Are AP/Honors Courses Preferred to Dual Enrollment?
Yesterday I posted a poll for all my subscribers who have downloaded the 10 Step Guide to Stress Free College Planning, asking for feedback on it’s usefulness to them. As I continue to get feedback and questions, I’ll be posting them here, so that everyone can benefit from the information. Here’s a question I received from Barb.
I downloaded the material and although it was good, it was all things I had heard before. The questions I am asking now are is it better to take AP classes or Honors? Does it look better on a college transcript to have attended a junior college for credits the junior and/or senior year or is it just as good to have taken Honors classes?
It is good information and useful for some I am sure. We have done so many of the steps that I am looking for more details. Merry Christmas!
As with most things when it comes to what colleges prefer, it really depends on the college. Some schools will accept Honors/AP credits, but will not accept high school dual enrollment courses taken at another school, whether community college or state university. (These are generally your top tier/Ivy League schools.) Even though that could be the case, your student will not be looked at adversely if he has taken dual enrollment courses, since these are college level classes that “prove” he can make the grade in college. (Assuming of course that he did “make the grade” that was required to pass the course.)
As far as which looks better on a transcript, that would depend on if the student has taken the AP test and passed it along with taking the course(s). If a student has taken the class but not the test, or if his scores are below the requirements for college credit (usually a minimum of a 3 or 4 needs to be achieved), then his transcripts will not be as well received as the student who has excellent dual enrollment scores on his transcript.
My final recommendation as always is to check with your student’s potential school(s) to see which they prefer, as it can and will vary from university to university.
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Just want to drop a quick note to let you know that your information has been helpful. I particularly like that fact that you are specific with the different options that may apply to different situations. We are on our way to dual enrollment with the local community college and have appreciated your information!
Thank you.