Interest and participation in dual-enrollment courses that allow students to earn college credit while in high school are surging.
Nearly 2.5 million students across the country participated in dual enrollment courses during the 2022-23 school year, according to federal data. And as of October 2024, such courses in some form are offered in 90 percent of public high schools, according to the Community College Research Center at Teachers College, Columbia University, giving students the chance to get a head start on college and career training before they have a high school diploma.
So perhaps it’s no surprise that a new national poll shows that parents of public school students overwhelmingly support these and other programs that give families the chance to make more choices about students’ high school experiences and postsecondary paths.
Ninety-three percent of parents surveyed in a poll commissioned by the National Parents Union, an umbrella organization for parent advocacy groups across the country, said they supported offering all high school students the option to take dual-credit classes. The online survey, conducted Dec. 2-6, included responses from 1,529 parents of public school students in grades K-12.
It’s reassuring to know that many parents share a “positive implication that dual enrollment has benefits for students and benefits for parents as well,” said Tatiana Velasco, a senior research associate at the Community College Research Center.
In addition to helping students and families save time and money on college degrees by taking college-level courses in high school, these programs also help students feel ready for college and confident they can succeed, said Kristen Hengtgen, a policy lead at EdTrust, an advocacy and research organization, who studies college and career readiness.
The national poll also found strong support among parents for other tools that allow students more options and flexibility in high school. Ninety-four percent of parents supported offering all high school students the option to take classes in career, technical, and trade skills. And 84 percent supported the idea of high schools automatically enrolling academically prepared students in Advanced Placement courses to encourage students to take them, while allowing students to opt out. Students can earn college credit for courses depending on their scores on year-end AP exams.
Inequities remain in students’ access to advanced coursework in high school
Even as demand grows for dual enrollment, there’s still uneven access to these and other advanced courses.
Black and Latino students and students from low-income backgrounds are underrepresented in dual enrollment nationally, said Hengtgen.
“There’s lots of data around the power of dual enrollment, but at the end of the day, we just have this really robust body of research that shows access is inequitable,” she said.
Sometimes, there’s little communication between schools and families about how students can enroll in these programs. Some schools may have minimum grade point average requirements for dual enrollment that prevent some students from enrolling. There are also financial barriers.
Some states and districts cover all costs associated with dual-enrollment courses while others do not. Oftentimes, in places where costs aren’t fully covered, families have to pick up a small tab for textbooks or other fees charged by the college offering credit for the dual-enrollment course, Hengtgen said.
Although taking these college-level courses in high school can still save students money compared with paying for the same courses while enrolled full time in college, the courses can still come with costs that may be excessive for some high school families.
As policymakers look to expand access to dual enrollment, Hengtgen recommends focusing on those cost and access barriers as well as working to ensure there’s a pool of high-quality teachers who can ensure rigor in these courses.
Velasco also noted the importance of better communication from schools with families around the transferability of credits. Students should have some assurance that the courses they take in high school as part of dual enrollment actually count toward the degree they want to pursue.
Policymakers can work to ensure that when a student takes a college-level course at a community college while still in high school, the credit can still apply to their degree if they attend a different university after graduation, which doesn’t always happen, Hengtgen said.
Hengtgen also wasn’t surprised by the level of parents’ support for automatic enrollment in AP courses. Researchers have found that automatic enrollment policies, such as one in place in Washington state that requires districts to enroll qualified students in more rigorous courses and only lets them opt out with parents’ permission, have resulted in more students of color and students from low-income families who might otherwise be overlooked for those classes taking more advanced coursework.
