Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon Portland Community College

Oregon Dual Credit standards

Oregon’s Dual Credit programs create the opportunity for our students to take college-level courses while still in high school. The Dual Credit Task Force found that, in 2005-06, one in seven Oregon juniors and seniors took advantage of this opportunity, saving approximately $9 million in tuition. Through its pilot analysis of the subsequent academic performance of these students, the task force also found that “in most cases, Dual Credit students match or outperform their college-prepared counterparts in both community college and university settings.”

Thus, Dual Credit is currently a viable option for qualified students to begin post-secondary learning early, and it can contribute significantly to meeting Oregon’s 40-40-20 goal. As Dual Credit programs grow, it is important to have a consistent set of standards and ways to ensure the standards are met. This is the impetus for adopting the Oregon Standards for Dual Credit “College Now” Programs. Guided by those standards the task force specifically recommends:

  • Strengthening faculty connections including regular, collegial interactions amongst high school and college faculty and working to expand the pool of qualified high school Dual Credit faculty.
  • Adopting systematic application and review processes for Dual Credit programs by developing a standardized application process for new programs and ensuring sustainable verification of program quality.
  • Enhancing public understanding of Dual Credit programs through effectively publicizing Dual Credit programs as a key path for academic acceleration.

The Dual Credit program takes these recommendations to heart and uses them to guide the growth and maintenance of the program. The PCC Dual Credit program has developed marketing materials, conducted workshops, and held meetings to assist faculty and create partnerships. Program manuals and handbooks are available for faculty and students to make sure they have the information they need to be successful. We continue to research ways to strengthen our program and to publicize the great work that’s being done by our faculty and students.

Oregon standards for accelerated college credit partnerships

Standard (DC) and Sponsored (SDC) Dual Credit standards as revised in September 2019 are found here: