Taking college classes while in high school

[Blossom'sGirl]

Today I called the local CC here in NY about my oldest taking his economics requirement there for the class experience.  The class description sounds great but I cannot believe the price.  They charge $177 per credit hr for this 3 credit course plus student fees and books.  How do other homeschoolers afford this?  I am almost regretting homeschooling because in PS he would have been able to take ACE classes at $19 a credit hr with no book fees.

 

 

[KarenNC]

In our state, we are fortunate to have a slate of classes (not everything in the catalog) available for free tuition, but do have to pay for fees and books. I'm hoping we will be able to afford the fees and books next year, as one local community college charges over $180 per semester in fees. I'm considering driving about 40 minutes to the next county where the CC covers fees, so it would only be books.

 

Are you sure you talked to the right person regarding enrollment? I know (see above) that different community colleges can charge different amounts, but it looks like at least some of the community colleges in NY only charge $55 per credit http://www.genesee.edu/depts/ace/homeschooled/  Without knowing which community college you are dealing with, it's hard to say, but it's possible the person you spoke with wasn't aware of the homeschool-specific policy--a lot of folks aren't, even in the registrar's office--or that perhaps that person misread and it should be $177 for the whole class (which would be $59 per credit). I would look for the credit policy in writing in their catalog or on their website and talk with someone locally whose child is in the program at that school to ask about their experiences. 

 

A good resource might be the NY page of Jennifer Cook DeRosa's Facebook group "Homeschooling for College Credit." https://www.facebook.com/groups/1641997899374783/  The NC page (and her book) have been great supports for us. She has set up pages for different states with a local co-moderator.

[teachermom2834]

Our state has a grant that covers a limited number of dual enrollment classes. Ds exceeded the limit and I had to pay a similar amount for the additional class at the cc.

 

However, our local Christian university offers dual enrollment for $100/ credit hour. Much better deal. I think they use it as a recruitment tool hoping the kids decide to attend there after graduation. Maybe shop around to compare prices?

[dirty ethel rackham]

That's in the ballpark of what we pay here.  Our community college used to have an honors program where honors classes were tuition free, but they stopped allowing dual-enrolled students from getting the freebie.  We have a local liberal arts college that has a community scholars program for high school students and they get a significant break on tuition.  Last time I checked, that was $175 a credit hour.  Yes, it is expensive.  Dd is toying with the idea of taking US history there instead of APUSH.  I'm actually encouraging it despite the fact that it will cost us a lot more. 

[freesia]

NY here, too. Our cc's are the same. It's cheaper to take online classes and I don't have to drive. So, we are planning to go that route.

[Blossom'sGirl]

KarenNC

 

I saw that  GCC (one of my alma maters) had a homeschooler rate.  But I'm looking at Corning which does not have a homeschooler rate as far as I can tell.  For some reason I thought SUNY schools were the same.

 

I wish I still lived close to GCC.

[G5052]

Similar rates here, and I work for the local CC and another with a large online program. No faculty discounts although I do have an inside scoop on professors and programs!

 

Just having to drive them limited what we have done dual enrollment, but I've been very pleased with what we've chosen. We've done face-to-face, hybrid, and online courses.

 

Just be sure to pick something in an area of strength to start, and don't load them up the first semester. We chose not to do English/History/Sociology/Psychology that way because of more adult content than I was comfortable with.

[livetoread]

I look at it this way. As long as my kids take classes that transfer, I'm not paying more for a high school class, I'm paying less for a college class that happens to also count for high school.

 

My son needed a fine arts credit for high school, so he's taking an art history class at the cc that is guaranteed to transfer to any of the state universities as a core class requirement, and maybe to private. Even if we had to pay full tuition which is $99/credit hour (and we don't), that's cheap credit hours compared to taking it at any state university.

[Reefgazer]

If a class won't count for college credit, I would look into a MOOC.

[EndOfOrdinary]

The price you listed is similar to here. Only the last two years of high school have tuition wavers, though we still have to cover fees and books. Ds will hopefully start foreign language classes before that. I am already saving and it is a few years away!

 

However, if you calculate the price out per credit, the cost is the same (or actually cheaper) than paying for PA Homeschoolers, Lukieon, or many other known and well regarded courses. It is $525 dollars for a 5 credit CC course here. That makes one high school credit. It is $580 for comparable (non transferable/non college credit) class with Lukeion. PA charges $650 or $680 for a one credit class.

