Category: HS4CC

woman in pink sweater using laptop

NEWS: HS4CC Beta Testers Needed!

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

A pre-announcement! I’ve been given 200 “seats” to offer to the HS4CC community from a regionally accredited college in California as part of their beta test! Guess what? These classes will be LIVE! And FREE for this community only!

The details are coming this month, but here are a few details:

The college is regionally accredited and has never offered dual enrollment before- we are their testers.

The classes will have a LIVE (synchronous) model for online learning. The student would need to log in at specific times for this class.

The HS4CC community is often invited to beta test for colleges and businesses, so if you’ve ever done this with us before, you know how rewarding it is to be part of the building process. Your teen may be asked for their feedback, and it’s a fun way to get “paid” for your participation by being given free tuition!

Students in 12th grade will get priority and are their preference, but was told that 11th graders would be considered.

Students will choose 1 of the following 3-credit college classes for dual enrollment:

  • Marketing
  • Entrepreneurship
  • American Politics & Government

The enrollment period will open next week and run through December 31st. Classes will start on January 17th and run for 11 weeks. *high school transcript will be required*

Syllabi, times, specifics, etc. all to follow.

The credits should transfer well into any other college that accepts transfer credit. They are regionally accredited, which is the gold standard.

  • Marketing and Entrepreneurship should transfer in as “Business” courses
  • American Politics should transfer in as “Government” or “Social Science” courses.
  • Each course will yield 1 high school credit and 3 college credits.

Last Call for the HS4CC Class “Getting Started with CLEP”

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Are you looking for a fast and easy tool to help you learn about CLEP? In this class, you’ll learn how to save thousands of dollars by testing out of college classes using your own high school curriculum and CLEP exams. This self-paced class is open NOW- complete it on your own schedule.

Continue reading “Last Call for the HS4CC Class “Getting Started with CLEP”” →
three persons sitting on the stairs talking with each other

Can High Schoolers Save the Community College?

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Even as total community college enrollment has fallen, the number of dual-enrolled high school students has grown. Is it enough to sustain the long-suffering two-year institution?

Liam Knox

November 22, 2022

When the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center released its annual enrollment report last month, the outlook was fairly bleak. Enrollments had declined almost across the board—at lower rates than during the COVID-19 pandemic, but still defying predictions that they would begin to rebound.

One bright spot was community colleges, which, after a nearly 10 percent enrollment decline during the pandemic, saw a slight increase for the 2021–22 academic year. Many experts attribute that largely to one factor: dual enrollment among high school students grew by 11 percent.

The number of high school students enrolled in community colleges had been growing at a healthy clip for years before the pandemic; in 2019, dual-enrollment students accounted for 16 percent of community college students nationwide, according to data from the U.S. Department of Education. That number remained relatively steady throughout the 2020–21 and 2021–22 academic years, when general enrollment took a steep dive, according to NSC data.

Now, it’s become increasingly clear that high schoolers are bailing out many two-year institutions that have taken on water. While total community college enrollment has declined every year since 2010, students under 18 are the only age group that has increased each year during that time period, according to a report from the American Association of Community Colleges.

“The growth of dual enrollment seems to be almost propping up new student growth for community colleges,” said John Fink, a senior research associate at the Community College Research Center of Teachers College at Columbia University. “Older adult student enrollment is declining and dual enrollment is holding steady, so you’re just going to see a larger share of enrollment from high school students … It’s going to be a really important constituency for community colleges to think about as part of their institutional strategy.”

Amy Williams, executive director of the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships, one of the leading national accreditors for concurrent and dual-enrollment programs, said she’s seen the growing popularity of dual enrollment reflected in an explosion of applications for program accreditation.

From ‘Programs of Privilege’ to Equity Drivers

Williams said she’s seen a “paradigm shift” in recent years as institutions move from offering advanced classes for academic highfliers to using dual enrollment as a way to expand access to higher education for underserved groups.

Access the rest of this story on Inside Higher Education. Free account creation is required.

College on the Cheap Podcast (Episode 3)

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Please join me with my long-time HS4CC moderator and college credit expert Shelley Cloutier as we embark on a new episode of COLLEGE ON THE CHEAP! College on the Cheap is a podcast for the college-bound who appreciate the value of a penny.

Episode 3: Testing Out with CLEP It’s 2005-2006, and I’m reading about a concept I’d never heard of called “testing out.” The interesting part is that I’d been teaching and advising in the community college district for 13 years by then, so I was sure it wasn’t legit.  Except that it was.  6 months later I had tested out of over 20 college classes, and today I’m going to tell you can do it too.

Pro Tip: Preview Studycom “Assignments”

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

If your teen is earning college credit through Studycom, they may have nearly finished a course only to find out that they had one or more assignments hidden at the end! That’s not a happy surprise, and that happened to my son this month! In this post, I want to show you how to find those assignments before the class starts, and give you a few tips for getting through them inside of your subscription month.

Continue reading “Pro Tip: Preview Studycom “Assignments”” →
happy aged woman giving cookies and cup of hot drink to pleased granddaughter doing homework at home

College Credit is a lot like Dating…

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Earning college credit is a lot like dating. I had this thought as I listened to one of my sons consider the possibility of getting more serious with his girlfriend. As I often do, I found a parallel to earning college credit and a degree. With college credit, like dating, there comes a tipping point where “keeping options open” can become a competing goal with what you hope to achieve.

