Mar 19, 2016 3 min read

Many high school students strive to get ahead academically and find ways to stand out when they apply to colleges. As a junior, I am one of those people.

After numerous college visits, I decided La Roche College, a small, Catholic school in McCandless, was the school for me. Unfortunately, I also knew I had couple of years before I would be able to become an undergraduate student there. Those few years seemed like an eternity; I wanted to begin my college experience sooner.

That’s when I got some good news: La Roche College has a program called the Scholar Credit Initiative Program (SCIP) that allows high school students to take classes through the college so they can get a head start on their futures. Many of these classes can be taken online and the credits are transferable.

Programs like SCIP offer a plethora of benefits to high school students who are aiming to get a head start on their college experiences. La Roche College’s associate director of admissions, Cheryl Stewart-Miller, pointed out that this program helps students “get used to the college environment sooner,” which helps alleviate stress during the transition from high school to college.

The SCIP program also offers an array of options. While most high schools offer limited classes in any certain area, there are more classes available at a collegiate level. For students who don’t find themselves challenged enough in their high school classes, SCIP classes can offer a more challenging curriculum. With so many options, many of which are available in a flexible online version, “students can augment their high school education easily,” Stewart-Miller said.

From a financial standpoint, this program is extremely affordable. When students take classes through SCIP, they pay only one-third of the price they would pay if they were taking the same class as undergraduate students.

The helpful La Roche staff makes the application process easy. Once enrolled, students are assigned to academic advisors who assist with the process. The online classes operate through a website called Blackboard, where students can easily communicate with professors, work on assignments and monitor their grades.

For students who want an easy and enjoyable way to get a head start on their college experiences, La Roche’s SCIP program is an ideal way to do so.

Stewart-Miller encouraged high school students to consider this program “if they want to experience and be challenged by a college level of instruction while they are in high school.”

For more information, contact La Roche College’s office of admissions at 412-536-1272 or scholar@laroche.edu.

By Julia Felton

Junior, Canon-McMillan