 

One of the reasons that I took on a part time job is to pay for the outside classes and credits Ds is wanting to take.

[MarkT]

KarenNC

 

I saw that  GCC (one of my alma maters) had a homeschooler rate.  But I'm looking at Corning which does not have a homeschooler rate as far as I can tell.  For some reason I thought SUNY schools were the same.

 

I wish I still lived close to GCC.

looks like you have it

 

https://www.corning-cc.edu/ace

 

I would state that you pay the same taxes as everyone else and the program should be available.

 

Point out what GCC does.

[Eliz]

In our county, tuition is waived for juniors and seniors at our community college. I have to buy books and pay any supply fees. It's a great opportunity to earn college credit cheaply. Free tuition is not state wide though. A friend is lives in a nearby county. There her teens have to pay tuition for dual credit classes.

[BlsdMama]

In our state approved classes are covered, including book rental.  So that's how we afford it.  Unapproved classes are $145 per credit - full price, no discounts.

[Mom22ns]

Our CC is $98/credit hour. There is a discount (roughly 40%) for homeschoolers when they take an online class. It isn't free, but it is a lot cheaper than online homeschool classes and they get college credit. 

[SparklyUnicorn]

Ours comes out to $509 per 3 credit course, plus book(s).  I probably won't be able to afford more than one class per semester. 

 

There is a school though in NY that offers courses at $55 per credit.  All of their courses including on-line.  They are too far for us to go to so we may be looking into some of the on-line offerings.  I don't know if they extend this deal to everyone everywhere in NY, but it is worth looking into.

 

http://www.genesee.edu/

[Dmmetler]

I'm in a similar situation-DD only qualifies for fee waivers for DE if she's a junior or senior. So, I'm comparing the price to online classes, and compared to a lot of the good ones, it really isn't that much different price-wise, and has a greater chance of transferring.

 

The big thing I'm running into is that one of the schools that is willing to let DD start early wants her to jump some extra hoops since she's not a high school student yet-which, of course, cost money.

[quark]

Here in CA, CC classes are $46/credit hr. It can be free if dual enrolled but DS has chosen to go as a regular student for priority registration. DS usually takes 10-14 credit hours a semester, so the yearly cost for us for about 6-8 courses (I am including electives) is equivalent to or less than outsourcing 2 AP courses to PA Homeschoolers. And the semester system works out nicely for him too. Books are extra. Sometimes we find them used on Amazon at 2/3 or 1/2 the cost.

Edited December 3, 2015 by quark

[Sunshine State Sue]

We are blessed that CC is free for hs'ers in 10th-12th grade here.  We pay books and fees.  Honestly, though, I think it is an indication that PS is so bad that the brighter kids head to CC early.

[SkateLeft]

My state pays for tuition and books for dual enrolled high school juniors and seniors, which is how both of my girls were able to attend full-time in 11th and 12th grade. The cost of CC here is actually pretty close to the cost of the state universities.

[Pemberley]

Our state also offers free college tuition for highschoolers, but I will mention that Brigham Young-Idaho offers a limited number of classes for $30 a credit hour!

 

http://www.byui.edu/concurrent-enrollment

Click on the "Application Checklist" to see current classes.

At a glance, here they are: 

• B 101 - Introduction to Business (3 credits)
• FDAMF 101 - American Foundations (3 credits)
• FDENG 101 - Writing and Reasoning Foundations (3 credits)
• FDMAT 108 - Math for the Real World (3 credits)
• FDSCI 101 - Science Foundations (2 credits)
• FDSCI 201 - Natural Disasters (3 credits)
• HS 280 - Medical terminology (2 credits)
• PSYCH 111 - General Psychology (3 credits)
• PSYCH 112 - Career Development in Psychology (1 credit)
• ART107- Design and Color (3 credits)
• COMM 125 - Visual Fundamentals(3 credits)
• ECEN 150 - Electric Circurt Analysis I (3 credits)
• CS 124 - Introduction to Software Development (3 credits)

 

My son is taking Psychology right now and has really, really enjoyed his class.The professor is polite and quite helpful if there are ever any questions. Even with my state offering free tuition, I do wish that BYU-I offered more classes because I would probably just stay with them.   :)

Edited December 5, 2015 by Pemberley

[angela in ohio]

Dd takes one class (band) at the local PS, and they pay for her DE classes.  She also works as a writing tutor which gives a tuition and book scholarship for one class.

