Upper School

Our dual credit program allows McDonogh students — taking courses designed and taught by McDonogh teachers on our campus — to earn credit at McDonogh and through Washington College, Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU), or St. Mary's College of Maryland. simultaneously.

These credits, in many cases, will transfer to most colleges and universities that accept transfer credits from other institutions. It is important, however, to check the websites of the colleges in which you are interested to learn about what transfer credits they do and don't accept. Colleges and universities have individual transfer policies, and McDonogh cannot guarantee that all credits will be accepted.

Dual credit programming allows students greater flexibility when attending college since, in some cases, required general education courses are often satisfied by credits transferred upon enrollment.

Students register for dual credit classes through McDonogh as part of the annual course selection process. They will also have until two weeks after the class has started to elect dual credit status (specific deadline dates will be announced yearly).

Dual credit is optional. A student can take the McDonogh course as normal without registering for dual credit.

Yes. If a student decides to pursue dual credit, there will be a $325 fee per course for NDMU and Washington College courses. For the Art Capstone course, issued through St. Mary's College of Maryland, the cost is $400.

Students will be billed through McDonogh's Business Office. There is also a small processing fee that must be paid directly by you to the college for the transcripts.

Students do not have to fill out an application, but enrolled students and their parents will have to fill out a few short online forms as part of registration. Students will sign up for dual credit courses through McDonogh, however.

Students who pursue dual credit must pay $325 per course, or $400 for the Art Capstone course, and this fee is non-refundable.

There is no withdrawal option. Students can choose not to request the college transcript, meaning they'll take the regular McDonogh course without receiving college credit.

Only courses approved by McDonogh, Washington College, NDMU, and St. Mary's College of Maryland are eligible for dual credit status. Typically, these are advanced courses offered in the eleventh and twelfth grade years, though students in lower grades may qualify.

Dual credit is different! While colleges accept some AP scores to fulfill certain coursework requirements, these same colleges tend to accept most or all transfer credits from an accredited college or university.

In some instances, certain colleges may not accept transfer credit; please consult with your college counselor to make an informed decision about whether pursuing dual credit makes sense.

Dual credit isn't a curriculum with third-party exams. It's a benefit for qualified students who are taking college-level courses at McDonogh.

McDonogh believes that the typical four years of undergraduate study are critical in a young person's intellectual and civic development. Transferable credits, however, may allow students greater flexibility while in college:

• To double major.
• To travel.
• To get field experience.
• To begin graduate work.

We encourage our graduates to take advantage of their full undergraduate experience.

At this time, McDonogh's only official partners are Washington College, Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU), and St. Mary's College of Maryland. We anticipate adding other partners in the future.

We anticipate expanding the number of courses available for dual credit in the future and will provide updates as the program develops.

As part of our agreement with Washington College and NDMU, students are only allowed to take three dual credit courses per year from each institution. At this time, only one course will be issued by St. Mary's. That means, you could take two from Washington College, three from NDMU, and one from St. Mary's, giving you a total of six dual credit courses!

General course registration at McDonogh is the same; students must qualify for the course in which they wish to enroll. If that course is designated as dual credit, then students can choose if they want to pursue that option.

If you have any questions about the program, please contact the Senior Director of Mission Integration and Partnerships, Kevin Costa, at kcosta@mcdonogh.org.