Dual credit courses give high school students the potential to earn both high school and postsecondary credit. Past research shows that students who participate in dual credit have higher rates of postsecondary education enrollment, persistence, and completion. There are six primary dual credit programs in Washington state that are included in this report (see Table 1), which provide students with different pathways to participate and different processes to become eligible for postsecondary credit (see Appendix B). This variation must be considered when interpreting the results in this report and dashboard. This report and accompanying dashboard address the requirements in RCW 28A.600.280, which directs ERDC to complete the report in collaboration with the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, State Board of Education, State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, Washington State Apprenticeship and Training Council, Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, Washington Student Achievement Council, and the state’s public four-year institutions of higher education. While the dashboard focuses on the required metrics of dual credit enrollment and K–12 credit earned, this report examines new analysis for the required metrics of K–12 academic performance and postsecondary credit earning. It also addresses previous report recommendations and introduces additional topics for analysis. This year’s additional topic is a discussion of the current state of availability of dual credit by school district and how that has changed over time. This document has two primary sections. First, new analysis related to dual credit in Washington is presented. Then, the recommendations from previous ERDC dual credit reports are addressed.
Key findings include:
- In 2021–22, most public high schools in Washington offered at least one type of dual credit; indicating that there were very few geographic areas where students have no access to dual credit. The number of schools that offer dual credit increased in some districts between 2015–16 and 2021–22, and decreased in others. During this time, student enrollment in dual credit increased, with the majority of districts experiencing growth. Many districts had 80%– 100% of students enrolled in at least one dual credit course and there were very few districts in which less than 20% of students enrolled in at least one dual credit course. This may be influenced by graduation requirements.
- Across all dual credit types, 91% of all attempted credits were earned, which was about the same as non-dual credit courses for all students. Students who enrolled in any of the dual credit types had a higher final GPA than those who did not enroll. Academic performance was examined by student group and the patterns among dual credit enrollees were similar to those seen statewide.
- The quality of existing data sources has improved over the last year, but there are still large gaps in data that are needed to determine how many students are eligible for postsecondary credit after completing a dual credit course. For most dual credit types, the percentage of students who had postsecondary credits transcribed at a Washington public institution has remained fairly steady over the cohorts, with the exception of an increase for College in the High School (CiHS) for the last three cohorts. This was primarily due to an increase in postsecondary enrollment in CiHS, though there is variation among student groups. A State Auditor’s Office report highlighting how Washington public institutions accept CiHS and Running Start (RS) postsecondary credits when students provide transcripts was published in August 2024.