 

We did pay for a few classes for oldest. 

Edited December 6, 2015 by angela in ohio

[MarkT]

Our state also offers free college tuition for highschoolers, but I will mention that Brigham Young-Idaho offers a limited number of classes for $30 a credit hour!

 

http://www.byui.edu/concurrent-enrollment

 

Do you have to be LDS?

[ThisIsTheDay]

Today I called the local CC here in NY about my oldest taking his economics requirement there for the class experience.  The class description sounds great but I cannot believe the price.  They charge $177 per credit hr for this 3 credit course plus student fees and books.  How do other homeschoolers afford this?  I am almost regretting homeschooling because in PS he would have been able to take ACE classes at $19 a credit hr with no book fees.

 

l just paid $1700+ in tuition/fees for my 12th grade ds to take three dual enrollment/CC classes (11 credits) for spring semester.  We used money tucked away in a 529 plan. 

 

As a homeschooler, dual enrollment costs in my state are a killer too.  Not enough to make me regret hsing though.

 

On the plus side, ds will enter college next year with 19 countable credits (taking two classes this semester).  My dd did something similar with dual enrollment credits and, as an unexpected benefit, expects to graduate a semester early.  So the money more than evens out in the end.

 

My suggestion would be that if you are planning to enroll him for spring semester, you'll want to act quickly.  Here, along with the registration process, there are placement testing requirements regardless of the class you take.  Additionally, registration has already begun, and many of the good courses/instructors are already full.

 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

l just paid $1700+ in tuition/fees for my 12th grade ds to take three dual enrollment/CC classes (11 credits) for spring semester. We used money tucked away in a 529 plan.

 

As a homeschooler, dual enrollment costs in my state are a killer too. Not enough to make me regret hsing though.

 

On the plus side, ds will enter college next year with 19 countable credits (taking two classes this semester). My dd did something similar with dual enrollment credits and, as an unexpected benefit, expects to graduate a semester early. So the money more than evens out in the end.

 

My suggestion would be that if you are planning to enroll him for spring semester, you'll want to act quickly. Here, along with the registration process, there are placement testing requirements regardless of the class you take. Additionally, registration has already begun, and many of the good courses/instructors are already full.

 

I don't know if DS will be able to transfer any of his cc credits when he goes to college. But early college graduation wasn't the goal so much as having the exposure to college level work and being a more competitive applicant to colleges. It didn't hurt that he has had to learn how to deal with multiple communication systems, recover from bad scores on first tests, and navigate some college admin. While I was right there with him when he first enrolled he will be doing his Spring registration on his own.

 

He also used one of his instructors for a college recommender.

 

We pay full in state tuition, fees and books. No special break for high school kids. On the other hand private school tuition tends to run around $22,000 per kid per year. So $1400 for a semester at CC sounds pretty good.

[Targhee]

Do you have to be LDS?

I'm not sure about BYU-I, but at BYU (main campus) you do not. I don't imagine that you do need to be LDS. The cost per credit for ID-study at BYU is higher than BYU-I, but they also have a lot of courses - both those for DE and just plain middle and high school classes.

[Targhee]

Our state will pay for two years of running start. There's a basic competency exam to pass before they allow you to enroll.

 

If you are trying to be most cost effective and you don't have free DE classes through public schools, AP classes are a great option, as long as you pass the test. CLEP might be a similar option.

Edited December 6, 2015 by Targhee

[G5052]

My suggestion would be that if you are planning to enroll him for spring semester, you'll want to act quickly.  Here, along with the registration process, there are placement testing requirements regardless of the class you take.  Additionally, registration has already begun, and many of the good courses/instructors are already full.

 

 

Every college is a little different, but the local one I've been at for the last decade really is cutting back in January. To give you an idea, this fall there were seven sections of the class I normally teach. We handled that with one full-time professor and three adjuncts, and one of the three adjuncts taught two other classes in the department. When I told them that I wasn't coming back because my work at another college has ramped up, they outright cancelled my section. Then I looked last night while I had my class doing an exercise, and now it's down to four sections of the class I've taught for the last few years. In January it will be just a full-time professor and one adjunct remaining in that department.

