E3 Alliance released groundbreaking research on high school pathways associated with postsecondary success during a June webinar. Data analysis covered dual credit, Career and Technical Education, industry-based certification, and Early College High School engagement from the Central Texas class of 2020.

The good news is that more students are taking dual credit than ever before. The challenge is that only one in four graduates received any dual credit from this cohort. We know that dual-credit courses give students the opportunity to jumpstart their postsecondary journey while still in high school. We also know that taking more dual credit is a strong predictor of enrolling in postsecondary education.

Early College High Schools (ECHS) are proving to be promising solutions to help reduce disparities in dual-credit course taking. As illustrated in the graph above, students who take dual credit at an ECHS complete more dual credit than students at traditional high schools.

While associate degree completion in high school is still less than 5% in our region (see AcceleratED story), our research found that participating in ECHS programs, whether or not you receive your degree, is a strong predictor of postsecondary enrollment.

To watch the webinar, access the presentation, and view the questions and answers addressed, please visit our website. Additional data on dual credit and Career and Technical Education can be found in our School to Work chapters.