Dual Enrollment-HOPE Admission

The Dual Enrollment-HOPE program offers additional educational opportunities for motivated high school students to earn technical college credit as they meet their high school graduation requirements. High school students enrolling in this program are eligible to take required, non-general education courses within technical certificate or diploma programs. Georgia residency and U.S. citizenship requirements for HOPE program eligibility apply to Dual Enrollment-HOPE participants. Applicants must be in compliance with Selective Services registration requirements as well.

Dual Enrollment-HOPE applicants must complete the following steps in order to participate in this program:

• Be at least 16 years of age and have successfully completed the ninth grade.
• Submit official high school transcripts indicating a minimum high school grade point average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.
• Submit a letter of recommendation from one of their high school counselors.
• Review the Dual Enrollment Agreement to Participate and submit a completed Dual Enrollment Acknowledgement Form with signatures of applicants, their parents/guardians, and high school counselor.
• Complete, sign, and submit the college's application for admission.
• Submit official COMPASS, ASSET, SAT, or ACT test scores.

Some technical certificate and diploma programs of study require students to be over the age of 18 to enroll in coursework associated with those programs. See the Curriculum section of this publication for specific age requirements. Applicants for the Dual Enrollment-HOPE program must gain regular admission status to participate. Applicants whose test scores place them in learning support coursework are not eligible to participate in this program.

After gaining admission to Athens Technical College, Dual Enrollment-HOPE students must complete the New Student Orientation. Dual Enrollment-HOPE students must complete the orientation before they will be eligible to register for their first semester at the college.

The credit hours attempted by Dual Enrollment-HOPE students while in high school are not used to determine when students have reached the maximum number of hours for which they can receive payment from any combination of the HOPE Grant and the HOPE Scholarship programs.

Transportation and other expenses are the responsibility of the student. Students are responsible for items that are not covered by the Dual Enrollment-HOPE Grant, including all tuition not covered by the HOPE Grant, books, supplies, and equipment. It is mandatory that students purchase the books, supplies, and equipment required by the college instructor. Students will also be responsible for paying the tuition and other expenses for courses that are not required in their program of study.

Dual enrollment students must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) in order to receive financial aid through the Dual Enrollment-HOPE Grant program. This application must be completed and renewed each academic year. (The FAFSA year at Athens Technical College begins with fall semester and continues through spring semester.) The application is online at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

When completing the financial aid application, students will be required to provide student and parental information, including income tax information. The FAFSA is used to check general information and basic eligibility requirements for the Dual Enrollment-HOPE Grant program. If the FAFSA is incomplete, the college's financial aid staff will automatically send students a letter or email requesting the required information or documentation.