 

It's also going to cause a problem because there's also only one week in January before classes start because New Year's is so late in the week. The folks in registration are very concerned that they're going to be turning away a lot of students.

 

So yes, register in December!

Edited December 9, 2015 by G5052

[Sebastian (a lady)]

If you are registering for spring semester check the health form requirements. We had to have signed forms documenting MMR and TB tests. The TB tests take a couple days to be read.

[mschickie]

GCC offers classes at their Dansville location or you can do on line classes for the reduced tuition price.  I know FLCC does the homeschool rates too.

[Pemberley]

Do you have to be LDS?

Nope!

A student WILL need to speak with an LDS ecclesiastical leader in his/her area for a "recommendation."

What that basically entails is a run down of the honor code: No cheating, turn work in on time, do your own work, etc. The leader just makes sure that the student understands that since the coursework is done outside of school, the standards for being honest are the same as if the student were sitting in a classroom. 

I asked my son what else our local leader spoke to him about, but that was all he could remember, so that may be it.

 

BYU-I can help you find a local leader to do that part of the endorsement. 

 

Enrollment is a fairly straight forward process and I love it because no test scores are required for admittance. Also, so far, each college we have looked at locally will accept BYU-I's classes as transfer credits, so that's a plus.

:)

 

If you opt for this route, I'd love to hear about your experience.

With Psych, my son has had weekly field experiments - those have been the most fun because he gets to play with his family with psych tests. :) 

[Pemberley]

I'm not sure about BYU-I, but at BYU (main campus) you do not. I don't imagine that you do need to be LDS. The cost per credit for ID-study at BYU is higher than BYU-I, but they also have a lot of courses - both those for DE and just plain middle and high school classes.

 

BYU-Provo offers University courses at something like $547 per class...something like that. plus the cost of books.

Their course offerings are amazing, though and makes BYU-I's concurrent enrollment course list pale in comparison.

 

But, at $30 a credit hour for the CE courses with BYU-I, it's a steal of a deal. :)

 

A note about books: We were able to find our son's book at a used book site: www.betterworldbooks.com for $30. Not to shabby.

[Targhee]

Nope!

A student WILL need to speak with an LDS ecclesiastical leader in his/her area for a "recommendation."

What that basically entails is a run down of the honor code: No cheating, turn work in on time, do your own work, etc. The leader just makes sure that the student understands that since the coursework is done outside of school, the standards for being honest are the same as if the student were sitting in a classroom. 

I asked my son what else our local leader spoke to him about, but that was all he could remember, so that may be it.

 

BYU-I can help you find a local leader to do that part of the endorsement. 

 

Enrollment is a fairly straight forward process and I love it because no test scores are required for admittance. Also, so far, each college we have looked at locally will accept BYU-I's classes as transfer credits, so that's a plus.

:)

 

If you opt for this route, I'd love to hear about your experience.

With Psych, my son has had weekly field experiments - those have been the most fun because he gets to play with his family with psych tests. :)

 

The BYU-I concurrent enrollment is definitely a lot of bang for your buck!

 

If you only take single classes (middle and high school level) at BYU (Provo) you do not need an ecclesiastical endorsement.  It took me less than 10 minutes to sign my DD up for high school Japanese 1.  I'm not sure but I think you can do the same a la carte course work at the University level without an ecclesiastical endorsement.  Here's from their FAQ page:

 

1. You must have internet access to complete our courses.
2. You don’t need to be admitted to Brigham Young University to take our courses.
3. Enrollment in our courses does not constitute admission to Brigham Young University.
4. Most of our courses are secular in nature; your religious affiliation is irrelevant to your enrollment and participation in these courses.
5. Due to the nature of distance education, we cannot provide you with an official status as either part-time or full-time student.
6. There is no minimum or maximum age requirement for enrollment; however, we recommend that you do not register for high school courses before the age of 12 due to their rigorous nature.
7. Our courses are designed for the same study time as a university, high school, or middle school semester, term, or quarter. 
8. We recommend carefully considering your current workload, commitments, and other activities before registering for multiple courses.

 

Also from their FAQ under "How Do I Register"?

