and an associate’s degree or a career and technical education certificate or degree within five years.

“Target School means”

• A public high school that serves grades 9-12 that:
• Offered a dual degree program through a contract with a community college within 2 years preceding FY2006-07.
• Had a graduation rate of less than 75% for FY2004-05, as reported by CDE.

Student who chooses to participate must:

• Begin the program in the 9th grade.
  
  
• Take a prescribed schedule of high school courses and higher education courses with a sufficient number of credits to ensure the student earns a high school diploma and an Associate’s Degree or a Career and Technical Education Certificate in 5 years.
  
  
• Maintain a minimum 2.0 grade point average for each semester of participation in the program.
  
  
• Additional participation requirements deemed appropriate by District (i.e. year-round classes and parental participation.)
  
  
• Students in 9th or 10th grade may enroll only in accordance with any age-waiver procedures the institution may have in place.
  
  
• Student is not eligible to receive a stipend from the College Opportunity Fund Program pursuant to Article 18 of Title 23.

International Baccalaureate:  (IB) Diploma Program

The International Baccalaureate intent is to provide schools with a curriculum which would be universally acceptable to all institutions of higher learning throughout the world.

PSEO: (Post Secondary Enrollment Options)

PSEO is a funding mechanism that allows high school students to attend classes at a post secondary institution:

• 11th and 12th grade students are eligible to take a course not offered at their high school. (They have two years of eligibility.)
• only courses that fulfill high school graduation requirements are eligible for tuition payment from school district funds.
• if eligible for high school credit, the grade earned for the college course will be calculated into the high school grade point average.
• Students receive high school credit for college courses and, if students continue their education beyond high school, colleges or universities transfer their completed coursework in as college credits.