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Concurrent Credit in Arkansas, explained for parents

Published September 18, 2026

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Concurrent credit is what Arkansas calls dual enrollment: a college course that earns high school and college credit at once, open to students who have finished eighth grade. State policy says the student and the parent are not responsible for tuition, fees, or materials. The ACCESS to Acceleration scholarship pays participating colleges $65 a credit hour toward that cost.

Who: Students who have completed eighth grade and are admitted by the college
Tuition: Not the family's responsibility under state concurrent enrollment policy
Scholarship: $65 per semester credit hour, up to $2,000 an academic year
Typical academic gate: An ACT Reading score of 19, or another approved placement measure
Credit conversion: One high school unit for a college course of at least three semester credit hours
Runs through: Arkansas Division of Higher Education under Arkansas Code 6-18-223

Who pays for concurrent credit in Arkansas

The July 2025 state concurrent enrollment policy is direct about it: the high school student or the student's parent or guardian shall not be responsible for tuition, fees, or materials for participation in a concurrent credit course. The bill goes to the district, a scholarship, a grant, or a foundation, and a signed agreement has to be on file naming who is covering it.

The policy also fixes the range of what a college may charge the district. For every academic credit hour, the agreed amount must be at least half a percent and no more than two and a half percent of the per-pupil foundation amount set under Arkansas Code 6-20-2305. That is why concurrent credit costs a district something, and why some schools cap how many courses they will sponsor.

What we tell families in Arkansas: get the arrangement in writing before the semester starts. The policy tells the college who it may bill, not what your district agreed to sponsor, and a family that assumed the district was covering a fourth course sometimes finds out at registration that it was not.

What replaced the Concurrent Challenge Scholarship

The Concurrent Challenge Scholarship paid $125 a course for up to two concurrent courses a semester and has been repealed. The ACCESS to Acceleration Scholarship, created by Act 341 of 2025 and known as A2A, took its place.

A2A pays $65 per semester credit hour, up to fifteen hours a semester and $2,000 in an academic year, so a three-hour course draws $195. Students in grades nine through twelve qualify, including private school and homeschool students, and the institution applies on the student's behalf rather than the family filling out a form.

Continued eligibility rides on a 2.50 GPA in the concurrent courses. Two semesters below that line ends access to the scholarship. A student who fails a course may retake it once, and a second failure or withdrawal in the same course closes that course out while leaving the rest open.

What Arkansas asks for academically

Arkansas Code 6-18-223 opens concurrent enrollment to any public high school student who has successfully completed the eighth grade, which is a wider door than most states use. Each college then sets its own admission requirements on top of that.

Placement is where the real gate sits. State policy says every concurrent student must be assessed for placement into credit-bearing courses through an objective examination, previous coursework or career training, or another measure supported by analysis of predicted success, and the assessment should reflect better than a 75 percent likelihood of earning a C or better. An ACT Reading score of 19 is the common qualifying mark for college-level concurrent work.

Colleges are encouraged to look past a single test score in English, math, and reading-intensive courses, and a campus may set its own minimum scores for college-level math and composition on documented criteria. In practice that means two Arkansas colleges can place the same student differently.

How the credit converts and where it transfers

A general education or career and technical concurrent course of at least three semester credit hours earns up to one high school unit. Courses that count as general education should appear in the Arkansas Course Transfer System, which carries an agreed equivalency among Arkansas public institutions.

When a course is not in ACTS, the college and the high school are required to tell the student it may not transfer. That notice is easy to miss in a registration packet, and it is the single most useful thing to check before a teen builds a plan on a stack of concurrent credits.

For a course taught at the high school by a high school teacher, the college delivering it must be accredited by the National Alliance of Concurrent Enrollment Partnerships or approved by the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board. During the 2025 academic year the state reauthorized 19 institutions and newly accredited four.

Who is taking these courses

Concurrent enrollment headcount in Arkansas rose 38.4 percent between the 2021 and 2025 academic years, and two-year colleges carried most of it, with a 56.4 percent increase over the same stretch. Sixty-eight percent of concurrent students enroll through two-year colleges.

