College Exploration Opportunities
Framingham State University & Massbay Community College
Dual Enrollment and Early College
Waltham High School has partnered with Framingham State University and MassBay Community College to provide students with the opportunity to enroll in enriching college-level courses while meeting their high school requirements. This opportunity is being provided by MetroWest Scholars Early Start and following two programs: Dual Enrollment and Early College Program. The programs are designed for students of all backgrounds, while specifically serving underrepresented populations. Data released by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education shows that high school graduates who participated in Early College programs are enrolling in college at a rate that is 20 percentage points higher than their school or state peers. Both Dual Enrollment and Early College Program provide students with the opportunity to get a headstart on their post-secondary education while building skills and confidence that will help them succeed post graduation-at no cost to them or their families.
Early College Program
Program Description: Early College Programs are designed to blend elements of high school and college to provide students with the opportunity to experience and complete college level academic coursework on a clearly articulated pathway and simultaneously gain exposure to a variety of career opportunities. Early College is an opportunity for students to explore careers in STEM, Business, Sociology, Criminology and Education. As part of the program students are provided with supplies, tutoring, summer programs, social and emotional sessions at no cost. Tutoring is provided in English and in Spanish. Students are required to attend a monthly workshop during Hawk Block. Courses can be provided on or offsite. Students graduate with a minimum of 12 college credits (roughly one semester worth of college credits).
If students enroll in Early College during 8th grade, they will have access to a summer enrichment program that provides academic and emotional support to students as well as advising opportunities throughout their postsecondary experience.
Criteria for Recommendation:
Recruitment begins in 8th grade
Students can enroll up until their Junior Year
There is no minimum GPA requirement or required test scores
Details about Courses:
Students are not required to take these courses but are encouraged to.*
The Early College courses follow the college semester structure and as such, will be paired to provide students with a full schedule. For the 2022-2023 year, the pairs will be as follows:
Effective Speaking and Cultural Anthropology
Sociology and Latin American Art
Early College Courses Available at WHS During the 2022-2023 School Year*
Interested in applying?
Please contact Kaitlyn Vallejos, Career and College Readiness Coordinator kaitlynvallejos@walthampublicschools.org or 781 314-5484
DUAL Enrollment
Dual Enrollment Courses Available at
WHS During the 2022-2023 School Year*
Program Description: Dual Enrollment students have the opportunity to take free college courses while fulfilling their high school requirements. This is a flexible track to taking college courses. Dual Enrollment does not include the seminars or additional support that the Early College Program offers.
Criteria for Recommendation:
Students from all grade levels can apply
*All courses mentioned above are pending the approval of the Program of Studies by the School Committee.
Interested in applying?
Please contact Kaitlyn Vallejos, Career and College Readiness Coordinator kaitlynvallejos@walthampublicschools.org
Additional College Exploration Opportunities
Dual Enrollment Opportunities in the Community
Framingham State University
Framingham State University will be offering the following Dual Enrollment courses this upcoming Summer 2022 via Zoom:
Cultural Anthropology: An exploration of how culture influences us to believe, think, and act. The course presents cross-cultural perspectives on aspects of human life, which may include how we get the things we need to survive, what sort of family life is desirable, and how we govern ourselves and maintain social order. Both Western and non-Western ideas and practices are explored. Students are introduced to the methods used by anthropologists in the study of culture.
College Composition II (College Writing II): Designed to improve the writing of expository prose needed in college and beyond. The emphasis rests on collecting, evaluating, and organizing evidence from primary and secondary sources in order to support an explicit, arguable, and substantive thesis. The course includes the writing of a well-researched and documented paper that draws on traditional and electronic sources.
***Prerequisite: English Writing Placement required; or a grade of C- (1.7) or better in ENGL/ENWR 100 Introduction to College Writing.
Introduction to Statistics: An introduction to the discipline of statistics, emphasizing both statistical thinking and its application to analyzing data. Topics include sampling, design of experiments, organizing and exploring data, probability distributions such as the normal distribution, sampling distributions, hypothesis testing and confidence intervals, correlation and regression. Students are expected to express results of statistical procedures in ordinary non-technical language. Real world applications of statistical topics are emphasized throughout the course.
***Prerequisite: Satisfactory score on the mathematics placement examination or student completed algebra in high school.
Interested in applying?
Please contact Kaitlyn Vallejos, Career and College Readiness Coordinator kaitlynvallejos@walthampublicschools.org
College Exploration Opportunities in the Community
Brandeis University- Academic Immersion Program
Program Description: The Academic Immersion program is a 10-week program through Brandeis University, for rising freshman, sophomores, juniors and seniors in the 2021-2022 school year. Sessions will begin in late July. Students have the opportunity to enroll in one of the following courses at no cost:
· Computer Science for Social Justice
· Jewish Learning and Community
· Race, Inequality and Social Justice
The courses are not credit bearing due to the limited course hours that the university requires to award credit, but it ends in a capstone which could be used for college applications. Students will spend 2-3 hours per week doing online work for the program, both synchronous and asynchronous. One of the hours will be used for a live webinar. There will be live office hours with a teaching assistant from Brandeis University to answer any questions students may have or assist students with their capstone project.
Process of recommendation: Students are nominated by a WHS staff (teachers/ Guidance Counselors), please fill out the nomination form. Once the nomination is reviewed the student will receive an email with the Academic Immersion Program application. The application is due by January 15, 2022.
Lasell University- Pathways to Teacher Diversity Program
Program Description: Pathways to Teacher Diversity Program through Lasell University is designed for students who have an interest in becoming teachers. The program has created a mentoring curriculum to help students learn about the college life, process of college applications and overall what college readiness may look like. The program’s goal is to support students on career readiness and to decrease teacher-student diversity gaps in Massachusetts. Lasell is currently providing mentorship to students who are interested in one of the following career paths: Education, Psychology, Fashion, Graphic Design, Communication & Marketing, and Health Professions.
MassBay Community College-STEM Stories: Start Here. Go Anywhere
MassBay's STEM Division is offering STEM Stories: Start Here. Go Anywhere. This is an opportunity open to meet MassBay STEM faculty, staff, students, graduates and industry professionals to learn about innovative STEM programs at MassBay, resources and support for MassBay STEM students and explore exciting career options in the STEM fields.
High school students, teachers, administrators, adult learners and community partners are invited to attend one of the virtual STEM Division information Sessions which will be held monthly throughout the Spring semester beginning in February. Dates, times and registration links are listed below.
Session 1: Tuesday, February 1, | 5:00 PM EST. Pre-Registration Required
Session 2: Wednesday, March 9th | 9:00 AM EST. Pre-Registration Required
Session 3: Thursday, April 7th | 5:00 PM EST. Pre-Registration Required
Session 4: Friday, May 6th | 12:00 PM EST. Pre-Registration Required