High School Students Enrolled in Dual Credit Programs

Dual Credit Programs are instructional partnerships between a public school district, a private secondary school or a home school and the college. Course credit is provided to high school students for both high school and college credit. College credit may be for certificate or associate degree programs. Financial aid is generally limited to those who have either graduated from high school or have a G.E.D.

Eligibility requirements for Dual Credit:

  • To enroll in courses for an associate degree or level-two certificate (TSI eligible) program, you must present a passing score on the ACCUPLACER, ASSET, COMPASS or Texas Higher Education Assessment (THEA) in at least one area (reading, writing, or math) as deemed applicable by the college for the intended course in which you wish to enroll. ACCUPLACER and ASSET are available at the college. Public school students wishing to enroll in level-one certificate (TSI waived) programs must have met TAKS standards by passing all sections of the exit-level TAKS or through end-of-course exams.
  • High school students are generally limited to enrolling in two dual credit courses per semester. You may be permitted to enroll in more than two courses if recommended to do so by your high school principal or appropriate home school "official" and under one of the following conditions:
    • Achieve a minimum GPA of 3.00 on at least two college courses taken in previous semesters; or
    • Prove you have passed all sections of TSI tests; or
    • Prove your eligibility to be TSI exempt based upon TAKS, ACT, or SAT as approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. If you are TSI (Texas Success Initiative) exempt or waived, you are still required to meet all DCCC course prerequisite requirements usually by taking a college assessment test to determine college-level readiness skills. Some DCCC course prerequisites could require a higher cut score than those outlined by the THECB TSI state minimum requirements. (Note: these score standards are often altered by the THECB and the currently approved scores must be used.)
  • High school students must meet all appropriate admissions criteria to the college.
  • High school students must fulfill all course prerequisite requirements to enrolling in a dual credit course.

The college-vice president or designate will have a conversation with prospective students under the age of sixteen (16) and their parents so that expectations of college readiness issues of the students, parents, and college are clarified. These issues will be considered in determining readiness for college level course work.