Ohio College Credit Plus program - would love insight

[EKT]

Hi there!

We're relatively new to Ohio (moved here about a year ago). My oldest is in her second semester of 8th grade. As we look ahead to high school, I feel a bit in the dark about navigating the College Credit Plus program, and would love some guidance from anyone who has participated. I guess I'm just wondering about pros and cons. On the plus side, it seems like a great opportunity for my daughter to take an outside class that I can later put on her college transcript to "prove" she can handle college-level work, but at the same time, I'm hesitant to wade into college classes yet, because I know the grade will become part of a permanent transcript. (What if she bombs it?!) But since they're offered to students as young as 7th grade, it seems like maybe the classes are not that hard? I think at this point, my daughter would mostly be interested in taking a class on something elective-like (such as learning Photoshop).

I guess I feel like I don't really understand the program itself or the repercussions of participating. Would love guidance. Thank you!

[Kassia]

1 minute ago, EKT said:

Hi there!

We're relatively new to Ohio (moved here about a year ago). My oldest is in her second semester of 8th grade. As we look ahead to high school, I feel a bit in the dark about navigating the College Credit Plus program, and would love some guidance from anyone who has participated. I guess I'm just wondering about pros and cons. On the plus side, it seems like a great opportunity for my daughter to take an outside class that I can later put on her college transcript to "prove" she can handle college-level work, but at the same time, I'm hesitant to wade into college classes yet, because I know the grade will become part of a permanent transcript. (What if she bombs it?!) But since they're offered to students as young as 7th grade, it seems like maybe the classes are not that hard? I think at this point, my daughter would mostly be interested in taking a class on something elective-like (such as learning Photoshop).

I guess I feel like I don't really understand the program itself or the repercussions of participating. Would love guidance. Thank you!

My dd participated in CCP for several years and it was a good experience for her.  The difficulty of the class really depended on the professor and the subject matter.  And when/whether your dd is ready for college-level classes is really up to you and her - every student is so different!  Starting with something she's interested in is a good idea.  My dd started with Spanish, which she already knew well and loved, so she could become familiar with the pace of a college class and how it all worked.  She did meet with her professor before taking the class, but that was because we weren't sure what level class she should start with.  

If you're hesitant because of grades, I would definitely be careful since they will be part of her permanent transcript (as you mentioned).  If you're on facebook, there's a very helpful group called Ohio Homeschoolers for College Credit (I think that's what it's called).  My dd ended up graduating with 85 college credits.  

[EKT]

15 minutes ago, Kassia said:

My dd participated in CCP for several years and it was a good experience for her.  The difficulty of the class really depended on the professor and the subject matter.  And when/whether your dd is ready for college-level classes is really up to you and her - every student is so different!  Starting with something she's interested in is a good idea.  My dd started with Spanish, which she already knew well and loved, so she could become familiar with the pace of a college class and how it all worked.  She did meet with her professor before taking the class, but that was because we weren't sure what level class she should start with.  

If you're hesitant because of grades, I would definitely be careful since they will be part of her permanent transcript (as you mentioned).  If you're on facebook, there's a very helpful group called Ohio Homeschoolers for College Credit (I think that's what it's called).  My dd ended up graduating with 85 college credits.  

Thanks so much for responding. I appreciate it. 

[mom2scouts]

You should be aware that the Ohio CCP has a rule that the first 15 hours need to be general ed requirements. There were classes that DS was very interested in taking, but wasn't allowed to take because he hadn't done 15 hours of approved level 1 classes yet. I think the list varies by college, so that is something to check. Also, the money for homeschoolers comes from a different fund than that for public school students and that means less hours are awarded. Many homeschoolers, especially those of younger students, are very disappointed when they find how many hours they got. My senior got 16 hours this year. He took a 4 hour and a 3 hour class each semester which means two credit hours were wasted because there aren't any 2 hour approved classes. Younger students get less hours and it seemed that freshman and younger didn't get enough credits this year to take more than one or two classes for the year. People who've done the program for years say that, as more people apply, the number of hours awarded per student has declined.

As you said, the grade will go on her college record, so you should be sure she's ready for college level classes. The difficulty and expectation of each class can vary widely based on the instructor. The rules say they can make you pay for any classes that the student fails, but I'm not sure how much they enforce it.

[EKT]

3 minutes ago, mom2scouts said:

You should be aware that the Ohio CCP has a rule that the first 15 hours need to be general ed requirements. There were classes that DS was very interested in taking, but wasn't allowed to take because he hadn't done 15 hours of approved level 1 classes yet. I think the list varies by college, so that is something to check. Also, the money for homeschoolers comes from a different fund than that for public school students and that means less hours are awarded. Many homeschoolers, especially those of younger students, are very disappointed when they find how many hours they got. My senior got 16 hours this year. He took a 4 hour and a 3 hour class each semester which means two credit hours were wasted because there aren't any 2 hour approved classes. Younger students get less hours and it seemed that freshman and younger didn't get enough credits this year to take more than one or two classes for the year. People who've done the program for years say that, as more people apply, the number of hours awarded per student has declined.

