I have two teenage daughters in Roanoke City Public Schools, and soon we’ll be gearing up for the college search. I know as a parent that when we see opportunities to better our children’s education, we feel we should take them. That’s why we’re seeing an increase in high schoolers enrolling in AP and dual enrollment courses, and sometimes even obtaining associate degrees — all before stepping foot into college. But then they arrive, only to find that their college won’t honor many of those hard-earned credits because of “applicability” requirements. Now what does that mean? I chair the Education Committee in Virginia’s State House, and it’s still confusing to me.
The explanation is, higher education institutions get to decide whether dual enrollment (DE) classes taken will count towards a specific degree, and how they will count. These requirements are sometimes narrow, confusing and frustrating. For many students, their DE classes are treated as worthless if they don’t fit neatly into their eventual major. For example, a student who takes a community college accounting class may not see that class count towards their four-year accounting degree, as colleges often count these courses as simple electives.
That’s “applicability,” and it’s increasing student debt…