Overview
UConn's Office of Early College Programs (OECP) provides students with meaningful academic engagement to enrich their experience in high school and support their transition into college. OECP offers educational opportunities at the high school (Early College Experience), in university classrooms (Dual Enrollment), and through on-campus residential summer programs (Pre-College Summer). OECP’s flagship program, UConn Early College Experience (ECE), established in 1955, is the nation's longest running concurrent enrollment program and is Connecticut’s largest program accredited by the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships (NACEP). UConn ECE allows high school students to take UConn courses at their high schools for both high school and college credit. UConn ECE supports more than 20,000 Connecticut high school students in nearly 200 partner high school schools with incredible educators who have been certified by the University of Connecticut to teach UConn courses. Visit UConn's Office of Early College Programs webpage to learn more.
Programming and Partnerships
UConn Early College Experience offers partner schools access to over 100 UConn courses in nearly 50 disciplines.
UConn courses offered through ECE offer a variety of general education, professional studies and high demand career opportunities that appeal to a diverse group of students. These challenging courses allow students to experience college work, build confidence in their readiness for college, and earn college credits that provide both an academic and a financial head-start on a college degree. Many UConn courses meet requirements for numerous college majors and for graduation. Courses taken through UConn Early College Experience are equivalent to the same course offered on a University of Connecticut campus. Students follow the same curriculum and grading rubric that has been designed by the University department. To learn more about course offerings, please visit the current UConn ECE Course Catalog.
The UConn Early College Experience is proud to partner with nearly 200 high schools across the state of Connecticut. To learn more about ECE partner schools and specific course offerings, please refer to the UConn ECE Partner School page.Student Eligibility
UConn ECE partner high schools are responsible for providing program information and guidance to potential UConn ECE Students. Many students are ready as high school juniors or seniors to engage with college work in specific areas of study. UConn ECE provides partner schools with the ability to determine to which extent UConn coursework best aligns and supports their local Program of Studies to provide access to students. Although each high school may have criteria specific to their student population, all UConn ECE partners must utilize the Student Eligibility Guidelines.
Instructor Credentials for Concurrent Enrollment Courses
As an NACEP accredited program, all UConn ECE instructors must have comparable academic and professional backgrounds to UConn Adjunct Faculty. Some disciplines require a Master’s Degree in the content area in order to qualify for certification. Other disciplines may accept a Master’s Degree in Education, with a Bachelor’s Degree in the subject area and two or more content-based graduate courses in the appropriate discipline. UConn ECE Faculty Coordinators conduct a holistic review of all instructor application materials taking into account licensure, teaching experience and processional learning experiences. As such, it is highly unlikely for a first-year teacher to obtain UConn ECE certification.
Discipline-specific requirements for courses may include:
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Examination of laboratory facilities
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Class size policy
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Submission of specific curriculum materials
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Purchase of an approved textbook
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Appropriate class time scheduled to ensure reasonable comparability to the scheduling of the course on campus
UConn ECE encourages all interested instructors to review the specific requirements and sample course syllabi under each course within the UConn ECE Course Catalog.
Registration and Fees
UConn Early College Experience Students register online for their courses using the UConn ECE registration system at UConn.DualEnroll.com. All submitted student registration requests must be approved by the high school Site Representative, approved by a parent/guardian, and payment information collected (if applicable) to be processed.
Please reference the current Student Registration Guide for general registration information and a course planning guide. For detailed instructions on the registration process reference the UConn ECE Student Step-by-Step Guide. Registration runs from mid-August through early October each year. Learn more about registration and access guides and resources.
UConn credits earned through the UConn Early College Experience program successfully transfer to other colleges and universities nationally at a rate of 87%. Students do not need to attend UConn to have your courses recognized.
While UConn ECE cannot guarantee course recognition on behalf of another college or university, the program strives to make the transfer of credits from one institution to another as simple as possible. Learn more about requesting a UConn transcript to transfer UConn credits earned through ECE. UConn ECE also encourages students and families to utilize the UConn ECE Credit Transfer Database to evaluate the likelihood of the transferability of UConn credit earned through UConn ECE to a particular institution nationwide.
UConn's Early College Experience program provides access to UConn courses at a savings of over 90% University tuition. UConn ECE fees are $50 per registered course credit.
Student fee waivers are available for the UConn ECE program. Students who qualify for the Federal Free/Reduced Price Meals Program are eligible for a full program fee waiver. Students attending private schools (any non-public school) who receive a need-based reduction of tuition (a need-based scholarship) from their high school will receive a UConn ECE fee waiver for all UConn courses taken through UConn ECE. Eligibility for the Free/Reduced Price Meals Program is to be indicated by the student and confirmed by the Site Representative during the registration process. Eligibility for the private school waiver must be confirmed by the Site Representative.
UConn Dual Enrollment
For students who have exhausted the early college options offered at their high school, they may be eligible to take a UConn course at one of UConn’s five campuses through Dual Enrollment. To learn more about UConn’s Dual Enrollment options, please visit our program page.
High school students taking on-campus courses through UConn’s Dual Enrollment program are subject to the same registration policies as other UConn non-degree students. This includes:
- An eight-credit limit per term
- A later registration period than degree students- See full registration schedule for details.
- Registration is based on space availability.
Because seating is limited, it is highly recommended that all registration documentation be submitted for review at least two weeks prior to the start of the registration period. If approved, the student’s registration request will then be submitted for processing on the first day of non-degree registration.
High school students taking on-campus courses through Dual Enrollment are billed at the same rate as other non-degree students. They are not billed at the same rate as an Early College Experience course offered at the high school. Learn more about current Non-Degree Fees. Visit the registration information website for more information .Supports for Multilingual Families
The Office of Early College Programs follows all established University practices. Several programmatic documents including the Program Brochure and the Policies & Procedures Guide are available in Spanish. Parent/Guardian correspondence can be translated to Spanish. The program is currently exploring options for website translation services.
Contact Information
UConn Early College Experience Main Office
ece@uconn.edu
860-486-1045
UConn’s Office of Early College Programs and UConn Early College Experience Website.