Career and Technical Education (CTE)

Helping your Pennsylvania career and technical students understand the transition process to college can significantly increase the likelihood that they will go to college or other training after high school.  Higher levels of education result to higher lifetime earnings and help students build a career that will support a family. Your Program of Study (POS) offers qualified students the chance to earn free college credits.  These credits reduce the cost of higher education for the student and their family.  The credits count toward college graduation. At many institutions students can also earn other types of credit:  dual enrollment, AP credits, advanced credits through competency assessment, credits through articulation agreements, industry certifications or credit for life experience. The information that you need to help students use the Pennsylvania SOAR/POS statewide articulation system are provided here.

Letter To Students

Download: POS Explanation Student Letter.doc This letter clearly identifies what it takes to become a ‘qualified’ student to receive the free college credits. By annually sharing this letter, students and parents will learn what they can achieve if the student works hard in your program and succeeds.

• Download this letter
• Revise it onto your letterhead
• