Tech-Prep, or technical preparation, allows you to begin earning college credit while in high school. There are lots of technical fields to choose from in the Garland Independent School District. You can begin learning what you need to know to get a high-paying career as early as the ninth grade.

Step One: Discuss technical programs you might be interested in with your high school career and technology teacher or counselor. With their help, you can determine what technical programs will likely suit you best for further study in high school and in college.

If you are not sure what career interest you may have, you can check with the counseling office, or your Career and Technology teacher, for information on the Kuder career assessment program.

Step Two: Once your decision has been made, you may go to the web site for Dallas County Community College to see which classes will articulate. Articulation is the process in which student's complete a high school plan of study. The student must complete the approved Tech-Prep class, or classes with a grade of 80 or above. If you are interested in going to another district's junior college, you would have to check with that district to see what classes will articulate. You will need a "Transfer of Tech Prep College Credit" form, which you can get from your career and technology teacher.

Step Three: Following high school graduation, meet with an advisor at the college of your choice. Present to that advisor your high school transcript, along with your "Transfer of Tech Prep College Credit" form. Declare a technical major in the Tech Prep associate degree program and you will be given a list of classes. When you enroll for your first semester, you will be awarded college credits for the Tech Prep courses you took in high school!

NOTE: If you decide to enroll at a four-year university, then your involvement in the tech prep program will not have been wasted. The math, science, and communication courses you take will serve as excellent preparation for the academic and career challenges ahead.

The following local colleges participate in Tech Prep: All Dallas County Community Colleges: Brookhaven, Cedar Valley, Eastfield, El Centro, Mountain View, North Lake, and Richland.

Here is an example of a career pathway for Accounting that would include classes that could articulate:

#8604 Accounting I

#8610(A) Business Computer Information Systems I

#8607 Accounting II (H)

#8615(A) Business Computer Information Systems II

#8611(A) Business Computer Information Systems II - Career Preparation I

#8615 Business Computer Information Systems II - Career Preparation II

#8599 Banking and Financial Systems