Dual Credit programs provide high school students with the opportunity to take college courses and in doing so reduce both time to credential and cost. Through partnerships between schools and higher education institutions, resources are utilized to reduce or eliminate costs to both students and participating institutions, and to ensure the successful transfer of such courses to postsecondary institutions.
Nearly all states have adopted dual credit programs, and over 2.5 million high school students participate annually. Dual credit initiatives increase high school academic achievement and graduation; expand college access, enrollment, and credential completion; and decrease time to completion and overall cost. The strongest programs align course offerings with high-quality, in-demand credentials; provide broad access to students of varying demographics and academic achievement levels; and include robust quality assurances.
Pennsylvania’s existing Dual Credit initiative is currently funded at $7 million annually, and a little over 60,000 of PA’s 1.7 million public high school students enroll in at least one dual credit class. Expanding Dual Credit will allow more students to benefit from this proven strategy to expand college access, affordability, and attainment. To learn more, please consult this SBHE brief.