MARIETTA, OHIO—Ohio’s College Credit Plus (CCP) program is renowned for helping students save time and money, but Washington State College of Ohio (WSCO) alumna Katey DePuy has proven that those benefits are just the beginning of the opportunities provided by the early college option.
CCP is a state initiative designed to provide Ohio 7th through 12th-grade students the opportunity to earn college credits at no cost to them. DePuy enrolled in the CCP program through Washington State when she was a sophomore at Caldwell High School and ultimately earned two associate degrees–one in liberal arts transfer and the second in general sciences transfer. She calculated significant savings when it came to her investment in her health sciences bachelor’s degree. “I saved over $15,000 in tuition and graduated a year and a half early from Ohio State,” she said proudly. “Besides shortening the amount of time that I spent in undergrad, I believe CCP at WSCO gave me good exposure to the structure and demand of college courses. At WSCO, I learned how to effectively study and manage my time. Then, when I got to Ohio State, there wasn’t as much of a learning curve.”
While the savings were significant, DePuy, who is currently working at Mount Carmel Health System as a multi-skilled technician during her gap year before she begins physician assistant school, also credited the program with providing her with career exploration opportunities. “Through CCP I took a variety of different classes and was able to discover the career path I wanted to pursue.” In fact, she said it was an anatomy and physiology course where she ultimately discovered her interest in pursuing a career in healthcare.
Admittedly, DePuy was concerned that CCP would result in a disconnect from her high school, however she said that wasn’t the case. “I ended up meeting friends from other schools, taking interesting classes, and gaining new independence as a college student that only added to my high school experience.” Furthermore, she said she was “surprised by how much I ended up enjoying the challenge of taking college classes. This challenge also prepared me for undergrad more-so than I expected. I can confidently say that taking CCP courses was the most wise and beneficial academic decision I made in high school. I never hesitate to highly recommend this program to anyone who may be interested.”
