Dual Enrollment: Double Credit, Half the Time

BY MICHELLE BUSH

High school students can get a jump-start on their college education and career training through Georgia’s dual-enrollment program, which gives them the opportunity to maximize their education by taking courses that earn college credit and high school credit at the same time. They can enroll as a dualenrollment student on a part-time or full-time basis and take courses on a college campus. Some of the college-level courses also might be available online, on the high school campus or at local college and career academies.

Students enrolled in the program can choose from a wide variety of courses. Among them are core academic college-freshman courses in English, math, science, social sciences and world languages that transfer easily from technical colleges to four-year University System of Georgia institutions. Students also can choose career, technical and agricultural education courses that align to a Georgia Department of Education career cluster and pathway.

Another great thing about the program is state dual-enrollment funds cover the cost of tuition for the first 30 credit hours. The dualenrollment course directory (https://bit.ly/3Zz26K0) provides a list of all approved courses at participating post-secondary institutions that are eligible for dual-enrollment funding.

Dual-enrollment students can thrive from being a welcome part of a college community and experiencing the state-of-the- art college labs and classrooms. The program is proven to enhance student engagement and improve graduation rates for high school students. It also contributes to preparing a skilled workforce for Georgia by increasing career and post-secondary educational opportunities for students.

Students, parents and school counselors should decide together whether dual enrollment is a good fit. To participate in the program, high school students must apply for admission to a participating college or university. After applying, students can complete the dual-enrollment funding application, which is available on the gafutures.org website. A student’s individual high school or school system also might have its own deadlines for the dual-enrollment process. Students who are interested in the program are encouraged to talk with their high school counselor as early as possible in order to meet all application deadlines.