Advanced Opportunities 

Reach Beyond High School  

Advanced Opportunities

The Advanced Opportunities program provides every student attending an Idaho public school $4,625 to use towards eligible expenses in grades 7-12 to explore, advance and gain experience. The funds can be used for a variety of opportunities:

• Overload Courses
  An overload course is a high school level course that is taken in excess of the student’s regular school day. These courses are offered online, during the summertime, and before/after school. In the event that student incurs a cost for such courses, the Advanced Opportunities program can pay up to $225 for the cost of the course. Overload courses must be above and beyond the full course load offered by the student’s local school.

• Dual Credits
  Dual credit are college courses taken by high school students that are transcribed on both their high school and college transcripts. The Advanced Opportunities program can pay up to $75 per credit. Dual Credit courses can be taken online, in-person at the student's high school, or in some cases students can go directly to the college/university campus. More information is available on the "Dual Credit" page of the Idaho Department of Education's Parent Corner website.

• Exams
  Students can utilize Advanced Opportunities funds to pay for a variety of college-credit bearing or career-technical exams. These include Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), College Level Examination Program (CLEP), or Career & Technical Education (CTE) exams.

• Workforce Training
  Students can utilize Advanced Opportunities funds to pay for regionally approved workforce training courses at an Idaho public college. View approved workforce training courses for more details.

Challenging Courses
Many school districts provide options for students to demonstrate learning. In most cases, this means that a student would request to challenge a course by taking an exam or showing prior work. If the student meets the level of mastery set by the local school board for a given set of standards, the school can grant the student a high school credit without requiring the student take the course. Contact your local school district to learn more.

Early Graduation Scholarship
Early Graduation Scholarships are available for high school students who graduate at least one full year early. These scholarships are equal to 35% of the Average Daily Attendance (ADA) for a given school year. This equates to roughly $2,400.

Scholarships can be used at Idaho public post-secondary institutions. The awarded amount will double for students who graduate two years early and will triple for students who graduate three years early. If a student elects not to attend a college or university immediately after high school, they will have to apply within two years of their high school graduation to utilize the scholarship before it expires.

How to Sign Up

1. Create an Advanced Opportunities account at advancedops.sde.idaho.gov to track your account balance and request funding.

2. Contact your school’s Advanced Opportunities designee to learn about local guidelines for funding requests.
   
   Note: Account verification and funding approvals are done by your local school district.