What is a year of college worth?
Thirty transferable college credits earned in high school is one full academic year, a quarter of a bachelor's degree or half of an associate. At an in-state public university, published averages put that year at about $11,600 in tuition not paid plus a year of salary started sooner; at a public community college the tuition figure is about $4,050. This calculator lets you change every number to match your teen and your target college.
Only if the degree ends 1 semester earlier. A major with a fixed sequence usually keeps its date; ask the college.
- Tuition not paid
- $5,805
- Salary started earlier
- $34,340
An estimate from published averages; your teen's own numbers will differ. The tuition default is an in-state public university's; a public community college averages about $4,050, so enter that if it is the target. Housing is left out. Credits that land as electives shorten nothing, which is why the transfer share matters more than the credit count.
How the math works
Credits planned, times the share that will transfer as requirements, is the number of credits that count. A degree is shortened a semester at a time, and a semester is fifteen of those credits: twenty-eight counting credits is one semester off, not 0.9 years, because the thirteen left over do not fill a term on their own. Thirty is one academic year, whether the degree is an associate or a bachelor's. Each semester saved is half a year of tuition not paid and half a year of salary that starts sooner. The calculator stops at two years because that is the most a family should plan around.
What the calculator leaves out
Housing and living costs, which a student pays whether or not they are in class. Any cost of the dual enrollment courses themselves, which is zero in some states and not in others; your state's page has the rule. And the biggest one: whether your teen is ready for the pace. A low grade at sixteen is on the college transcript for good. The readiness checklist comes first.
The transfer share deserves the most attention, because it decides how many of the credits count. The 30-credit worksheet is the place to check it course by course, and checking it against the colleges you name is most of what the roadmap is.
Frequently asked
Why does the transfer share matter so much?
A credit only shortens a degree when it replaces a requirement at the college the student attends. A credit that lands as an elective fills space the student didn't need to fill. Thirty credits at an eighty percent transfer rate is twenty-four usable credits, which is one semester off with nine to spare; at ninety percent it is twenty-seven, still one semester. Three more counting credits would make it a full year, which is why checking transfer course by course pays.
Why does the calculator count in semesters instead of a decimal?
Because a college does. A degree gets shorter one term at a time: fifteen counting credits is a semester, thirty is a year. Twenty-eight credits shortens the degree by one semester, and the thirteen left over sit on the transcript until more credits join them. A decimal like 0.9 years would suggest savings the student cannot collect.
Where do the default numbers come from?
The $11,610 in tuition and fees and the $68,680 starting salary are published national averages for an in-state public university, If your teen is headed to a community college, start from about $4,050, the published average for public two-year tuition and fees. Either way, replace the defaults with your target college's own tuition and a realistic salary for the career your teen is aiming at.
Can dual enrollment save more than two years?
In rare cases, for a student who earns an associate degree in high school and transfers into a program that accepts all of it. If the associate is the goal, two years saved is the whole degree, finished before high school graduation. The calculator caps at two years because that is the most a family should plan around.