About CTE Dual Credit

What is CTE Dual Credit?

The CTE Dual Credit Program at Seattle Colleges (formerly Tech Prep Seattle) provides high school students the opportunity to explore their career interests and earn college credit towards programs at one of our Seattle Colleges: North Seattle College, Seattle Central College, or South Seattle College. 

CTE, which stands for Career and Technical Education, means that the college credit earned through CTE Dual Credit can be applied towards one of our professional technical degrees and/or certificate programs. These college degree and certificate programs are designed to prepare students for careers that are in demand and sustainable. Learn more about Seattle Colleges’ various programs here.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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  • Students earn both college and high school credit for each course.
  • The cost to students is free. Students taking a CTE dual credit course are saving hundreds of dollars on the cost of tuition, fees, and books for each class.
  • CTE Dual Credit courses provide college-level rigor, allowing students to develop skills for academic success. 
  • Students earn college credit without leaving their high school campus. 
  • The program is open to students in grades 9-12.
     

Any participating high school student, grades 9 - 12, who is taking a high school CTE class that has been designated CTE Dual Credit eligible by Seattle Colleges. Students must register during the academic term of their course. To earn college credit the student must earn a grade of B (3.0) or higher.  

There is no cost to participate in CTE Dual Credit through the Seattle Colleges. Participating students earn college credit without the cost of tuition, fees, or books. In the future when you enroll in college and select a specific degree or certificate to study, the financial aid office will review the credits you have earned and determine if these credits will be applied to your degree. If the credits are applied to your degree or certificate, they will count towards your overall financial aid package. For specific questions about credits and financial aid, contact the financial aid office at the college you will be attending.

Seattle Colleges uses an online registration system called SERS (Statewide Enrollment Reporting System). Students must first create a SERS student account at ctesers.org and then register for their course in the SERS system. Students can refer to the Student Registration page for more detailed instructions.

Important note: It is not possible to register for credit retroactively after you have already completed the school year or have graduated from high school.

Seattle Promise will fund up to 90 credits toward a student’s first associate degree. Students who participated in the CTE Dual Credit Program and earned college credits while in high school are eligible for the program if they have earned fewer than 90 credits and have not yet completed their first associate degree. Students who earn CTE dual credit should review their transcript with an advisor to determine if these credits will be applied to their intended degree or certificate. If the credits earned in the CTE dual credit program can be applied to your degree, they will count toward the 90 credits covered by Seattle Promise.

Learn more about Seattle Promise.

Students can log into their Statewide Enrollment and Reporting System (SERS) account at ctesers.org and check their CTE account registration history, which will list all college credits earned, at which Seattle College campus, along with a college Student Identification Number. Also, CTE Dual Credit courses are added to a Seattle Colleges transcript in August following the academic school year students registered for the course. All students receive an email about the college credit they earned as well as steps for obtaining a transcript.

Students can request an official transcript to be sent to any college online at the National Student Clearinghouse.

The college courses earned through CTE Dual Credit are designed to transfer to a specific professional-technical degree program or certificate at Seattle Colleges. If a student would like credits to transfer to another degree program, college, or another type of community college degree, it is important that the student check with the admissions office of the college they are planning to attend to verify that the credits will be accepted into their program of study.