Georgia guide
Dual Enrollment in Georgia.
Georgia pays for eligible high school students to take college classes: tuition, mandatory fees and required books, up to 30 semester hours. Here’s who qualifies, what the limits are, and how to apply.
By Lokesh Pampatti, founder of Clarity Prep · Updated October 18, 2026
Who qualifies
| Grade | What you can take |
|---|---|
| 11th and 12th | Any approved course, at a participating university, technical college or private college |
| 10th | Approved career and technical (CTAE) courses at a technical college. With a 1200 SAT or 26 ACT from one test date: any approved course, anywhere |
| 9th | Not eligible |
You also need to:
- Attend an eligible Georgia public or private high school or home study program, and have it approve you.
- Meet Georgia residency and U.S. citizenship or eligible non-citizen rules.
- Be admitted by the college, and keep up its satisfactory academic progress rules.
- Finish every college class before you graduate from high school.
- Be under 22 on the first day of the term.
Grade level is set by your high school each term. A 10th grader who passes everything needed for promotion can often take summer classes as an 11th grader.
What’s paid for, and the limits
- Paid: standard tuition, mandatory fees and required books (including online access codes) for approved courses. Colleges can’t charge you extra for them.
- The cap: 30 semester hours (45 quarter hours) in total. It’s a hard cap: once the program has paid for 30 hours, further classes are on you.
- Per term: up to 15 semester hours, and up to three semesters a year (summer counts).
- No retakes: the program won’t pay for the same course twice.
- Two withdrawals and you’re out: after a second withdrawal, funding ends for future terms.
- Which courses: core academics (English, math, science, social studies, world languages) and career, technical and agricultural education courses, as listed in the GAfutures Course Directory.
How to apply
- Talk to your high school counselor about which colleges and courses fit your graduation plan.
- Apply to the college as a dual enrollment student and get accepted. Each college sets its own admission rules.
- Create a GAfutures account with your legal name, address, date of birth and Social Security number, then submit that year’s Dual Enrollment Funding Application.
- A parent or guardian signs the Participation Agreement online, using the application ID you receive.
- Your high school and the college approve the application before their deadlines. Check both; they’re often weeks before the term.
Sophomores going for academic courses: send your SAT score report to GSFC by email or your ACT score with recipient code 2225 before your school approves the application.
Making the 30 hours count
Thirty hours is about one year of college. Spend it on classes that are hard to get later or that transfer cleanly: core English, math, science and history at a University System of Georgia school usually transfer across the system. Avoid using hours on classes you could take as AP at your own school if your target colleges prefer AP.
Dual enrollment core classes count in your HOPE GPA with the same extra 0.5 as AP on a B, C, D or F, and they count as rigor credits for HOPE and Zell Miller. Check where you stand with the GPA calculator, which shows your HOPE GPA too. Advanced math students who finish AP Calculus can also look at Georgia Tech’s Distance Math program, which runs through Dual Enrollment.
Questions
Is Dual Enrollment free in Georgia?
For approved courses, yes: the program pays standard tuition, mandatory fees and required books, and colleges can’t charge eligible students extra for those courses. It stops paying once you reach 30 semester hours (45 quarter hours) or graduate from high school, whichever comes first.
Can 9th graders do Dual Enrollment in Georgia?
No. Ninth graders aren’t eligible for Dual Enrollment funding.
Can 10th graders do Dual Enrollment in Georgia?
Yes, with limits. Any eligible 10th grader can take approved career, technical and agricultural (CTAE) courses at a Technical College System of Georgia school. To take academic courses at a university or private college, a 10th grader needs a 1200 SAT or 26 ACT from a single test date, on file with GSFC before the high school approves the application.
What happens if I withdraw from a Dual Enrollment class?
After your second withdrawal you lose Dual Enrollment funding for future terms. You also can’t get funding to retake a course. GSFC considers appeals only for serious illness, serious injury or a death in the immediate family.
Do Dual Enrollment classes count for HOPE?
Yes. Dual enrollment core classes count in the high school HOPE GPA, and like AP and IB they get an extra 0.5 on a B, C, D or F. They also count toward the four rigor credits HOPE and Zell Miller require.
What can I do after the 30-hour cap?
You can pay for more classes yourself. Students in an eligible technical certificate or diploma program may be able to use the HOPE Grant and HOPE Career Grant; the college decides eligibility, and those hours count toward HOPE’s paid-hours limits.
Want help choosing classes?
A Clarity Prep mentor in Atlanta helps you choose between AP and Dual Enrollment, use your 30 hours on classes that count toward your major, and plan for HOPE and Zell Miller.