The EDUFAX Educational FAQ

Question #15:

I dropped out of high school in my senior year. Through a special agreement with my high school, I will be attending community college to earn credits towards a high school diploma. How do you think colleges will respond to my nontraditional transcripts ?

Answer #15:

Although some colleges are too conservative to accept the validity of a nontraditional college applicant presentation, the good news is that many schools respect the skills and initiative of nontraditional learners. Make sure you speak with a college counselor or independent consultant to find a list of schools appropriate to your achievements and aspirations. Reader's Response: As a Community College employee in Colorado, I have to take exception to the response [above]. We have many students who co-enroll (they attend both high school and college at the same time) as well as many students who are attached to their high schools but attend the college exclusively. Many students receive credit for these courses at their high school as well as at college. This is becoming a very common practice and many of our students of high school age who attend college seem to have no trouble getting into college/university of their choice. I don't think it is as untraditional as you might have portrayed and you did not point out to this student the strength they are displaying by being successful at college while still in high school. I thought your answer was lacking in recent information as well as in helping this student to see the benefits and using those to his/her advantage. (courtesy Carol Achziger, Computer Access Center Coordinator, Arapahoe Community College, Littleton, CO) Marcia Rubinstien, Director of EDUFAX, responded: I am open to enlightenment. Perhaps I am suffering from a regional prejudice. Here in the East, our community college systems are not as well developed as they are, for example, in California. (I don't know about Colorado). It is highly unusual for students to co-enroll here and it is usually problematic for them to receive college credit for courses they have taken at the Community College level. Also, many colleges will not allow a student to apply as a freshman if they have a certain amount of college credits. How do you get around that? If you'd fill me in, I'll be happy to add a correction. One person can only know so much! Reader's Response: Here is how being a co-enrolled student in Colorado works. We have had this arrangement/law for several years. it is very popular and it is becoming less and less likely that a good student from high school isn't graduating with credits like this. I hope this helps. Thanks for all your work with the newsletter. I use the letter as a reference tool for students and as a basis for transition planning workshops that I am asked to present. (courtesy Carol Achziger, Computer Access Center Coordinator, Arapahoe Community College, Littleton, CO) Carol referred the question to Howard Fukaye, Coordinator, High School Recruiting, Arapahoe Community College, Littleton, CO, who provided the following response: Colorado has two laws that address the co-enrollment issue. They are C.R.S. Title-22 Article-35 and Article-34. Article-35 a.k.a. "The Post-secondary Enrollment Options Act" allows public high school juniors and seniors the opportunity to enroll in pre-approved college courses. The students are granted dual credit for the course(s), that is, they can use the credit for high school graduation purposes and they also get a head start on college course work. Another positive aspect about the law is, as long as the courses are pre-approved by the school district and the student passes the class(es) the school district will reimburse the student's tuition. So, it's almost like getting free college classes. The other statue, also called the "Fast Track" program, allows public school seniors who have met all the graduation requirements, the opportunity to enroll in courses at a post-secondary institution. The school district pays the tuition for the student. Students who participated in these programs have no problems transferring, core general education course work, to other colleges in Colorado. Students are encouraged to check with the institution they are apply to about transferability. If a student is attending a highly selective institution, they are advised to check that school's admission department regarding transferability and their admissions classification status. Generally, students who participate in the program are looking to get a head start on college and are anxious to have the first semester and sometimes even the first year of college already completed. EDUFAX provides services for the Adult/Non-Traditional/Re-entry Student.

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