Continue reading “College Credit is a lot like Dating…” →

ALEKS Self-Paced Math Classes for College Credit

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Assessment and LEearning in Knowledge Spaces (ALEKS) is a Web-based, artificially intelligent assessment and learning system. ALEKS uses adaptive questioning to quickly and accurately determine exactly what a student knows and doesn’t know in a course. ALEKS is often used as the software of choice by many colleges, but you can enroll as a homeschool and get college credit for $20 per month.

Continue reading “ALEKS Self-Paced Math Classes for College Credit” →

College Credit in Statistics & Data Analytics

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Statistics.com has a unique catalog of ACE-evaluated courses in a variety of areas of statistics and data analytics that can be used for undergraduate or graduate credit. A bonus is that they have partnerships extend beyond just guaranteeing their courses transfer. These partnerships have degree plans that use the Statistics.com courses as the major. This, by extension, allows your teen to earn most or all of a degree in statistics or data science while Homeschooling for College Credit. Many students can finish the whole, or most, of the degree in high school.

Continue reading “College Credit in Statistics & Data Analytics” →
woman in pink sweater using laptop

NEWS: HS4CC Beta Testers Needed!

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

A pre-announcement! I’ve been given 200 “seats” to offer to the HS4CC community from a regionally accredited college in California as part of their beta test! Guess what? These classes will be LIVE! And FREE for this community only!

The details are coming next week, but here are a few details:

The college is regionally accredited and has never offered dual enrollment before- we are their testers.

The classes will have a LIVE (synchronous) model for online learning. The student would need to log in at specific times for this class.

The HS4CC community is often invited to beta test for colleges and businesses, so if you’ve ever done this with us before, you know how rewarding it is to be part of the building process. Your teen may be asked for their feedback, and it’s a fun way to get “paid” for your participation by being given free tuition!

Students in 12th grade will get priority and are their preference, but was told that 11th graders would be considered.

Students will choose 1 of the following 3-credit college classes for dual enrollment:

  • Marketing
  • Entrepreneurship
  • American Politics & Government

The enrollment period will open next week and run through December 31st. Classes will start on January 17th and run for 11 weeks. *high school transcript will be required*

Syllabi, times, specifics, etc. all to follow.

The credits should transfer well into any other college that accepts transfer credit. They are regionally accredited, which is the gold standard.

  • Marketing and Entrepreneurship should transfer in as “Business” courses
  • American Politics should transfer in as “Government” or “Social Science” courses.
  • Each course will yield 1 high school credit and 3 college credits.

You’re Invited! Saturday 11/12/22

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

Pre-HS4CC & New HS4CC Welcome event! This live questions and answer hour is hosted by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, executive director of Homeschooling for College Credit. We’ll cover the basics of how earning college credit in high school works, how to select the right type of credit, and how to start earning college credit asap! We’ll have lots of time for your questions at the end too! This is the last welcome event in 2022, so don’t miss this!

This event is free, but registration is required since our meeting capacity is 100.

REGISTRATION LINK

Avoid Losing Credit During Transfer

Posted on by Jennifer Cook-DeRosa, M.S.

A report from the General Accounting Office (GAO) detailed the ways students lose credits when they transfer between colleges.

Data from this report shows that students lost an estimated 43 percent of their college credits when they transferred out of community college and onto their university. That’s an estimated one-two semesters of full-time enrollment.

$5,000 wasted on average

The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center’s Tracking Transfer report also sheds light on the transfer experience, which allowed institutions to learn more about the academic trajectory of community college students when they transfer.

Overall, very few students who start at a two-year institution eventually complete a four-year degree. The numbers were astounding with just less than 14 percent of community college students going on to completing a bachelor’s degree in six years.

In my 10 years directing Homeschooling for College Credit, I’ve noticed a significant increase in the pursuit of an associate degree among our families. While I think this is a wonderful opportunity for our teens, it’s not without challenges. Namely, not all associate degrees bring the goalpost closer. In fact, I can think of several scenarios where earning an associate’s degree before the bachelor’s degree actually pushes BACK the goalpost and adds more time and cost than was necessary- even when a student is using low-cost credit options.

If you’d like your teen to earn an associate’s degree in high school, you’re not alone. In my 2022 Annual HS4CC Parent’s Survey, 1/3 of you responded that your teen is likely to earn at least 1 degree in high school!

The more types of credit you bring to their program, the more challenging the process becomes. But the cornerstone of saving time and money IS creating a patchwork quilt of courses and credits, so this creates a challenge.

Did you know you don’t have to lose a single credit? Parents who learn how to resourcefully plan those credits transition their teens through dual enrollment, through high school, through two and four year degrees, all while accumulating massive amounts of college credit. In my class, 2- Year Degrees, you’ll learn you how to make sure your teens keep every credit they’ve worked so hard for!

7 Topics in the Course

  • The Terminal Degree: Understanding how your teens degree may actually prevent transfer of credit, and how to choose the right one.
  • Accreditation: Mismatch of accreditation is one of the biggest problems but the easiest to check. You’ll learn my simple rule to a complex problem.
  • Crossing State Lines: Why out of state student lose more credit than in state students, and how to make every credit count.
  • Public vs Private
  • University to University
  • Credit Laundering
  • Steps and Strategies

About this course

  • $49.00
  • Online
  • Self-paced
  • 45 lessons
  • 3-hours
  • Intermediate / Advanced
Enroll Now