 

You will need to provide the following information when you register for a course:

• Name
• Phone number
• E-mail address (if you have one)
• Complete course title(s), i.e., Modern Art – ARTHC 350
• Mailing address*
• Date of birth
• Gender
• High school’s name and/or ACT code** (for middle and high school students who want their academic records available to their school)

[Maureen]

FYI - 

 

BYU (provo) allows you to take uni level courses at any age and you have one year to complete.

 

BYU-I requires the student to be 16 and a junior before taking any of the classes.  They are also tracked with one of BYU-I's trimesters and have to be done on that time schedule.  I'm pretty sure you can only take 2 classes as well.

 

My 3 girls are taking 4 BYU (provo) college courses this year. Exams for college courses must be proctored at a college testing center or an LDS institute (near many college campuses).  The college courses often have midterms as well as finals so this affects the speed of the course and adds some cost if taking at college testing centers.  I use my charter/cover school funds to help pay for these courses.  The only hiccup is that I have to pay upfront and the charter will reimburse when the course is complete. 

[FriedClams]

FYI -

 

BYU (provo) allows you to take uni level courses at any age and you have one year to complete.

 

BYU-I requires the student to be 16 and a junior before taking any of the classes. They are also tracked with one of BYU-I's trimesters and have to be done on that time schedule. I'm pretty sure you can only take 2 classes as well.

 

My 3 girls are taking 4 BYU (provo) college courses this year. Exams for college courses must be proctored at a college testing center or an LDS institute (near many college campuses). The college courses often have midterms as well as finals so this affects the speed of the course and adds some cost if taking at college testing centers. I use my charter/cover school funds to help pay for these courses. The only hiccup is that I have to pay upfront and the charter will reimburse when the course is complete.

I can't figure out the BYU (P) website and beg your help!! LOL!! I keep seeing where you have to be 16 and a junior. I feel like I am totally missing something. (Obviously, LOL!!) I'd love to research more about registering a 15 year old sophomore if anyone could help. THANK YOU!!!!

 

ETA - Are these through the BYU P online section? They have HS and college, so are you just registering HS kids for the college classes? I'm seeing one US history course for $543 for the college class. Would this be what you're using? How's the workload and expectations? THANK YOU for your help!!!

Edited December 10, 2015 by FriedClams

[Dmmetler]

How do you work scheduling high school online classes and college classes? It looks like most of the high school providers require registration before the fall college schedules are out.

[Luckymama]

How do you work scheduling high school online classes and college classes? It looks like most of the high school providers require registration before the fall college schedules are out.

And that is why dd's only online high school class is asynchronous!

[G5052]

How do you work scheduling high school online classes and college classes? It looks like most of the high school providers require registration before the fall college schedules are out.

 

Yes, it's frustrating. One of our favorites for high school (a local choice) requires a commitment in January with a deposit for the following fall if you're returning. If you wait, she may not have a slot.

 

You can sometimes look at the fall and spring schedule for college to see what slots there usually are, but it's of course not exact. As I noted in an earlier post, there can be significant changes if the budget tanks. Higher education in my state took a significant hit, and enrollment is actually flat.

Edited December 10, 2015 by G5052

[Maureen]

I can't figure out the BYU (P) website and beg your help!! LOL!! I keep seeing where you have to be 16 and a junior. I feel like I am totally missing something. (Obviously, LOL!!) I'd love to research more about registering a 15 year old sophomore if anyone could help. THANK YOU!!!!

 

ETA - Are these through the BYU P online section? They have HS and college, so are you just registering HS kids for the college classes? I'm seeing one US history course for $543 for the college class. Would this be what you're using? How's the workload and expectations? THANK YOU for your help!!!

 

FriedClams - 

The BYU Provo website does not care about the age of the student.  You can enroll in any of the classes at any time during the year and just have one calendar year to complete it. Some college classes do have pre-reqs. The registration process is minimal.

My girls have taken over a dozen of the the high school courses over the years.

 

This year they are all taking Freshman English - Writing 150, Biology 100, and American Heritage.  My mathy 14 year old is taking Math 111- Trigonometry, and my two math phobic daughters are taking Philosophy 205 - Logic.  They decided that the first three classes were more appealing than taking a high school AP class and then the AP exam to get credit.  

