Dual enrollment students at Texas A&M University – Kingsville (TAMUK) are taking the challenges of balancing high school and college life in stride.
Despite the daunting challenges dual enrollment students face, high schoolers are jumping at the opportunity to gain college credits before they even walk across the stage to receive their high school diploma.
This fall at TAMUK sees the enrollment of 558 high schoolers already seeking to advance their education.
Amelia Tuller, a student at Santa Gertrudis Academy High School, said she likes the challenge of college course.
“I decided to take dual enrollment courses when my school stopped offering AP classes and I wanted to continue to take more challenging courses,” she said.
For Tuller, the courses “challenge me intellectually and force me to challenge the assumptions I hold about the world.”
In addition to intellectual stimulation, students taking dual enrollment courses also enjoy the social aspects that help prepare them for life after high school.
For Micaela Carrales, a senior at Academy High School, dual enrollment courses “give me a small sense of what the college life is like, which makes me less nervous to start my first semester of college.”
The benefits are clear, but students realize there is some difficult responsibility to taking on college while still in high school.
“The biggest challenge is definitely learning to manage my schedule between high school obligations and the increased course work that comes with being in college classes,” Tuller said.
Carrales warns of the dangers of procrastination when trying to juggle the increased workload.
“Before long, the work will pile up to a point which is nearly impossible to come back from,” Carrales said.
Many high schoolers are ready to take on that challenge.
Dual Enrollment Coordinator Miranda Joiner is more than happy to welcome them into the Blue and Gold family.
“We enjoy welcoming new and returning students into the Javelina Family each semester as they navigate their journey into higher education,” she said.