The grade mix leans late. In 2024-25, about 49 percent of concurrent students were seniors and 35 percent were juniors, leaving 13 percent sophomores and 3 percent freshmen. Tenth-grade participation has nearly doubled since 2021, which is the number to watch if you are planning from eighth or ninth grade.

Most students take a light load. Sixty-three percent, or 15,492 students, enrolled in three or fewer concurrent courses in 2024-25, while 17 percent carried fifteen or more credit hours. The statewide pass rate was 90.1 percent.

Questions to ask your counselor

Bring these to the first meeting. The answers decide most of the plan.

Which college delivers our concurrent credit courses, and is it NACEP accredited or state approved?
Who is paying tuition and materials for each course my teen would take, and is that agreement signed?
How many concurrent courses will the district sponsor in a semester?
Which of these courses are listed in the Arkansas Course Transfer System?
What placement measure does this college use, and when can my teen take it here?
Has the college applied for the A2A scholarship on my teen's behalf?

Frequently asked

Is concurrent credit free in Arkansas?

To the family, yes for tuition, fees, and materials. State concurrent enrollment policy says the student and parent are not responsible for those costs, and a district, scholarship, grant, or foundation covers them under a signed agreement.

Does the Concurrent Challenge Scholarship still exist in Arkansas?

No. It was repealed and replaced by the ACCESS to Acceleration Scholarship under Act 341 of 2025, which pays $65 per semester credit hour instead of $125 per course.

How much does the A2A scholarship pay?

$65 per semester credit hour, up to fifteen credit hours a semester and $2,000 in an academic year. The college applies for it on the student's behalf.

What ACT score do you need for concurrent credit in Arkansas?

An ACT Reading score of 19 is the common qualifying mark for college-level concurrent courses. Colleges may set higher minimums for math and composition and may accept other placement measures instead.

Can a 9th grader take concurrent credit in Arkansas?

Yes. Arkansas Code 6-18-223 opens the program to students who have completed the eighth grade, and A2A covers grades nine through twelve. Freshmen were about 3 percent of concurrent students in 2024-25.

Do Arkansas concurrent credit courses transfer?

General education courses listed in the Arkansas Course Transfer System carry an agreed equivalency among Arkansas public institutions. If a course is not in ACTS, the college and high school must tell the student it may not transfer.

Sources

Arkansas Division of Higher Education, Concurrent Credit · what concurrent enrollment is and the policy documents behind it
Arkansas Division of Higher Education, Concurrent Enrollment Policy (July 2025) · the rule that families are not billed, the 0.5 to 2.5 percent per-credit-hour range, placement standards, and Arkansas Code 6-18-223
ADHE, ACCESS to Acceleration Scholarship details · Act 341 of 2025, $65 a credit hour, $2,000 a year, the 2.50 GPA rule, and the retake limit
ADHE, ACCESS to Acceleration frequently asked questions · confirms A2A replaced the repealed Concurrent Challenge and that the institution applies
Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board, Annual Report on Concurrent Education (2025) · the 38.4 percent growth, grade mix, course load, 90.1 percent pass rate, and the accreditation requirement

Rules change. These were checked September 2026. Confirm the current version with your school before you act on any of it.

About FastTrack Advising

FastTrack Advising. FastTrack Advising works on dual enrollment and nothing else. We help families choose college courses a high schooler can take now that will still count toward the degree later, we check every course against the transfer rules of the colleges they name, and we stay in the picture through registration so the plan gets used. When the answer for a student is to wait a term, we say that too.

