AP and Dual Credit Information

Dual credit (also sometimes referred to as dual-enrollment) courses are classes for which eligible students earn high school and college credit simultaneously. They are taught by qualified instructors, offer the potential to complete a college degree in less time or with reduced course load, reduce tuition costs, and offer early exposure to college-level academics. 

At PCA, all of our dual credit instructors are employed by PCA for fully in-person instruction. Grades are updated in FACTS for parents, students, and administrators to view just like they are for standard, honors, and AP courses. 

Colorado Christian University is a regionally accredited university located in Lakewood, Colorado with an enrollment of just over 8,000 undergraduate students. They are an unapologetically Christian university whose mission aligns with ours. PCA contracts with CCU for all dual credit courses. They audit and approve our instructors and courses and set the course descriptions and criteria for the courses we offer. 

Students are able to earn high school and college credit simultaneously. This enables students to begin college with college hours which potentially reduces their overall time enrolled as a college student or reduces the course load the student must take each semester in order to earn a bachelor’s degree in 4 years. 

Detailed information about the courses PCA offers is found on our website here: https://www.pantego.com/ap-and-dual-credit

At times, students choose to take the AP exam in addition to or in lieu of enrolling in the dual credit course through CCU. This is most often for students aiming to enroll in a college outside the USA or those looking to demonstrate English proficiency. 

Course fees apply. For detailed pricing and payment option details, please contact or visit the Advising Office. 

Registration for the dual credit courses is done through CCU’s online registration portal. Students create an account, receive a registration confirmation, and then are able to enroll through their portal. The 

advising office is available to assist students with this process every semester. Registration usually occurs about 1 month into the semester once our classes are displayed as active in CCU’s portal. 

When parents receive the Google Form to confirm or deny registration for the CCU course, they can choose to pay the CCU fees either in one payment or in three installments through their FACTS account. 

Yes, the courses are much more rigorous than on-level or honors courses. They are comparable to AP courses in their rigor. However, no courses compare to dual-credit courses in their impact. The students are creating a college transcript and these grades will appear on their future college transcripts as transfer credit. Many colleges transfer only the credits, but some transfer the actual grades into the student’s college GPA. Nearly all institutions include the printed transfer grade on the college’s transcript. 

Final exams are required for all dual credit courses regardless of the grade average, attendance, etc. No exemptions are made for dual credit courses. 

Regionally accredited means an institution or higher education has met academic and operational standards set by one of six independent regional agencies recognized by the US Department of Education. It is considered the most recognized and prestigious accreditation, important for credit transfers, federal aid, and graduate school admission. CCU is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission who governs colleges and universities in the state of Colorado and across several other states. Colleges in Texas are most often accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. 

The vast majority of PCA students seeking to transfer the CCU credits to their enrolling college have not had issues. The challenge lies in the students’ future course of study and whether the courses completed will fulfill their degree requirements for their chosen major. There is no way to predict with 100 percent accuracy that the credits will always directly fill a required course. However, they usually do.

For example, a recent graduate completed all 4 courses of English we offer through CCU: ENG 102 English Composition, ENG 104 Research Writing, ENG 203 American Literature, and ENG 204 British Literature. His degree plan at ACU required 2 English composition courses and 1 English literature course totaling 9 hours of English credit. The final literature course was added in as humanities elective credit. So he still earned 12 hours total of credit for these courses which saved time, effort, and money. 

Contact Jill Sapp at jsapp@pantego.com or Charli Tooley at ctooley@pantego.com with any questions you have!