In today’s post, I want to feature CCU’s online dual enrollment program – some of the pros and cons as shared with me by a Homeschooling for College Credit parent whose daughter just finished an Associate of Arts degree through their program!
I keep a long list of dual enrollment opportunities on the Homeschooling for College Credit website. If you’re looking for schools to consider, check out the full list: HS4CC Dual Enrollment List for 2021. It includes both religious and secular options.
Featured School: Colorado Christian University (Colorado)
Type of school: private 4-year Christian university
Accreditation: CCU is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and also accredited by Council of Christian Colleges and Universities.
Program name for high school students: Online Dual Enrollment
Note: They offer a different program called Dual Credit, but that program is for local public high school students attending in person- the website covers both so be careful not to mix them up since they are very different!!
Cost $100 per credit College courses typically range from 3-4 credits which makes the cost per course approximately $300-$400.
Courses / Degree: CCU offers an Associate degree track that allows high school students to earn an associate degree through their program. An added bonus is that students to transfer in up to 75% of the credits (45 of 60). Their website identifies that they accept AP exam scores of 4+, but according to HS4CC parent Brenda (see below) they also allow you to bring in CLEP and Sophia courses!
Special THANK YOU to HS4CC parent Brenda B. for her detailed feedback on the courses and associate degree completion details that she went through with her daughter.
The following personal feedback is cut/copied/pasted and shared here to help parents weigh their options if they are considering CCU. My comments are in orange italics.
“All CLEP credits only count for 3 credits, no exceptions. English Composition CLEP with Essay, Natural Science, and College Mathematics were counted as 3 credits each.”
Jennifer: Colleges often award 6 credits for those exams so this is a bummer for those with several 6-credit exams.
“All Sophia Credits counted, which is great.”
Jennifer: CCU does not have a formal partnership with Sophia, and there aren’t hints that they accept Sophia on their website. The acceptance of Sophia credit should encourage parents to also consider sending credit earned from similar ACE companies for evaluation (Studycom, Straighterline, and Saylor Academy. These courses/credits can be considerably cheaper than the courses, allowing you to save a significant amount of money over rack rate tuition.
“She had to petition many prior learning credits to apply towards her A.A, sometimes more than one time. This process is not for the easily discouraged.”
Jennifer: The reason a parents must push for outside courses/credits to be evaluated is that colleges are not always motivated to do this for you. In this case, the difference was thousands of dollars, so absolutely worth it!! In my experience, colleges are always much better at getting you in and keeping you in than they are at helping you get out!
“My recommendation would be for a student to ask for an evaluation along the way. I don’t believe they will give it upfront from our experience.”
Jennifer: This is wise advice!! Every time a student completes a course(s) their transcript will be updated and their degree progress will adjust. Keeping a watchful eye over this assures that you’ll catch any mistakes along the way.
Brenda’s Suggested Plan
Step 1: Take 4 courses from CCU. (12 credits)
Step 2: Have an evaluation to see where everything fits and what requirements remain.
Step 3: Use Sophia, CLEP, and DSST to fill any missing requirements. (about 45 credits) Don’t be afraid to petition courses that should fulfill their A.A. requirements.
Step 4: Take final course from CCU. (3 credits)
Step 5: Graduate!
Degree Cost Breakdown: $2,000
Our total cost paid to CCU was $1500 (15 credits x $100 per credit)
Textbooks were less than $100 for 15 credits. Their textbooks are extremely reasonable. Many can be purchased on Amazon.
We paid about $500 for the 45 credits consisting of CLEP, DSST, and Sophia. It would be even cheaper now.
Jennifer: Currently any CLEP exam can be done for $0, but DSSTs are about $100 and Sophia courses average between $40-$80-$120 based on how fast you complete them..
Final Thoughts
“My daughter received an A.A. from CCU’s online dual enrollment program. Hopefully over time the process will be easier for others. Still I am thankful for the inexpensive Dual Enrollment courses from a Biblical Worldview. It was a good experience and I would still recommend it even with the hurdles we had to jump.”
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