So Teach Me How To Do The Comm College Thing.....

[Lux Et Veritas Academy]

It looks like in NH that the CC is offered to dual enrolled high school students only in their Junior/ Senior Year at a reduced tuition rate. The program is called eStart.

 

My question is can't a person- like my 15 year old just register and pay full tuition at a CC as a freshman or soph?

 

How do I start the process?

 

Does CC transfer to most Uni's?

 

Wouldn't it make sense to get going right now on classes?

 

Loaded- I know!

[Nan in Mass]

Where I am, yes, a student can just register as "taking an occasional class" (not matriculated) and pay full tuition. My youngest (14yo) could take the placement tests now and probably would do well enough that he could begin classes, not the remedial ones for no credit but the college classes. I am waiting until my youngest is a little older to send him for several reasons. Once he begins, we are tied to a school schedule (inconvenient if you like to travel and the driving takes time). The outside classes take precedence over the home classes because they go on his transcript as graded classes and colleges will pay more attention to those classes than the ones I teach at home. I don't want him to start so early that he does badly in a class; it might hurt his chances of getting into college. Some classes (depends on your CC) you can teach better at home. I don't want him to mix with the older community college students quite yet. I hope he will go to a four-year college after high school and if he has taken all the easy freshman classes already, the adjustment to life away from home may be more difficult (maybe - I go back and forth on that one). If he does an engineering program, it might be easier for him to do his basics at the particular college where he will do his more advanced classes, less chance of gaps. It might be nice to do his easy classes with the rest of his freshman friends. Some people say that if you have too many college classes, it can be hard to get scholarships. If you take a full load of CC classes, it can interfere with playing college sports because it starts your 4 year clock ticking. Some people are worried about colleges insisting on a student entering as a transfer student, something that interferes with entrance to certain programs or financial aid or housing or whatever. Most important to me, though, is that CC is school. Yes, it is a better form than public high school, but it still is school. I have things that I want my children to learn that they can't learn in school, or that I think they can learn better outside school. If they learn on their own at home, they learn to teach themselves, and they can focus on just the aspects of the subject that interest them. This, of course, isn't necessarily a good thing for something like basic chemistry, where you want your body of knowledge to match that of the rest of the world, and where a school offers things like full laboratories, but for other things, like literature, it can be much nicer.

 

To find out what I think the advantages of CC are, search for Nan in Mass and CC classes. I think I posted a lot about this when my middle one first started classes.

 

As far as how goes - you can go visit your CC. If they are like mine, they will set you up with a testing date (or excuse you because of your SAT scores) and an advisor and help you sign up for classes, even if you aren't a matriculated student. This varies according to state, though.

 

HTH

-Nan

[AnitaMcC]

It looks like in NH that the CC is offered to dual enrolled high school students only in their Junior/ Senior Year at a reduced tuition rate. The program is called eStart.

 

My question is can't a person- like my 15 year old just register and pay full tuition at a CC as a freshman or soph?

 

How do I start the process?

 

Does CC transfer to most Uni's?

 

Wouldn't it make sense to get going right now on classes?

 

Loaded- I know!

 

 

Our Jr. College allows early enrollment for under 17yrs old. It is a bit complicated but not really-LOL. First they have to apply for the college (not difficult) and fill out the early entrance form. Then take the placement test for English/math. They get that score immediately to know what courses they will be allowed to enroll in. For each course they want to take they fill out a form and then the instructor, academic department course is in, and the college counselor all have to approve the course. Any one of them can say no and that is that. For the first semester or two a under 17yr old is limited to 1-2 courses a semester.

 

And of course us parents pay the whole tuition costs in Illinois. But I may be able to get a small grant through the IL veterans dependents education program for kids ages 10-18 attending public school. I have to check into that. My kids get it for attending public schools but I don't know about for college courses if they take them early.

[K-FL]

It looks like in NH that the CC is offered to dual enrolled high school students only in their Junior/ Senior Year at a reduced tuition rate. The program is called eStart.

 

My question is can't a person- like my 15 year old just register and pay full tuition at a CC as a freshman or soph?

 

How do I start the process?

 

Does CC transfer to most Uni's?

 

Wouldn't it make sense to get going right now on classes?

 

Loaded- I know!

 

Here in FL all state schools are equal--meaning the English 1101 from the cc is the same as taking it from U. of FL--they all must accept the others credits. Even the in-state privates 99% of the time accept them.

 

As to the process, make an appointment, take the dc & go to your cc to talk to a counselor. I had the 1st person I spoke w/tell me the dc had to be a Jr or Sr, but in reality they must have finished 9th grade. No one had asked before. Check w/your cc as to their policies re: young students. You may be the 1st to ask, so be prepared. :) Everyone has to place into college level classes--no remedials--if they're still hs age.