As you said, the grade will go on her college record, so you should be sure she's ready for college level classes. The difficulty and expectation of each class can vary widely based on the instructor. The rules say they can make you pay for any classes that the student fails, but I'm not sure how much they enforce it.

This is all very good to know, thank you. (If it's relevant, we live in Columbus, so would likely be doing classes through Columbus State Community College.) 

[Kassia]

1 hour ago, mom2scouts said:

You should be aware that the Ohio CCP has a rule that the first 15 hours need to be general ed requirements. Also, the money for homeschoolers comes from a different fund than that for public school students and that means less hours are awarded. Many homeschoolers, especially those of younger students, are very disappointed when they find how many hours they got.

I forgot about that rule.  Thanks for bringing it up.  We ended up enrolling our dd in public school for junior and senior year when she was ready to do DE full time.  So she was a public school student with full funding (including textbooks and fees) for two years and it didn't cost us anything except the hassle of dealing with ps.  It's really ridiculous that homeschool students don't have the same CCP benefits as ps students.  

 

59 minutes ago, EKT said:

This is all very good to know, thank you. (If it's relevant, we live in Columbus, so would likely be doing classes through Columbus State Community College.) 

I've heard good things about Columbus State.  They certainly have a lot of classes to select from.  

[aaplank]

My kids are doing CCP through Columbus State and it's been a good experience.  Columbus State has a well established CCP program with great resources.  My kids were given advisors that specifically handle CCP students.  

That said my sophomore was given 4 credits and my junior was given 8 credits, which accounted for 1 and 2 classes.  I don't know how much a freshman would get, but there is always the option of paying for additional hours at a discounted rate.

Because of Covid, Ohio has extended the CCP application deadline to May 1.

[Kassia]

5 hours ago, aaplank said:

 

That said my sophomore was given 4 credits and my junior was given 8 credits, which accounted for 1 and 2 classes.  I don't know how much a freshman would get, but there is always the option of paying for additional hours at a discounted rate.

 

That's really nice.  The colleges around here don't have a discounted rate (one community college, one state university).  

 

 

[EKT]

7 hours ago, aaplank said:

My kids are doing CCP through Columbus State and it's been a good experience.  Columbus State has a well established CCP program with great resources.  My kids were given advisors that specifically handle CCP students.  

That said my sophomore was given 4 credits and my junior was given 8 credits, which accounted for 1 and 2 classes.  I don't know how much a freshman would get, but there is always the option of paying for additional hours at a discounted rate.

Because of Covid, Ohio has extended the CCP application deadline to May 1.

This is very helpful information, thank you! 

Yes, we probably wouldn't take advantage this coming year (her freshman year), as I want my daughter to acclimate to homeschooling high school first. (I think the earliest we'd even consider applying is to take a class during her sophomore year.) But right now, I'm mapping out high school in a big-picture way and I wanted to get a handle on understanding how the program works. Our main interest is not in racking up college credits--I mean, it'd be great to do so, and we'd happily take them!--but I think our main goal in participating in CCP would be for my daughter to get some practice with college-level courses and thus demonstrate to prospective 4-year colleges that she can hack college-level work.

If I may ask:

• Do you find Columbus State to be generally easy to work with and welcoming toward homeschoolers, or are they kind of hostile toward homeschoolers? In other words, was the administration happy to guide you, and are your kids' advisors genuinely helpful? (I ask because the main community college in the area we moved from was pretty mixed in its treatment of homeschoolers, according to my many friends with older homeschooled kids. Some had great experiences, but some found dealing with the administrators a total headache. I'd love to get a sense of the culture toward homeschoolers at Columbus State, so I'm prepared.) 
• Because of Covid, are your kids taking their classes in person, or is everything online? 
• Can you describe some of the first classes your kids took and what the workload was like?

Thank you for any follow-up information you are able to provide. I am grateful!

[cintinative]

FYI.  If you don't get the credit hours you want from CCP, that does not mean you can't take classes via paying your own way.  I am still sorting all this out, but the self-pay here in our area for schools really varies. For Sinclair, it is very reasonable.  For UC Blue Ash it is more expensive.  Can any of you with experience speak to that?

I think a friend just told me that only DE through junior year really counts when colleges are looking at your transcripts?? Is that right??

I don't know if this was mentioned upthread but generally the higher the grade level, the more credits the student is assigned.

It seems like there are no guarantees though unless you are enrolled in a local public school. (??) 

I didn't plan to do CCP next year for my rising 10th. I could do it for Spanish, but I just don't know if we are ready for college pacing yet.  I thought about possibly doing government or econ via CCP when he is a junior.

[mom2scouts]

50 minutes ago, cintinative said:

FYI.  If you don't get the credit hours you want from CCP, that does not mean you can't take classes via paying your own way.  I am still sorting all this out, but the self-pay here in our area for schools really varies. For Sinclair, it is very reasonable.  For UC Blue Ash it is more expensive.  Can any of you with experience speak to that?

