DUAL CREDIT - HCHS
Dual Credit Helpful Documents:
Northwest Vista College Links-PARENTAL CONSENT FORM |
What is Dual Credit? FAQWhat is Dual Credit?
Dual Credit is a program that allows students to earn credit for college coursework concurrent with a high school course. Most dual credit courses will earn a student six credit hours for the year that can be applied to a future university enrollment through Northwest Vista College. Who is Eligible? By Texas statute, students must pass a placement exam called the TSI to be eligible, Any student seeking dual credit placement must take the TSI exam or have a high score on their PSAT exam. TSI exams are administered by Mrs. Zablocki early in the second semester of each year. The number of courses for which students at each grade level may enroll is currently under review. Students should be aware that earning more than 30 hours of dual credit before graduation may have an impact on admission as a college freshman and on scholarship eligibility. Most students enrolled in dual credit courses at HCHS, because of scheduling exigencies,will earn 12-24 hours of college credit. Can an AP score qualify me for a dual credit class? Yes. But only in these two cases. 1. A student who makes a score of 4 or higher on AP English Language and Composition (AP English III) will qualify for English IV AP/DC (English 2322 and 2323) 2. A student who makes a score of 3 or higher on AP Calculus AB will qualify for AP Calculus BC/DC (Math 2414).Please note: these exemptions are in force, at present, and may be modified per our annual MOU with Northwest Vista College (in other words, at any point, NVC may decide that they no longer wish to offer these special exemptions to us). Note, as well. AP scores do not arrive to HCHS until mid-July, after the annual deadline for qualifying for dual credit, so I strongly encourage students who want to qualify for dual credit coursework to do so with a TSI score, where possible. Where may the credit be applied? Students earn credit through Northwest Vista College, and the credit can transfer to all public colleges and universities in Texas. Out-of-state colleges or universities and private colleges and universities are not obligated to accept dual credit coursework for college credit, though they might. Students attending private universities or out-of-state universities will need to advocate for their credit with the Office of the Registrar (or comparable office at the campus). Click on this link for more information: Transferring Dual Credit to a University. What courses do we offer? Normally, we offer the following courses; however, this list is subject to change based on HCHS faculty and the annual revision to our MOU with Northwest Vista College.
Can a student be removed from a dual credit course? Yes. If a student earns less than a letter grade of C for the course, then he will be removed from that dual credit course and from all future dual credit enrollments. So, if a student makes a D or F for English III AP/DC (English 1301) in the Fall, then he will remain in English III AP, but he will be removed from English 1302 in the Spring (and be removed from any 2nd dual credit course in the spring), and he will not be allowed to enroll in any other dual credit courses during his high school career. What if I withdraw from a course? Students may elect to withdraw (otherwise known as dropping a course) from any dual credit course before the posted Last Date to Withdraw (usually a month or so before the end of the semester) for the course; this date is on the NVC website, and students who have questions about this date should speak with their instructor or Mrs. Zablocki. Any student who withdraws before Census date (usually about 10 ten days into the semester and, again, posted online at NVC) will have the course removed from their transcript. A student who withdraws between Census date and the Last Date to Withdraw will be issued a grade of W for the course and the course remains on the transcript. This grade of W does NOT count toward the Six Drop Rule, but it WILL count toward the 3-Peat Rule. What is ACES? ACES is the online portal that all dual credit (and all standard NVC) students use as the official method of communication with NVC. Students may see their grades and transcript and change demographic information in ACES. All dual credit students should login to ACES at least once every few weeks to look at email and see if there are important notices from the college. It is extremely important that dual credit students check their college grades in ACES at the end of each semester, in the event that a grade was mis-recorded by the instructor or the college, so that timely changes can be made by the instructor and/or college. It is the express expectation of HCHS that students be responsible for ensuring that grades are recorded properly in ACES since campus faculty and staff do not have access to grades in ACES once the academic year has completed. What is a Banner ID? Your Banner ID is your student ID for NVC. You will receive a Banner ID by email after NVC processes your Apply Texas application. Keep the Banner ID in a safe place; you need it to complete the GO-FAARR and Test Prep modules, and you may need it for future correspondences with NVC. If you forget your Banner ID, you will have access to it through ACES. What is my username and password for ACES? Your username is assigned to you the first time that you login to ACES (follow the directions for doing this in the Dual Credit Handbook). You will choose your password when you login to ACES the first time, as well. If you forget either one, you must call NVC Helpdesk at 486-4777 to get assistance. I am a returning dual credit student . . . You simply need to register at HCHS for your dual credit coursework. If you attempt to register for a course for which you do not qualify, Mrs. Zablocki will contact you so that you can test and try to qualify for that course. What about transcripts after I graduate? As students complete dual credit courses, they will initiate a transcript through NVC. Immediately upon graduation, students must request from Northwest Vista College that their NVC transcript be sent to the university where they will enroll. They must do this through ACES. HCHS cannot make this transcript request for the student. Any delay in requesting the NVC transcript will result in a delay of the conferral of credit at the university where the student enrolls. |
Dual Credit Checklist 2020-2021TSI EXAM SIGN UP
TSI Exam PreparationThe following sites provide a wide range of TSI test prep materials. Please take advantage of these before testing, and especially, before retesting.
The College Board: the only official, released set of prep items by the College Board for all areas of the test. Houston CC: excellent tutorial for Math, Reading, and Writing. Includes reviews, tests, and helpful videos. McLennan CC: includes sample items and lessons for Math, Reading, and Writing. West Texas A&M: excellent resource for just Math preparation THEA: an older placement exam replaced by the TSI that still gives solid practice for the TSI. Includes Math, Reading, and Writing items with answers. Accuplacer: an older version of the TSI that still gives solid practice for the TSI. Includes Math, Reading, and Writing items with answers. College Board app for smart phones: an app to be used on a smart phone that allows you to do TSI prep on your phone. Hippocampus: an excellent video-based tutorial site that provides assistance in all core areas. Khan Academy Math: a great site for video tutorials and practice items. People's Math - a site where you can get lots of free Math tutoring, including interaction with online tutors. Math Vids - a video-based tutorial where you can receive lots of assistance with high school and college math. |