Other state programs

All state programs

PSEO (Minnesota) Free tuition, books, and required fees for 10th through 12th graders, with a May 30 notice deadline that many families miss.
Running Start (Washington) Tuition-free college courses for juniors and seniors at Washington's community and technical colleges and a few universities. Families still pay fees and books, and the student gets to campus on their own.
College Credit Plus (Ohio) Open to 7th through 12th graders, free at Ohio public colleges for public school students, with an April 1 letter of intent and a 30-credit annual cap.
Dual credit (Texas) Each college sets its rate and each district decides how much to cover. Students who qualified for free or reduced lunch in the last five years pay nothing at colleges in the FAST program.
Dual enrollment (Florida) Tuition-free by state law, with a 3.0 unweighted GPA and a qualifying PERT, SAT, or ACT score to get in. Public school students get textbooks covered too.
Dual enrollment (California) Community college courses for 9th through 12th graders through a district partnership called CCAP, with no enrollment fees and no textbook costs, capped at 15 units a term.
Dual Enrollment (Georgia) State funding covers tuition, fees, and books for 30 semester hours, mostly for juniors and seniors. After 30 hours the family pays the college's rate, and ninth graders are outside the program entirely.
Career & College Promise (North Carolina) Tuition paid by the state at community colleges for juniors and seniors with a 2.8 unweighted GPA. Whether the district covers fees and books, and who drives, varies by district.
Concurrent Enrollment (Colorado) Open to 9th through 12th graders with an approved academic plan. The district pays tuition at the community college rate; books and fees are usually the family's, and so is getting to campus.
Dual credit (Illinois) Governed by the Dual Credit Quality Act and a model agreement between each district and college. Whether your teen pays depends on that agreement.
Early College Credit and Start College Now (Wisconsin) Two programs, one for the technical colleges and one for universities, both for juniors and seniors. The district pays most or all of the tuition, and applications are due March 1 for fall and October 1 for spring.
Dual credit (Indiana) Every Indiana high school has to offer dual credit. Priority courses at public colleges cost at most $25 a credit hour, and nothing for students on free or reduced lunch.
Dual enrollment (Michigan) Grades 9 through 12, for courses the high school doesn't offer. The district pays tuition up to a state-set share; anything above it, plus books, is yours. Ten courses across high school.
Dual Enrollment (Alabama) Rising 10th through 12th graders with a 2.5 GPA, at $133 a credit hour plus fees, with a state scholarship that covers some courses when the legislature funds it. No credit cap at all.
Dual Enrollment (Tennessee) The lottery-funded Dual Enrollment Grant pays up to $620.55 for each of the first five courses, then much less. One June 30 application covers the whole academic year.
Dual enrollment (Pennsylvania) Every school entity has to hold at least one dual credit agreement, and none of them has to pay for the courses. The agreement states the cost, and published rates run from $83.50 to $230 a credit.
Dual enrollment (Virginia) Juniors and seniors at the community colleges. Courses on a College and Career Ready Virginia pathway cost the family nothing, and courses outside it are billed at the college rate.
Dual enrollment (Arizona) A community college course taught inside the high school during the school day. Concurrent enrollment is the separate arrangement where the student goes to the college. Price is set district by district.
Dual enrollment (South Carolina) College courses through the state's 16 technical colleges, priced by each college and district, with Lottery Tuition Assistance covering part of the tuition once a student carries six credit hours in a term.
Dual enrollment (Louisiana) A Board of Regents floor for eligibility, four ways to clear it, and a bill the district assembles out of state and federal funds. TOPS Tech Early Start covers career courses for juniors and seniors.
Dual enrollment (Maryland) The Blueprint moved the bill off families for students who meet the College and Career Readiness Standard, and set a floor of two covered courses each fall and spring. Counties add their own terms on top.
Concurrent Enrollment (Utah) College courses for $5 a credit hour, taught mostly inside the high school by a college-approved teacher. Each college sets its own admission bar, and books are still yours.
Concurrent Enrollment (Oklahoma) Juniors and seniors get tuition waived by the State Regents, 18 credit hours a year for seniors and 9 for juniors. Fees and books stay with the family, and each college sets its own entrance bar.
Dual enrollment (New York) No single statewide program. CUNY's College Now is free for New York City public school students, SUNY campuses price their own, and a new state rule makes districts file their partnership agreements in 2026.
Dual enrollment (Massachusetts) Two state programs. CDEP waives tuition and fees at public campuses for eligible high schoolers, mostly in the spring, and designated Early College builds the courses into the school day at no cost.
Concurrent Enrollment (Iowa) College courses run through a district contract with a community college, at no tuition cost to the family. Iowa also runs PSEO, and the two programs treat a failed course differently.