 

The Trig class is probably the hardest just because higher math can be hard to learn on your own.  She is very good at math, but most of the BYU online math classes have been lacking in really good instructional material.  The high school Geometry online was maybe the exception.  It was pretty well written.

 

Biology 100 has three midterms and a final.  The class is bascially divided into quarters - the final is not cumulative.  The exams are tough and detailed though.  The 4 tests are the entire grade.

 

American Heritage is a great class.  For each chapter they have to find some article, op-ed, or political news story that relates to the chapter's main theme and write a short paper on it.  It has really helped them think about how our country has changed since the Founding.  Two midterms and a comprehensive final.

 

English is definitely the easiest class, but then two of my three like to write, and it is just writing - no literature.

 

Philosophy 205 is hard but really good.  These two daughters don't like numbers, but the logicc class has really made them work hard and think crritically without the computations.  One final.

 

These 4 classes have kept them busy with just a little time for literature and art.  I wanted to push them this year (junior year) and show them how much they needed to step up their game to succeed in college and these classe have definitely done that.  All three plan to go to BYU (provo) or BYU-I so this is just getting some of the GE classes out of the way so that their first year can be a lighter load while they're figuring out college life.

 

None of them have taken a BYU-I course yet because the fall start date didn't work for us and my youngest is just 14.  I plan to have the older two take at least one next year to have the experience of hard deadlines.  The initial application is online, but whenever I have called them with questions, they have been very helpful.

 

HTH

[FriedClams]

FriedClams - 

The BYU Provo website does not care about the age of the student.  You can enroll in any of the classes at any time during the year and just have one calendar year to complete it. Some college classes do have pre-reqs. The registration process is minimal.

My girls have taken over a dozen of the the high school courses over the years.

 

This year they are all taking Freshman English - Writing 150, Biology 100, and American Heritage.  My mathy 14 year old is taking Math 111- Trigonometry, and my two math phobic daughters are taking Philosophy 205 - Logic.  They decided that the first three classes were more appealing than taking a high school AP class and then the AP exam to get credit.  

 

The Trig class is probably the hardest just because higher math can be hard to learn on your own.  She is very good at math, but most of the BYU online math classes have been lacking in really good instructional material.  The high school Geometry online was maybe the exception.  It was pretty well written.

 

Biology 100 has three midterms and a final.  The class is bascially divided into quarters - the final is not cumulative.  The exams are tough and detailed though.  The 4 tests are the entire grade.

 

American Heritage is a great class.  For each chapter they have to find some article, op-ed, or political news story that relates to the chapter's main theme and write a short paper on it.  It has really helped them think about how our country has changed since the Founding.  Two midterms and a comprehensive final.

 

English is definitely the easiest class, but then two of my three like to write, and it is just writing - no literature.

 

Philosophy 205 is hard but really good.  These two daughters don't like numbers, but the logicc class has really made them work hard and think crritically without the computations.  One final.

 

These 4 classes have kept them busy with just a little time for literature and art.  I wanted to push them this year (junior year) and show them how much they needed to step up their game to succeed in college and these classe have definitely done that.  All three plan to go to BYU (provo) or BYU-I so this is just getting some of the GE classes out of the way so that their first year can be a lighter load while they're figuring out college life.

 

None of them have taken a BYU-I course yet because the fall start date didn't work for us and my youngest is just 14.  I plan to have the older two take at least one next year to have the experience of hard deadlines.  The initial application is online, but whenever I have called them with questions, they have been very helpful.

 

HTH

 

I wish I had more LIKES!! THANK YOU!! This is super helpful. Lots to think about for next year!! Thank you!!

[momto2Cs]

Here in CA, CC classes are $46/credit hr. It can be free if dual enrolled but DS has chosen to go as a regular student for priority registration. DS usually takes 10-14 credit hours a semester, so the yearly cost for us for about 6-8 courses (I am including electives) is equivalent to or less than outsourcing 2 AP courses to PA Homeschoolers. And the semester system works out nicely for him too. Books are extra. Sometimes we find them used on Amazon at 2/3 or 1/2 the cost.

 

We live in CA too,.. my ds is dual-enrolled, and I'm so glad that our cc (junior college really) allows for free admission, though I do still pay out of pocket for books and class costs. We rented his textbook this semester from Amazon for $25.