Around a Quarter of Wisconsin's High School Students Earn College Credits During the School Year

Friday, July 28th, 2023 -- 9:00 AM

(By Corrinne Hess, Wisconsin Public Radio) About a quarter of Wisconsin’s high school students earn college credits during the school year.

But, according to Corrinne Hess with the Wisconsin Public Radio, participation in these programs varies widely across the state based on students' access to participating schools, according to a new report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum.

Over the last decade, the number of students earning college credits through dual enrollment programs at public universities and technical colleges has more than doubled. In the 2021-22 school year, 69,471 high school students earned college credits through dual enrollment programs at the University of Wisconsin System and technical college system.

The most popular classes are math, engineering, English, Spanish and medical terminology. Dual enrollment is different from Advanced Placement classes, which offer high school students a chance to take university-level courses and earn college credit if they pass an assessment test.

Given the numerous types of dual enrollment programs, there could be several reasons for the steady and substantial enrollment increases, said Don Cramer, Wisconsin Policy Forum researcher who authored the report. "High school students see these programs as a way to save time and money by earning credit and credentials ahead of schedule from local colleges or universities," Cramer said.

"On the other side of the agreements, colleges use dual enrollment courses as recruitment tools, giving students previews of what they can expect if they ultimately enroll at their school," he said. "Also, as many colleges see declines in the numbers of traditional students, dual enrollment can sometimes offer an additional revenue stream."  

The majority of students in dual enrollment programs take classes at their own high school, in classes taught by high school teachers approved by the college. National research shows these programs have many benefits including college access, degree attainment and credit accumulation.

But how well these programs prepare students for higher education and the workforce is still unknown, because few studies have been done on specific programs in Wisconsin.

"Because the majority of Wisconsin’s programs are through (the Wisconsin Technical College System), which focuses on workforce preparation, such studies would ideally track students from their high school career through college enrollment and completion to their first years of work," Cramer said.

But it's not that easy. Cramer said tracking students or comparing dual enrollment students with students who didn’t go through the program would be difficult because in many cases, these are students who are already advanced or committed to higher education.

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