Earning College Credits in High School

The dual enrollment option allows Saint Joseph's Catholic Academy students to take college-level courses taught directly from their Saint Joseph's teachers and earn credits toward graduation at Saint Joseph's and a college degree at the same time.

Dual Enrollment vs AP Course
Taking AP classes or enrolling dual enrollment classes while at Saint Joseph's are both options for students to get a jump-start on college.

Dual enrollment means that a student takes a college course to earn both high school and college credit. When applying to college, a student may submit his/her transcript from the college offering the dual enrollment option to authenticate completion of the college course.

Advanced Placement (AP) courses, on the other hand, are high school courses with college-level curricula approved by the College Board.  Following the completion of an AP course, a student is eligible to taken an AP course exam to demonstrate mastery of the course material.  All Saint Joseph's students who take AP courses are required to take the corresponding AP exams.

Many colleges/universities offer AP credit. That is, if a student scores well (3 or higher, depending on the college's policy) on an AP test, he/she would be given college credits.  The eligibility for college credits based on  AP test performance varies by college/university.

Current Dual Enrollment Course Options
To be eligible for the Dual Enrollment program, a Saint Joseph’s student must

• Be a sophomore, junior or senior in good academic standing
• Meet additional Saint Joseph’s academic eligibility standards as determined the Saint Joseph’s Director of College and Career Counseling
• Meet the eligibility requirements of the college/university institution offering the dual enrollment course