Dual Enrollment and Dual Credit (Mississippi) Mississippi separates the two terms in statute. Dual enrollment earns college credit only; dual credit earns high school credit too, and the distinction decides whether the course helps your teen graduate.
Dual Enrollment (Nebraska) Nebraska has no single statewide program, so the price depends on which college your high school partners with. The ACE scholarship covers tuition and mandatory fees for students who qualify on income.
Dual Credit (New Mexico) A statewide program where the college charges no tuition and the school district buys the books. Families pay special course fees and transportation, and the guidance is two courses a semester until graduation requirements are done.
Early College (Maine) Maine pays college tuition for high schoolers through the Aspirations Program, and the class of 2027 forward gets 18 tuition-free credits for the whole of high school.
Dual and Concurrent Enrollment (New Hampshire) The state and the community colleges cover two courses a year for students in grades 10 through 12, and most of those courses are taught inside the high school.
Dual Enrollment (Vermont) Two vouchers, each covering tuition on a college course of up to four credits, for any Vermont student who has finished grade 10, including home study students.
Dual credit (West Virginia) A state-funded pilot pays tuition and academic fees for courses on approved career pathways, for public, private, charter, microschool, learning pod, and homeschool students alike.
Dual enrollment (Delaware) No statewide program makes it free. State regulation puts the policy on every district and charter, bars turning a student away over money, and most courses run through Delaware Tech.
Dual enrollment (New Jersey) No statewide free tuition. Public colleges must sign dual enrollment agreements and districts choose whether to join, so the price and the eligibility rules come from your own county college.
Dual enrollment (Connecticut) A board policy rather than a statute sets the rules. Concurrent credit courses are capped at $50 a credit, CT State covers two courses a semester for qualifying juniors and seniors, and UConn ECE has run since 1955.
Accelerated learning (Oregon) Oregon calls the whole category accelerated learning. Dual credit at the high school is free or close to it at most community colleges, and Expanded Options moves a junior or senior onto a campus at no charge to the student.
Dual enrollment (Nevada) No statewide free tuition. Districts sign cooperative agreements with NSHE colleges and each agreement names who pays, so the price runs from $25 a credit at the high school to $154 on a university campus.
Concurrent enrollment (Kansas) Concurrent enrollment means the college course is taught at the high school, and it is not free by default. Excel in CTE pays tuition for approved technical courses, and a district board may cover the rest if it chooses to.
Dual Credit (Kentucky) A $99 ceiling on what a college may charge a high school student, and a state scholarship that pays that rate for one general education course a year.
Dual Credit (Missouri) Missouri draws a line between dual credit and dual enrollment based on who teaches, and the price and the GPA tier both follow from that.
Dual Credit (Idaho) Every Idaho public school student gets $4,625 to spend on college credit between grades 7 and 12, and the fund pays $75 a credit, which is what colleges charge.
Dual Credit (North Dakota) Tuition is the family's here, at a reduced rate that changes with who teaches the course, and Bank of North Dakota covers two courses a year for students on free or reduced lunch.
Dual Credit (South Dakota) Juniors and seniors split a deeply reduced tuition rate with the state, at $80.37 a credit hour, under a statute with a hard rule about what happens if a course goes badly.
Dual and Concurrent Enrollment (Rhode Island) A state fund covers tuition and fees for part-time college courses at the three public institutions, and the statute behind it caps that fund at whatever the budget appropriates each year.
Early College and Running Start (Hawaii) Two programs run off one statute that never says who pays. Early College comes to the high school and the school usually covers it; Running Start puts the student on a UH campus at that campus’s published rate.
Dual Enrollment (Alaska) No state program and no state money behind it. What a college course costs an Alaska family depends on which University of Alaska campus offers it and whether the school district signed an agreement.
Dual Enrollment (Montana) The first two courses or six credits carry no tuition anywhere in the Montana University System, fees are waived, and everything after that costs half of resident two-year tuition, around $60 a credit.
Dual and Concurrent Enrollment (Wyoming) State law bars a college from charging a participating student for textbooks, materials, student services, or any other fee, and from 2026-27 the state starts reimbursing districts for what it costs them.

Planning Concurrent Credit for your teen?

Save this page and the state's deadlines show up on your own My FastTrack page, next to the tools. Which courses to take, in which order, so the credits still count at the college your teen ends up at, is the part we do with families.

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