Morgan Cline is a 2025 graduate of Teays Valley High School in Ashville, Ohio, currently studying aviation and music education at The Ohio State University.

Imagine starting your first year of college. New school, new friends, new living arrangements, potentially a new city to call home, new activities—new everything. For many, this is the biggest set of changes they have experienced, and it can be quite overwhelming. The switch from high school to college in terms of course load and classes alone is often a wake-up call for those who had an easy time with assignments in every stage of school up to this point in their lives. Wouldn’t it be nice to get a head start on your college classes and walk into your freshman year with multiple credit hours of general education courses already completed, while also fulfilling your high school credit requirements?

Dual credit is a fantastic program that allows for significant advancement in both high school and college coursework. However, it can be complicated to understand the benefits and risks of starting college classes early. During my time at Teays Valley High School, I took six different dual credit classes (equal to 21 credit hours) my junior and senior years through Columbus State Community College, all of which I received transfer credit for when I officially started my degree at The Ohio State University. I have learned a lot about how the academic environments of high school and college differ from each other and was able to compile a list of some things I did that really helped make my transition as seamless as possible; hopefully it provides some assistance and advice to anyone considering starting dual credit courses in high school.

1. Plan your schedule accordingly to balance high school activities with college coursework, especially if you take asynchronous (online) classes.

These courses are taught by a separate college or university whose academic calendar may differ from that of your high school, which means you could end up having assignments or exams due during high school breaks when you might be on vacation. Be sure to look ahead at the entire semester as soon as you get your syllabus for each course and read through the entire document to figure out when your big assignments are due and to plan accordingly if you know you will be out of town when something is due. It might also be useful to pick a day of the week when your schedule tends to be lighter and devote a majority of that day each week to working on your college assignments (this was Sunday for me, but I would recommend starting things earlier in the week because online assignments are often due Sunday night). Many professors provide a syllabus (or course calendar) for all due dates in the course, making it much easier to keep up with your coursework.

2. Speaking of the syllabus, that leads me to my next words of advice: Read it. All the way through. For each class.

It may seem boring or even a little daunting for certain classes, but this document lays out everything you need to know about the course for the entire semester. Grading policies, extra credit opportunities, contact information for the professor, dates and times for office hours and exams (very important), and any other general information about the class can be found in the syllabus, so it’s worth taking a careful look. Plus, if you’re lucky, you might get to the end of it and see a little note in small text that reads, “If you’re reading this, send me an email with ‘pastrami’ in the subject line and I’ll give you five extra credit points on your first assignment!” No lie, this was in the syllabus for an online class that I took. Professors are often willing to recognize or reward students who take the time to read this, so don’t underestimate its influence on your success in the class (remember, I can’t promise you’ll get extra credit just for reading it, but it’s a possibility).

3. Take time to figure out which studying methods are best for you.

If you’re like me, you probably didn’t have to study much in your high school classes, and the material just kind of clicked in your brain right off the bat, even in honors and AP classes. However, college classes, even those in general education subjects, expect a different level of commitment compared to their high school equivalents. For instance, you may be required to write longer essays than you’re used to, assignments and required readings might be more in-depth or time-consuming (multipart assignments and projects often have the ability to sneak up on you), or the grading processes might be stricter than you’ve experienced in the past.
 
Do not be intimidated, though, because starting these courses while still in high school can prove very beneficial in discovering different studying techniques. You’ll develop a good idea of how best to go about reviewing course material independently before you actually get to college, where you are expected to know how to study efficiently. A few strategies that I’ve used myself and/or heard good things from others about include making flash cards (Quizlet is a great online resource for this), playing review games such as Kahoot!, and rewriting notes multiple times until you can write them from memory, which I’ve personally found very helpful when studying subjects that are content-heavy and focus on knowledge of material rather than application-based topics.  And, of course, if the textbook you’ve been assigned offers study materials—use them!

4. Make sure you have enough responsibility, self-discipline, and maturity to complete your coursework in a timely manner.

The only significant risk with taking a dual credit course is that if you do not pass, you are required to reimburse your high school for the cost of the course, which can be very expensive, especially if you fail multiple classes in one semester. Also, keep in mind that while these classes can do wonders for your high school GPA (mine went up almost 20 points in one semester from taking three college classes), this also means that lower passing grades such as a B– or a C can significantly decrease it if you are typically a 4.0 student. The transition to college-level coursework is not easy, which is why I recommend starting with just one dual credit class for your first semester in the program. This will help you get a feel for how you’ll need to balance your schedule if you plan on taking more of these classes in the future, and it will also not seriously damage your cumulative GPA if you don’t do as well in the class as you’d anticipated.

5. Do not be afraid to ask for help.

I have always struggled with this myself, so I feel very qualified to speak on this subject. Your professors want you to succeed, but they can’t help you if you don’t ask questions and reach out for assistance. They can start to develop a bad reputation if the pass rates for the courses they teach are not high enough, and most are very passionate about their subject, so they will be happy to go over in more detail any topics that you might not be understanding or provide additional practice materials that may be useful for studying on your own. Email is often the preferred method of communication for professors teaching asynchronous classes, but if you take an in-person class and the professor holds office hours, those are a GREAT resource as well! Your professors will take note if you consistently show up when they’re offering extra help, and you’ll usually receive more individualized attention during office hours than you would in class. 

Completing general education college classes while still in high school has many great benefits, and I would highly recommend the program to anyone who may be thinking about taking a college class. As long as you know how to effectively manage your time, communicate well with faculty and other students, and evaluate your own personal motivation and self-discipline levels before taking on a new challenge such as a dual credit course, participating in this program is likely to be an experience you won’t regret. 

Looking to take your dual enrollment course to the next level? Sign up here to get instant access to The Norton Guide to Teaching in Dual Enrollment Contexts.

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