While high school teachers seek to equip their students with the necessary skills that will allow them to be successful when moving on to college, Emily Raush of Lancaster took matters into her own hands and worked to prepare herself for further education after graduation.
Throughout her senior year, Raush took advantage of the dual enrollment opportunities her high school provided. Now a freshman at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Va., Raush has come to realize how influential her choice to take college courses while still in high school has been and has much to say about her experiences.
Freestyle: What college courses did you take throughout high school? Where did you take them?
Raush: I took three classes at the Harrisburg Area Community College Lancaster campus and one class at Lancaster Bible College, all during the last semester of my senior year. All my credits were finished, so I didn't have to go into the high school for any classes. At HACC, I took Intro to Psychology, Introduction to Sociology and American History. At Lancaster Bible College, I took World Literature.
Q: How has taking college courses while in high school prepared you for your freshman year?
A: It has helped me in so many ways. First, it gave me credits to transfer into college. I began freshman year with 27 credits under my belt (12 of these from dual enrollment). This has been so helpful to me because while all my friends are stuck taking the introductory-level courses, I am able to begin taking classes in my major. Also, I am able to graduate easily in three years, which saves me a whole lot of money and time. Second, because I took those classes, I felt much more prepared because I knew what to expect in a college class. It's crazy going from somewhere that you are basically guaranteed "A"s if you do the homework (high school) to somewhere that doesn't grade homework and instead bases your grade off of just a midterm and a final (college). Because I did dual enrollment I was able to better understand how this process works, learn better study skills and time management and be much more confident when beginning my freshman year. Despite what some people may tell you, certain college classes are much more difficult than high school, but thanks to dual enrollment, the skills I learned are now helping me get better grades than I would have been otherwise.
Q: Did taking dual-enrollment classes help you prepare for college in ways that high school couldn't?
A: Definitely. Overall, I felt that my teachers in high school did a really good job of building my knowledge base and teaching me how to process information, but dual enrollment taught me better study skills and time management, which could only be learned through a college setting. Also, I felt like I was being smart with my time — so many high school seniors enjoy a super-easy spring semester. I benefited myself with getting ahead in college AND beat "senioritis" by using my spring semester to take these classes.
Q: Were there any negative aspects?
A: There weren't any negative aspects for me. The one thing that some people might argue is, since you're not in the high school for those classes, you lose touch with some friends and aren't able to be involved with high school — although this may be true in some ways, your true friends will always still be there for you and most clubs/activities will be flexible and allow you still be a part of them.