 

We've gone 100% cc. Dd#1 just graduated w/her AA degree when her age-mates are just finishing hs. That makes her 2 yrs ahead of them, but the sad part is 80% (I'm guessing) could be where she is. The school district wants them in the ps where they get the $$, not the cc. It has nothing to do w/what's best for the dc. Funny thing is, a ps student gets free tuition & fees (as we hmslrs do), but they also get free books! Can't beat that price! Dd#2 has finished her 1st yr @ cc.

[NCMom]

Have you asked on the NHHR-L list? Every state has different things set up, so you really need to get more NH specific advice for some of your questions.

 

For us it does not make sense to start early or do too many classes there. Although NC has transfer agreements, the education I will be providing will be much better than the CC can give. At this point they will each take only 2-3 courses. OTOH, my ds is getting his first two years done there right now.

 

We can't register early unless the child has graduated (I think). Some of the colleges my freshman has on her list will not accept transfer credit from a CC. Check this out very carefully. My sister went to the CC in Nashua for 1 year and some of her credits did not transfer to SNHU. This was 6 years ago though!

 

hth,

Georgia (formerly of NH :001_smile:)

[Lisa in TN]

Even within a state, you may find a lot of variation from one community college to the next. My dd wanted to enroll as a 15-year-old high school sophomore, so we checked out two nearby schools. These two community colleges were part of the same statewide system, but they had very different policies on admitting students early.

 

One of them wouldn't even consider allowing a student to attend classes before the junior year of high school unless the student could produce a public school IEP mandating it, or extensive testing by an outside expert showing that the student's educational needs could not be adequately met in any other way.

 

The other said, "Come on in!" As long as the student had a decent score on the ACT, good grades in previous classwork, and the school principal's signature on a form, the student was welcome to enroll as a non-degree-seeking student as early as the freshman year of high school.

 

Needless to say, both of my dc chose the more flexible school. However, we did have to pay full tuition until they reached the junior-senior years of high school, at which point we got a small break.

[Orthodox6]

I think every state has different systems/rules -- maybe even every county differs (?). It varies for what age can enroll as a "regular" student, what age can enroll as a "dual-credit" student, and how much documentable (yes) schooling already has been completed.

 

Here, if one is 18 years old, it does not matter whether one has spent the last fifteen years playing Nintendo to the exclusion of all else. If one can breathe (proving state of being alive), can write ones name, and can prove county residency, one can enroll in CC as a regular, credit-earning student.

 

Dual-credit students at CCs here, in contrast, must have completed a certain amount of high school, and must show proof of having done so. Minimum age of 16.

 

Before signing dc up for CC classes, talk with people who go there, or who have children enrolled. My son, an outgoing type, strikes up conversation with many other students. He now is convinced that he might be the only student there who does not drink, do drugs, or smoke dope.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Where I am, a freshman or sophmore couldn't just go to college, not as a credit-earning student. A student of any age MAY be able to attend a college based on "ability to benefit." My experience is that universities are a bit more open to very young children, though many colleges are a bit more open to younger students who are "auditing" courses.

 

The college at which I originally WANTED my daughter to do dual enrollment (where she had taken classes, not for credit, in the past) would not allow her to do it even as an 11th grader due to her age. We had actually contacted them 2 years before that also but they wouldn't hear of it.

 

It worked out well though as the professors at our college have been wonderful, especially the math professor. they didn't care about her age, but she did have to be an 11th grader.

 

All dual enrolled students or young full time students MUST pass every part of the state's tests here though. A 14 or 17yo can't take remedial courses. If the student doesn't place into English 1301, College Algebra, etc, it is expected that they would attend high school courses. That kinda makes sense to me. Take college at the college and take high school at your high school (which could include your homeschool).

 

There are schools (public schools) though that have the college work be counted as high school so basically the student earns the last 2 years of high school at the same time they get credits towards college. In our area, we have a few different programs like that. We felt the hoops expected of students were ridiculous though. Doing it that way seems MUCH harder than just taking 15 credits per term.

 

Anyway, all states and schools are different though. I suggest you contact the school.

[mitraces]

We consider CC to be not much better than HS classes but the difference is the child learns to pace herself in a course where the deadlines are fixed unlike our homeschool. We had 2/4 courses with teachers who didn't show often or where they couldn't secure a teacher at first. So, we look closely at ratemyprofessor.com and talk to the teacher if possible first. (The teachers make or break the course, and could affect the direction your child decides to pursue.)

 

We also chose two classes on the same days to limit the driving time. (Two classes is the limit here for early enrollment and yes our 15 year old took 4 classes this year - 15 credits total.)

 

Lastly, each child is ready to start classes at different ages. My oldest two took classes beginning at age 16 and 17, the third at 15. They all have different paces.