Seven Steps to Admission for Dual Enrolled and Early Admission Students

The dual enrollment program allows academically talented high school students to take college classes while still in high school. Some of the benefits of program participation are broadened educational opportunities, increased depth of study, and accelerated attainment of post-secondary educational goals — at zero cost. To get started, please complete these seven simple steps to become a dual enrollment student.

Before you begin, read the Dual Enrollment Agreement and the addendum appropriate to your high school experience.

Step 1 — Meet eligibility requirements

Requirements for the three types of dual enrollment include:

Dual Enrollment — (taking up to 11 credits per term as a part-time student while in grades 6-12)

• • Unweighted high school GPA of 3.0
  • Approval from a high school counselor
  • Placement test at college-level

Early Admission — (taking 12-15 credits per semester as a full-time college student) and Accelerated Program (taking more than 15 credits per semester as a full-time college student in select programs leading to industry certifications)

• • Earned 21 high school credits (18 if you are a full-time student at Florida Virtual School)
  • Unweighted high school GPA of 3.2
  • Approval from a high school counselor
  • Placement test at college-level

Step 2 — Complete the Polk State College online admission application

You may enter your application during a dual enrollment admission event at your public high school or at the College’s Admission and Registrar’s offices in Winter Haven, Lakeland, or Lake Wales, or online. Check with your high school counselor for dates and times of admission events. It is important for your own protection to apply using your own social security number. Do not use your parent’s SSN. You will need:

• • A valid personal email address
  • Your own Social Security number (If you don’t have one, you can still apply but do not use your parent’s Social Security number.)

Step 3 — Submit official scores from an approved placement test

PERT, ACT, or SAT scores are acceptable. Official scores must be sent directly to Polk State College from the respective testing agency. PERT scores are accessible to the College from the PERT Testing Repository and are considered official, so students do not need to request PERT scores. Your scores cannot be older than two years from the first day of the semester you plan to attend. Click here to schedule PERT test 

If you are using ACT or SAT, unofficial scores may be used for one semester, but registration will be blocked if official scores are not submitted for future terms. To obtain scores: Click here for SAT scores. Click here for ACT scores.

The table below shows minimum placement scores required for eligibility.

Students may also use the following methods to establish eligibility:

• • An unweighted high school GPA of 3.0 and an approved common placement test; OR
  • An unweighted high school GPA of 3.0 and an approved alternative method, which includes:
    • Tests or assessments (e.g., PSAT or PreACT®); OR
    • Performance in high school coursework (Florida high school or accelerated); OR
    • Credit-by-exam.

The scores needed in each of the areas mentioned above are outlined in the link below:

2024-25 Dual Enrollment Eligibility and Testing Information

Step 4 — Complete the College’s student orientation

Take the online orientation. You will have a registration hold until you complete orientation. Once you complete orientation, you will be able to register within four school days.

Step 5 — Complete course selection, approval, and registration

• • Public school students— Use the DELTA portal and meet with the high school counselor each semester. (Some schools may use the approval form.) The high school counselor will give students information on the use of DELTA.
  • Private school and home-schooled students—The approval form must be signed each semester by the high school counselor or home-school parent and sent to deregistration@zo23.com. The subject of the email should be name of the school or homeschool.
  • Florida Virtual School students— This approval form must be signed by the high school counselor and submitted to Polk State by the counselor to deregistration@zo23.com each semester.
  • Use the PASSPORT student portal to check your schedule for accuracy.

Public school students register for approved classes during Dual Enrollment Registration Day at their high school, and any student, including public school students, can register at Polk State College with an academic advisor 24 hours after the course has been approved by the school counselor. See your high school counselor for the dual enrollment registration dates at your school or check the Academic Calendar for dates and times of open registration.

For classes offered at a school site, steps 1-5 need to be completed 10 days before the course start date.

Step 6 — Submit course schedule to high school counselor

Course schedules and grades are sent to the public high school for inclusion on the high school transcript at the end of each term. Homeschool and private school students must request an official transcript from the College or use the unofficial transcript in the Polk Portal portal.

Step 7 — Acquire textbooks

Each public school will give students instructions about when and where to acquire dual-enrollment textbooks. Private and home-schooled students’ required textbooks and materials will be provided by Polk State. If you have questions about dual enrollment, please email deregistration@polk.edu or see your school counselor