Getting College Credits during High School

This week, AP test results were released. Since the SAT subject test was abolished, the importance of AP subject tests became more critical. How should students approach AP subjects? First of all, AP courses are college-level courses that high school students can take. Each school and grade level has different qualifications and regularations for taking AP subjects. There are many students who said they were disappointed because they could not take the AP course they were planning to take.

If you are unable to take an AP course at school for any reason, it is a good idea to plan another way to earn college credit.

Many high schools offer a program called “Duel Credit” or “Duel Enrollment” in which college instructors, not the school teachers, come to high school to teach. Most of the courses are offered under a partnership agreement with a community college or an accredited educational institution in the school district you attend.  If a student selects and takes a course that suits his/her academic interest, not only will he/she earn high school graduation credits, but he will also be able to earn college credits at the same time.

There are also college-level courses that community colleges offer for high school students, called “Concurrent Enrollment,” so high school students can take college courses with the approval of their school counselor without too much regulations. This program does not take place at the high school the student attends, and it is a bit difficult to go to a nearby community college after high school classes, but there are also many online courses available these days, so students can take those courses online without having to go to the college classroom.  This program gives students a much wider range of subjects to choose from, so they can enroll precisely according to their interests, and it is easy to take multiple subjects.

AP courses are not the only indications of a student’s academic interest and competency. When you encounter a challenges, there are many ways to make up the AP courses and AP tests.