Summer is a Great Time to Take a College Class! - Merit Educational Consultants
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Summer is a Great Time to Take a College Class!

For students who have good study skills and can maintain a 3.0 GPA or higher in high school, taking a college class during the summer can give them a taste for what college might be like.  I find that it gives teens a sense of independence and usually motivates them to strive to improve themselves.

The good news: teens can register for classes without going through the intense application process to enter as a freshman full-time student.  All you need is your high school counselor’s signature on a Verification Form and the course information on the summer class you’d like to take.  Easy Peasy.

Most community colleges and 4-year universities will be posting their summer courses and schedules of classes in the next few weeks.  Choose classes with the following 3 things to keep in mind:

  1. Does the class time (including transportation and parking) conflict with my job or other responsibilities during the summer?
  2. Are there prerequisites (classes that you need to take before you can take the summer class)?
  3. Can I be successful in this class? Read the course description and syllabus (if you can find it online) to make sure you can handle the midterms, finals, essays, and/or projects required for the course.
  4. Will this class satisfy a GE (general education requirement for my future college)? It’s best to take classes that satisfy most college GE requirements like English 1A, US History, World History, Political Science, Psychology, Sociology, Economics, Math, Statistics, Art, etc.
  5. If you know your major, take one of the lower division prerequisites.  Go to your favorite college website to get a list of the lower division courses required for the major.  Getting these courses completed while in high school can save you big bucks and get you to your graduation sooner – also saving more money!

Classes fill up quickly, and most full-time students have seniority over high school students, so start looking at course offerings now.  You can even stay on campus if you’d like the full college experience or stay at home and just take the class on campus. I wouldn’t take more than one college class per term; take it slowly and enjoy your experience!