SCSU Early College Program

Courses Held at Staples High School

Starting with the 2025-26 school year, Staples will offer Advanced Forensics through the Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU) Early College concurrent enrollment program. Taught by a Staples teacher certified as an SCSU instructor, Advanced Forensics provides the option for students to earn both high school credit and three college credits for a fraction of the cost of normal college tuition.

Early College courses are designated on the student’s Staples transcript along with the SCSU grade weighted at the college course level in the Weighted GPA. Early College courses will also appear on an SCSU transcript and count toward an SCSU GPA. Credit earned through Early College is accepted at any public Connecticut State College or University; other colleges and universities accept credit at their discretion. (Note: Some colleges only accept credit for college courses taken while in high school if the course credit is not applied to high school graduation requirements. Therefore, we generally recommend that students taking Early College courses plan to exceed the 26.0 total credits required for graduation from Staples, and students may wish to consider taking courses to go beyond the individual subject area’s graduation requirement as well.) 

Courses Held at SCSU

The SCSU Early College Program provides high school students with the opportunity to explore courses in health care, business, education, science, or the arts and earn up to 30 college credits while at Staples by taking college courses on the SCSU campus and delivered by SCSU faculty. Students may take up to two Early College courses per semester, outside of school hours. Through the Staples/SCSU partnership, tuition and general fees are waived. Students are charged $65/semester (fee is waived for any student who qualifies for Free/Reduced Lunch). A list of 100- and 200-level courses held at SCSU recommended by the faculty for Early College students can be found here, and interested students can use SCSU Class Search to search by subject/course for availability.

A student may apply one Early College course toward the minimum 6 courses required for full-time enrollment status at Staples. To be eligible for credit at Staples and have the course and grade listed on the student’s Staples transcript, the student must select a course where there is no equivalent course offered at Staples. In addition to the college credits earned, students will also earn .5 Staples credit per Early College one-semester three-credit course. The Early College credit will count toward the student’s high school graduation requirements as additional credits only and cannot be used to satisfy any specific subject area requirement. The course name, letter grade issued by SCSU, and high school credit will appear on the Staples transcript. The grade will be weighted at the college course level in the GPA. Early College courses also appear on an SCSU transcript and count toward an SCSU GPA. Credit is accepted at any public Connecticut State College or University; other colleges and universities accept credit at their discretion. (Note: Some colleges only accept credit for college courses taken while in high school if the course credit is not applied to high school graduation requirements. Therefore, we generally recommend that students taking ECE courses plan to exceed the 26.0 total credits required for graduation from Staples, and students may wish to consider taking courses to go beyond the individual subject area’s graduation requirement as well.)