@martinezcs Regarding transferring in 60 hrs of DC. That is simply not possible. Texas only allows a student to take two DC courses max per semester. So can’t transfer in more than 48 DC credit hours. But I don’t even know how that is even possible since most DC that counts worth anything in college towards the GE requirement doesn’t really start until you are a Jr in HS.
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Many homeschool students take additional CC hours. Some can complete most of their basic courses before going to a university (ENGL, HIST, HUMA, etc.), but they will still have to take freshman level classes that are required by the school they are accepted into (ex. ENGR 216). I believe all students can take summer CC classes as well, although the credits probably don’t count on their high school transcript.
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@Kimvogel Thanks for sharing that. I didn’t realize that was even possible. Appreciate the clarification!
My oldest is doing the college application process now. She is a rising senior. She is at a traditional public school and will have 30 dual credits (I just went through and recounted all her credits we had missed some) and 12 credits via AP. She is top 10%. She did some dual credit during the school year and she did some during the summer.
My youngest is only going into 8th grade, but he is enrolling in our public school district’s new dual credit/early college high school. It is a collegiate academy and they graduate with 60 college credits and an associate degree issued from our local community college along with the high school diploma and it is tuition free. It is for 8th-12th grade. We are excited about the opportunity. They are still considered freshman when they apply for college, not transfer students.
It is possible. It is done all the time here in Texas for those who attend a dual credit/early college high school in the public school system. They are tuition free and they are considered freshman when they apply for college not transfer students even though they earn an associate’s degree from the community college. They are not limited to two per semester. Five of their classes each semester junior and senior year are dual credit.
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Yes. For the classes at the high school we enroll at the high school and also at the community college and the courses meet at her high school. For the classes at the college we enroll just at the community college and then have the college send an official transcript to the high school guidance counselor who then issues high school credit for the courses so she gets dual credit that way too. It does appear on her high school transcript too. If people don’t send the college transcript to the high school then it won’t appear on their high school transcript and they won’t get dual credit, just college credit. The guidance counselor provided a list of approved courses that were eligible.
They are weighted higher than standard courses and no exam at the end of the year. The main benefit is they can go on to graduate university with their bachelor’s in 2-3 years instead of the typical 4-5 years. If it is through a traditional high school you pay community college tuition for the college credit which is what my daughter has been doing. If it is through a dual credit/early college collegiate academy then the tuition is free which is what my son is doing. So the reason for so many dual credits is to save a couple years worth of tuition/room/board at the university. 
Lol sorry I meant why is your child taking so many? If they aren’t top 10 % and not admitted right away, then transferring becomes really hard with so many credits.
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She is top 10%
Your son as well?
He is only in 8th grade. So we won’t know that until he is a rising senior. The Texas public universities are quite good about working with the dual credit/early college students. But yes if he wasn’t admitted to A&M he wouldn’t go to Blinn/TEAM. He would apply to several colleges and go to whichever college he gets accepted to and wouldn’t do a program like Blinn/TEAM because he will already have an associate’s. So yes he would go where he gets admitted right away. That is the goal of the early college program to enter the university directly rather than via community college after high school since they do it during high school. My daughter is applying to four colleges. TAMU is one. We went to a parent program recruiting event there recently and really enjoyed it.
Sorry to derail your thread! I know this thread isn’t about dual credit. 
All good girl. Any post has the potential to help someone else so there’s no derailing here! Appreciate your insight!
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@martinezcs I’ve got a current Aggie. I’ve seen multiple threads about students entering with 50-60 DC hours. It causes all kinds of issues. For starters, there’s zero possibility of switching majors, if the student decides they want to do something else. Getting classes at NSC is next to impossible, because the upperclassman have already registered for those classes. Lots of incoming parents of these students gripe, because there are no open classes for their kid to take. Not to mention, some community college basics, for majors like Business, Engineering, Biomedical & Pre Vet, just don’t fully prepare the student for the upper level classes. It could work great for some majors, but definitely not all.
Mays specifically mentioned at our NSC they aren’t fans, or impressed, by students entering with so many DC hours.
I know it sounds great, and it definitely can save some $$, but it can really cause problems.
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Thank you for the perspective. I appreciate it.
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First time poster here but have been lurking.
Helping my nephew apply to TAMU and appreciate any advice.
His credentials are below:
- Top 6.29%
- UW GPA 3.97 Weighted 4.4662
- SAT 1240 (620 ERW 620 Math)
- Not many EC or volunteer hours due to taking care of disabled family member
He is interested in biomedical engineering but not sure. His second choice is biology BS. On his application, should he apply to engineering as first major and bio as second? Or should he change it around since biology major is I understand he would be auto admitted bc of his rank?
This is my first go round at college admissions (although I am also helping DS go through same process) so any advice is very much appreciated. Thank you so much in advance!
I should also mention my son doesn’t know where he wants to go to college yet. It’s my daughter who is applying to TAMU now along with a couple other schools. Where she ends up depends on the financial package offered.
My son is enrolled in the early college high school (ECHS) already. He starts in two weeks and there are many other aspects of the school we like more than the regular high school in our district that he would be attending that my daughter currently attends. But I do appreciate the insight and information. TAMU may not be a good fit for him if that is what it is like there for ECHS graduates. This ECHS is a good fit for him and when the time comes that he will be looking for colleges he will look for one that is a good fit for him at the time. Some Texas colleges have dedicated advisors, scholarships, and special admissions process for ECHS students so we would be looking for that. The ECHS is a healthcare program and has dedicated pathways that students choose based on if they are going for LVN, RN, Surgical Technician, or Medical or Dental school. They do clinics and healthcare electives in addition to the general lower division courses. If they want to stop at LVN, RN or surgical technican they are able to complete all exams and clinic hours through this ECHS and do not even go on to university afterwards. They go directly into the workforce as an LVN, RN, or surgical technician. The ones who are medical/dental/PT, or who want a higher level of RN than ASN (BSN, MSN) etc go on to University. They visit colleges and medical facilities and have guest speakers in the medical field every week. We are really excited about the new ECHS in our district.
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He’ll get into the university (provided he lives in Texas) given his rank. In choosing BIOL, he wouldn’t be subject to the additional review process engineering applicants encounter, which would be a selling point for me.
There are fairly stringent guidelines to change your major into BMEN (shorthand for biomedical engineering), should he go the BIOL route. It is likely easier to start in ENGR if he’s on the fence, and then leave if it’s not what he wants, rather than trying to switch into it down the line.
In essence, admission becomes a simpler process if he chooses BIOL, but may handcuff him in terms of changing into engineering later on.
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My S22 has submitted his application.
Out of State (Tennessee)
Applied for Engineering
ACT – 34
PSAT – 1440/215
GPA – 3.95/4.35 (Full IB Curriculum)
President of High School Robotics Club, Winner of 2021 Apple Swift WWDC Coding Competition.
I hope he gets admitted (and if that makes the cutoff for National Merit).
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What an incredible ACT score…I think that alone might be good enough, though it isn’t up to me, unfortunately
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@martinezcs this program sounds amazing! I don’t know that my city has anything even remotely similar, except Vocational classes in 11th & 12th grade. And those aren’t necessarily dual credit classes, more like certificates earned.
What a fabulous opportunity for your son!
Wherever your daughter ends up going, just make sure she doesn’t accept her AP credit until she meets with her advisor. Many students wait and accept during sophomore & junior year, to lighten their course load. DC will be added automatically, but AP can be accepted at any time-definitely a benefit to AP.
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