> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Getting the jump on college - URL: https://www.smdp.com/getting-the-jump-on-college/ - Published: 2007-07-28T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-24T02:23:44.000Z - Author: Melody Hanatani - Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import *High school students get a leg up on college* SANTA MONICA COLLEGE Christina Choi is really enjoying the college life — the challenging courses, diverse curriculum and interesting lab assignments. In fact, she can hardly wait until she becomes a college freshman in just three short years. An incoming sophomore at the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies, a magnet school located off Fairfax Avenue, Choi is just one of many motivated high school students trying to get a head start on their post-secondary education, enrolled in summer courses at Santa Monica College. “I’m ahead of my peers in high school, and since our school is really competitive, it helps if you’re a step ahead,” Choi said, referring to her college-level courses. “And for college applications, it looks good.” Then there’s the bonus of shaving off a few credits, relieving the workload necessary to attain a college degree. “I’m thinking about just shortening my work at college,” Choi said. “Even if I don’t (finish in) three years and have to take four, just doing the work while I’m in high school helps me a lot just to understand the concept (before) I go into college.” More and more high school students are getting a taste of college life, hitting the books at SMC — some to compile college credit to use down the road, others to spice up their college admissions applications. During the 2006-07 school year, more than 500 Malibu and Santa Monica high school students received college course credit through the concurrent enrollment — courses taken at SMC — and dual enrollment — college-level courses taught on the high school campus — programs. In May, administrators at the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and Santa Monica College inked an agreement that will launch two new programs in the coming years, increasing accessibility to post-secondary education for high schoolers. Through the Early College High School program, high school freshmen — starting in the 2008-09 school year — could graduate with both a high school diploma and an associate’s degree after four years. The Transfer Academy, on the other hand, would give juniors and seniors the option of taking classes in the morning at the high school and finishing their day at SMC, earning transferable college credit. The benefits of getting a jump-start on college and completing courses early are believed to be immense. With ever-increasing tuition, a student could save thousands of dollars if they manage to complete their undergraduate studies ear-lier than the typical four years. Graduating in three years could mean a savings of more than $30,000 at a private college or university. Completing college courses early could also give students a leg up in the admissions process, which has become increasingly competitive over the years. Students are always striving to set themselves apart from their peers, taking more extra-curricular activities and college-level courses, said Luke Skurman, the CEO of College Prowler, the largest publisher of material on campus life. “They want to let them see they’re capable of doing well in college-level courses,” Skurman said. It’s one of the reasons why Samohi student Michael Lagerfelt is taking a U.S. history course this summer through the dual enrollment program. “College classes give you a deeper understanding of the material,” Lagerfelt said. “It gives you a jump-start for college and it looks good on your transcript.” As an athlete and member of Samohi’s music program, Lagerfelt is also taking the summer class to lighten his load this coming school year. > “Part of me wished I stayed (in college) when I started working,” — Sarti joked The high school junior believes if he takes on more college-level history courses while still in high school, it will allow him to focus his attention more on law and business classes when attending college, which are the two disciplines he is considering as majors. But at this point, his mind isn’t focused on trying to finish college in less than four years. “You have the rest of your life to work,” Lagerfelt said. “(College) is a time a lot of people wish lasted a lot longer for them.” There are potential drawbacks with finishing college in less than four years, most notably the missed opportunities on internships and enjoying college life to its fullest, Skurman said. “By getting ultra-focused on getting more credits and more units and getting through everything faster, there’s a maturation process lost,” Skurman said. Ron Furuyama, the project manager for SMC’s Dual Enrollment program, doesn’t believe students would necessarily lose out by finishing up early. They could use that extra time to travel abroad for a semester or take advantage of another program available on their college campuses, he said. When the Early College High School and Transfer Academy programs were announced, school officials said it would give would-be first-generation college students motivation to strive for post-secondary studies. “For some students, this may be their first time... they may not have people to guide them,” said Dr. Chiung “Sally” Chou, the district’s chief academic officer, on Thursday. “At a community college, they have counselors and can talk to other college students about their aspirations.” Many students in the Dual Enrollment program this summer say taking a college-level class has given them a better understanding of the differences between high school and college courses. Samohi junior Monet Flennaugh has been taking a U.S. history course this summer through the Dual Enrollment program, not to get a head start on college, but to relieve her schedule next year, when she will juggle tennis and several advanced placement courses. Both the summer class and the AP classes she has taken have given her an idea of what to expect in a few years as a college freshman. “You notice how much more work you have to do and how fast the pace is,” Flennaugh said. Jillian Parker received her bachelor’s degree in African-American studies, with a minor in Spanish, from Loyola Marymount in December 2006, one semester sooner than expected. Parker was already ahead of the game when she started her undergraduate studies, entering college with advanced placement credit in Spanish. Following her graduation from high school, Parker took several classes at the local community college every summer, allowing her to graduate a semester early and use that extra time to begin looking for a job. She is now a technical recruiter at a staffing agency. “I definitely think it was a good idea,” Parker said. “I never took summers off. I was always reading or studying... I felt like it kept me in the loop of things.” Fellow LMU alumna Amy Sarti, who works in marketing for an architecture firm, also finished school in three years, graduating with a degree in communication studies, with a minor in theater arts, in 2001\. She immediately went on to graduate school at USC, attaining her master’s degree two years later. *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 28, 2007.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/072807.pdf?ref=smdp.com)