I think a friend just told me that only DE through junior year really counts when colleges are looking at your transcripts?? Is that right??

I don't know if this was mentioned upthread but generally the higher the grade level, the more credits the student is assigned.

It seems like there are no guarantees though unless you are enrolled in a local public school. (??) 

I didn't plan to do CCP next year for my rising 10th. I could do it for Spanish, but I just don't know if we are ready for college pacing yet.  I thought about possibly doing government or econ via CCP when he is a junior.

1. I've heard that some colleges will let you buy more credits at a reduced rate, but that is not the case at the colleges near us that do CCP. CCP students who want more classes would be required to pay full tuition prices.

2.My ds started CCP in his senior year. Midyear reports were sent to colleges and some want end of senior year reports too, so they may consider senior year classes.

3. Yes, Ohio gives more credits to seniors and then less and less for each lower grade level.

4. Public school students can get as many credits as they want. Homeschoolers get whatever the state has set aside to fund CCP for them. It seems unlikely that a homeschooled student would get enough credits to do more than a few classes each semester and definitely not full time.

[Kassia]

1 hour ago, cintinative said:

 

I think a friend just told me that only DE through junior year really counts when colleges are looking at your transcripts?? Is that right??

 

All of my kids' senior year DE grades and classes were looked at by colleges and were considered important.  

 

 

47 minutes ago, mom2scouts said:

 

4. Public school students can get as many credits as they want. Homeschoolers get whatever the state has set aside to fund CCP for them. It seems unlikely that a homeschooled student would get enough credits to do more than a few classes each semester and definitely not full time.

 

I believe that ps students have a max of 30 hours for funding, but maybe that's changed.  

Edited January 22, 2021 by Kassia

[aaplank]

5 hours ago, EKT said:

• Do you find Columbus State to be generally easy to work with and welcoming toward homeschoolers, or are they kind of hostile toward homeschoolers? In other words, was the administration happy to guide you, and are your kids' advisors genuinely helpful? (I ask because the main community college in the area we moved from was pretty mixed in its treatment of homeschoolers, according to my many friends with older homeschooled kids. Some had great experiences, but some found dealing with the administrators a total headache. I'd love to get a sense of the culture toward homeschoolers at Columbus State, so I'm prepared.) 
• Because of Covid, are your kids taking their classes in person, or is everything online? 
• Can you describe some of the first classes your kids took and what the workload was like?

1. Columbus State has been very easy to work with as a homeschooler; they have been very welcoming. Their advisor is very knowledgeable about CCP and homeschooling. I like that my kids have to go through the advisor first and the advisor actually enrolls them in the class, which takes the worry off my shoulders that we're doing something wrong. We have only received positive professional treatment from the staff at Columbus State. We've also utilized the writing center which has been so helpful with academic papers.

2. All classes at Columbus State are online this year due to Covid. 

3.  The first class they took was Composition 1, which is pretty much the prerequisite for all other classes. I would not recommend that professor because the workload was insane! I was an English minor in college and never had that much work. It wasn't overly challenging, just a lot of unnecessary work, which I attribute to the professor, not Columbus State.  The writing center allows you to upload your paper and get written feedback. That was extremely helpful. Also, for a research project my students had to call and set up virtual appointments with the reference librarian and they were phenomenal with helping them find the resources and actually helping them use the research databases at CSCC.

[EKT]

3 hours ago, cintinative said:

FYI.  If you don't get the credit hours you want from CCP, that does not mean you can't take classes via paying your own way. 

This is a really good point! lol. We'd have to look into the specific costs, but it may well be worth it to us to just pay our own way if we don't get enough credits. (I wonder if you'd have more class choice if you're paying directly out of pocket? Or if the rule mentioned upthread--about the first 15 hours having to be general courses--would still apply. I will put that on my list of questions.) 

And thanks for all of the other info you mentioned. All very helpful and good to know!

[EKT]

4 minutes ago, aaplank said:

1. Columbus State has been very easy to work with as a homeschooler; they have been very welcoming. Their advisor is very knowledgeable about CCP and homeschooling. I like that my kids have to go through the advisor first and the advisor actually enrolls them in the class, which takes the worry off my shoulders that we're doing something wrong. We have only received positive professional treatment from the staff at Columbus State. We've also utilized the writing center which has been so helpful with academic papers.

2. All classes at Columbus State are online this year due to Covid. 

3.  The first class they took was Composition 1, which is pretty much the prerequisite for all other classes. I would not recommend that professor because the workload was insane! I was an English minor in college and never had that much work. It wasn't overly challenging, just a lot of unnecessary work, which I attribute to the professor, not Columbus State.  The writing center allows you to upload your paper and get written feedback. That was extremely helpful. Also, for a research project my students had to call and set up virtual appointments with the reference librarian and they were phenomenal with helping them find the resources and actually helping them use the research databases at CSCC.

This fantastic information, thank you so much for taking the time to respond! It is very reassuring to hear that you've had a positive experience so far.