Homeschool Dual Enrollment in Montana
Yes. Home school students can take Montana University System (MUS) dual enrollment courses at the dual enrollment tuition rate, and the One-Two-Free program makes the first two courses, or up to six credits, tuition-free.
How dual enrollment works for homeschoolers
Ordinarily a student must be enrolled in a Montana school district. A Commissioner's directive on early enrollment and tuition waivers carves out home school students, who pay the same reduced rate in a qualifying program.
Courses come in two forms. Early College courses are regular college classes on a campus or online. Concurrent Enrollment courses are taught at a high school by a qualified high school teacher, so they mainly serve enrolled students.
One-Two-Free has run since August 2018. It needs no extra application: a campus dual enrollment coordinator tracks how many free courses or credits your child has left. Most 100- and 200-level courses are open to dual enrollment students.
Before your child can enroll
Age or standing
Your child is 16 to 19 years old or has junior or senior standing, and is on track to finish high school in four years.
Exception requests
If your child does not meet the age or progress rule, you may ask the college in writing for an exception, with evidence your child can do college-level work in the course and manage the load. A student under 16 or below junior standing may instead show readiness with a placement exam such as the PreACT, PSAT, or Accuplacer.
Prerequisites and placement
Exceptions never waive a course's prerequisites or required placement scores, which are common in math and writing.
Enrolling in a college course
First step
Contact the dual enrollment coordinator at the MUS campus you want, tell them your child is homeschooled, and ask for its application and exception form.
Course and funding limits
Tribal colleges are not part of One-Two-Free, though most offer their own free or reduced tuition for high school students.
What it costs
Each course after the free ones costs half of two-year resident tuition. A student facing hardship can apply for a scholarship for more courses, and some courses carry fees.
When to apply
Start with the coordinator before the term's registration opens, since an exception needs the college's written approval.
A homeschool plan alongside college courses
We teach the subjects your teen takes at home and generate the homeschool transcript from that coursework.
$149/month per child after the trial.