DCCS has a dual credit partnership with Colorado Christian University.
This is a tremendous opportunity for 10th, 11th and 12th grade students at DC to receive college credit at a fraction of the cost (85% off face value of a college credit), while challenging themselves by taking the most rigorous courses they can. You need to earn an A, B or C in your DC course to receive the dual credit through CCU. I address some FAQ’s in this post specific to DC but you can also click here to get answers to more FAQ’s regarding CCU’s Dual Credit program.
1. What courses at DC are eligible to receive dual credit through CCU?
There are two main requirements that a course must meet to be eligible. First, the teacher must have a Master’s degree in the field in the subject in which they teach. Each teacher then submits a number of documents to CCU for approval. The below courses we offer at DC have been approved to receive dual credit for the ‘22-‘23 school year.
English: English 10 Honors, AP English Language, AP English Literature
Math: Precalculus Honors, AP Statistics, AP Calculus AB, AP Calculus BC
Science: Chemistry Honors, AP Chemistry
History: US History Honors, AP US History, AP US Gov’t, AP European History
Bible: Christian Doctrine, Apologetics and Christian Thought
Electives: AP Computer Science Principles, AP Psychology, Art History Honors
2. What is the different between dual enrollment and dual credit?
Dual enrollment refers to when a student takes a local college course in-person instead of attending a class at their high school. Dual credit refers to when a student takes their own high school course that is approved to receive college credit by a college or university. At DC, we don’t typically have students take dual enrollment courses because it doesn’t work in our schedule and students are required to take a minimum of 5 credits each year (6 is recommended). Because of our A/B rotating schedule, it is very hard to take a M-F college course in person. However, we have a great opportunity at DC to receive dual credits with CCU!
3. How many colleges will accept dual credit through CCU?
CCU is dual credit partners with over 200 high schools across the United States. You can view the complete list of CCU partner schools by clicking here. While it is up to each individual college to determine how they accept transfer credits, if colleges are receiving this many transcripts from CCU dual credit partner schools, the chances of them accepting the credit goes up exponentially. Colleges understand that CCU puts the high schools through a very detailed and rigorous review process. This being said, it is important to ask the admissions and/or registrar’s office at the colleges that your child is interested in or is applying to in order to to know if they definitely will accept the dual credit from CCU. In my opinion, the overwhelming majority of colleges will accept these dual credits from CCU. The more competitive a college gets for a student to be admitted (below 30%), the amount of transfer credits they will accept goes down significantly. This goes for AP credit or other ways students may transfer credit, not just dual credit through CCU.
4. How much will each CCU dual credit course cost?
The cost per course is $200. This is a GREAT price for 3 college credits. The median cost of one credit hour at 4-year nonprofit colleges is $530, assuming a 12-credit-hour course load per semester (24 credit hours annually) and payment of full tuition and fees. The cost of one credit hour based on average tuition and fees is $1,537 when just looking at 4-year private, nonprofit institutions.
Please note: Chemistry Honors and AP Chemistry receive 5 total credits because a 2 credit Chemistry lab is additional credit. AP US History receives 3 credits for each semester completed (6 total). You will pay $200 for each semester.
5. How do I register for a CCU dual credit course?
CCU dual credit registration takes place all online. You would need to complete a “CCU Academy Online Dual Enrollment Form”, then create a “CCU Login” and pay for your courses in “Self-Service”. For complete registration instructions click here.
6. What is the deadline to register by?
The registration deadline will be April 1st. Since AP Psychology and the first semester of AP US History are considered semester courses for CCU dual enrollment, the deadline to register for these two courses was November 15th, however, if you would like to retroactively register for one of these two courses because you missed the deadline above, please let me know. This later registration date is a big benefit because it will give juniors and especially seniors more time to research the colleges they may apply to or are applying to and see if they will accept the dual enrollment credits they have/will earn. Seniors, you should have received almost all of your admission decisions by April 1st, so hopefully, the CCU dual credits you have or will receive will play a factor in the financial fit at each of the colleges you are deciding to possibly attend.
7. How can I view and send my CCU transcript to colleges?
For instructions on how access your unofficial transcripts and send your official transcripts to colleges of your choice, click here.
8. Can I withdrawal from a course I already registered for?
Yes. You may drop or withdraw from a course by filling out the Drop/Withdrawal Request Form. Drop/withdraw forms may be emailed to dualcredit@ccu.edu. Drops must be completed by the deadline (May 1st) in order to receive a refund. The student will not receive a transcript for the course. Withdrawing from a course after the drop deadline results in a “W” on your transcript and no refund.
9. What if I get dual credit for an AP course but also pass the AP exam at the end of the school year? Will I get credit for both?
This all depends on the college(s) you may be transferring the credit to. If receiving a 3, 4 or 5 on the AP test earns the student the same credit that they would get if they received the dual credit through CCU, then you spent $300 for 3 credits ($200 for CCU course and $100) for the AP test which is still a great deal. If the college, however, will allow you to receive credit for a 3, 4 or 5 on the AP exam and an additional 3 credits for completing the Dual Credit course, then you paid ($300 for 6 credits). It’s all up to the college(s) though and how they award the credit for the dual credit course and the AP test. You can check what credit colleges may award for AP credit here. You would need to email the admissions office at the specific colleges you are interested in or are applying to and ask them how they would accept your transfer credits to know for sure.
10. How many credits could I earn? Could I earn an Associate of Arts Degree?
The easy answer is that you could earn as many credits as you would like. Before I provide you with numbers, however, I want to re-emphasize that this would be the ideal scenario assuming the college(s) would accept all of your dual credit courses. Please research in advance to see which credits would transfer to each college.
You could have up to 18-20 college credits if you took at least two CCU dual credit courses each year and then possibly an additional 9-10 from passing AP exams during 10th-12th grade. This would give you enough credits to start out as a sophomore academically in college and save $15,000-$20,000. I would like to also make you aware of a unique opportunity that CCU provides in earning an Associates Degree before you graduate from DCCS. Click here to learn more about this opportunity. This Associates Degree requires a total of 60 credits and would require a very rigorous course load in 10th-12th grade but it is possible. Below is a hypothetical scenario in which 60 credits could be earned at DC. This is not official. Credit requirements may vary.
10th– (3 credits each)- English 10 Hon, Doctrine, Precalculus Honors = 9 credits
Chemistry Honors- 5 credits
AP World History Exam (4 or 5)- 3 credits
Take an online dual enrollment college course (summer)- 3 credits
Total credits earned before start of 11th grade- 20 credits
11th– (3 credits each) AP English Language, AP Psychology, AP Computer Science Principles- 9 credits
AP US History- 6 credits
AP Biology- 3 credits for passing AP exam
**AP Chemistry receives the same credit as Chemistry Honors. If you didn’t register for the Chemistry Honor dual credit, you can register for AP Chemistry.
Take an online dual enrollment college course- 3 credits
Total credits earned before start of 12th grade- 21 credits
12th– (3 credits each) AP English Literature (same credit earned for English 10 Honors), AP Calc BC or AP Stat, Apologetics and Christian Thought, AP Statistics, AP Gov’t and/or AP European History- 12 credits
AP Physics 1 Exam (4 or 5)- 3 credits
**AP Chemistry receives the same credit as Chemistry Honors. If you didn’t register for the Chemistry Honor dual credit, you can register for AP Chemistry.
4 additional AP credits from an additional AP exam or online dual credit course
Total- 19 credits
Total needed for Associates Degree- 60 credits (20 + 21 + 19)
