AP/Dual Credit Opportunities

AP and Dual Credit Things to Consider

Elkhorn South High School offers a variety of courses in which a student has the option to earn college credits while taking high school courses that apply towards graduation. The following information outlines the potential possibilities. Each course is taught at Elkhorn South High School by teachers who have meet the criteria to teach the course. While students can earn college credit, it is ultimately the decision of the receiving college if and how the credit will transfer to their institutions.

AP Courses Offered:

AP English Language/Composition (11th grade)
AP English Literature/Composition (12th grade)
AP Calculus AB
AP Calculus BC
AP Statistics
AP Biology
AP Chemistry
AP United States History

AP World History

AP Psychology

AP Government and Politics
AP Spanish Language and Culture
AP Japanese Language and Culture

The student must take the AP Exam in May and earn a qualifying score in order to earn college credit. They then can send the score(s) to their respective college. Students are not required to send AP scores to a college as they would a college transcript in the case of dual enrollment. A college can choose to award credit or give advanced placement in the subject area. Individual colleges have policies on AP credit transferability and/or placement. Students can visit http://collegeboard.com/ap/creditpolicy for AP credit policies. It is suggested that a student contact the receiving college to check on advisability of taking the test. There are some cases, such as medical school applications or engineering programs, where a student is strongly encouraged to take the course but the AP exam will not be counted for college credits.  Information about registering for the AP exam will be distributed in March.

Dual Enrollment Opportunities at Elkhorn South High School

Elkhorn South High School offers a variety of courses where students can earn college credits while in high school. These credits will also serve a dual purpose of credits earned towards graduation at ESHS. ESHS has agreements with Metropolitan Community College, Peru State College, Nebraska Wesleyan University, and University of Nebraska at Omaha. Each college has their own admission criteria that students must meet in order to enroll. Students are given registration materials early each semester and student must meet the deadlines. Students pay tuition to the institutions.

These courses are taught at ESHS by teachers who have credentials to be adjunct faculty for the institution. As such, it is possible for the same course not to be available for dual credit with every teacher. The student’s schedule must coincide with the appropriate teacher. In some cases it is possible to adjust a schedule to accomodate a student who would like to sign up for college credits, but there are times that this is not possible due to scheduling conflicts or class size.

Another important consideration for students looking towards earning college credit is the transferability of credits to the post-secondary institution where they attend after high school. ESHS and the institutions do not guarantee that any credits will be awarded when transferred to another college. It is highly probable but there have been rare cases that credits have not transferred. In some cases, if a student has taken the AP exam also, credit is awarded. It is advised, when possible, to check with the potential college prior to registration.  If a student is attending a Nebraska school, visit transfer.nebraska.edu for information on how individual classes will transfer.

One last consideration when choosing to take a course for dual credit is that in some cases the grade of the course will be integrated into the college GPA. Sometimes a college will transfer just the credits, other times they will transfer the credit and the grade. In either case, since the student will have a college transcript, they cannot choose not to let the college know about a class if the grade is low. In the event a student would earn a grade of 4 or 5, the credit probably would not transfer but the transcript would and could affect the GPA. Every institution makes their own determination in this matter. An example would be if a student took AP Calculus BC for Nebraska Wesleyan dual enrollment and earned a grade of a 3. The grade would be weighted GPA for ESHS with the value of a grade of a 2, but Nebraska Wesleyan would count it as a grade of a 3, or a C average. Again, not every situation can be planned but it is worth it to at least consider the possible ramifications to a future college transcript.

Most importantly—each ESHS student must decide on their own course of action—students do not have to take the class for college credit. Students are encouraged to do their best in the class to prepare them for college level work, regardless of their choice.

Metropolitan Community College

Criteria for admission:
•Must be at least 16 years of age
•Must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher
•Must have at least an 18 on the ACT or PLAN
Registration: Students will be given the registration sheets at the beginning of the semester. Student must return the sheet and the payment to the counseling center by the deadline indicated. No late registrations will be accepted. Checks are made out to Metro Community College. Credit card payments are accepted also.

Peru State College

Criteria for admission:

Cumulative GPA 3.0 or higher or a 20 on the ACT or rank in the top half of class

University of Nebraska at Omaha

Criteria for admission:
•cumulative GPA of a 3.0 or higher.

Nebraska Wesleyan University Honors Academy

Criteria for admission:

•3.0 GPA

Dual Credit Opportunities Outside of ESHS:

Elkhorn South juniors and seniors have, at times, taken advantage of college credit opportunities offered at local colleges such as:

Metropolitan Community College Career Academy (http://www.mccneb.edu/trades/careeracademy.asp)

•To take advantage of these opportunities a student is given a class period or more to attend classes off the ESHS campus. A student must be on track to graduate and must apply to the programs in the spring. Once accepted, the student will work his/her counselor to arrange the schedules.

•In some instances, credits earned can be transferred back to the high school transcript as dual enrollment

• Students should check with their counselor on transferability.

• A student must be enrolled a minimum of 4 class periods. In order to qualify for honor roll, a student must be enrolled in at least 5 classes which can include the dual credit course.

• In most cases, if a student attends class off campus, their schedule cannot include a study hall.

• See your counselor before registration in the spring if you are interested in these opportunities.