High School College Courses

Many colleges and universities are opening up their programs to high school juniors and seniors. High school students can attend college courses, sometimes for free, and formally enter college having already earned a number of college credits. Many community colleges have partnered with high schools and offer programs where a high school student spends part of their school day on the community college campus attending classes.

I had hoped to take advantage of one of these programs when I was in high school. The only problem was that the community college and the schedule I needed would have meant losing two class periods out of seven. I opted instead to forgo the free college courses rather than lose two classes.

Today's students don't have to settle for whatever their local community college or university offers.

The Home School Advantage

Home schooled students have a definite advantage over their traditionally educated friends. Without the somewhat rigid schedule of traditional students, home schooled students can really take advantage of these early admission programs for high school students. Instead of having to fit the college courses around their regular studies, home schooled students have the flexibility to fit their regular studies around the college courses.

Early admission and online college courses also provide home schooled students access to course work that their parents might feel inadequate to teach themselves.

Online College Courses for High School Students

Taking this a step further, just think of the opportunities that online college courses brings for both traditional and home schooled high school students. With more and more colleges and universities opening up their online college credit courses to high schoolers, students can take those classes they want without worry of having to sacrifice other classes for travel time.

Saving Money With Online College Courses for High School Students

What makes these programs even more powerful is that many students can take online college courses at the college they plan on attending once they graduate high school. They are no longer limited to taking courses at the local community college or university. They can take college level courses from the college or university of their choice that offers online courses and accepts high school students as provisional or special students.

Taking online college courses from the same school that you plan to attend eliminates the transfer of credits issue entirely. High school students and home schooled students can start their degree program with a number of college credits and they might have even been able to get those courses for free!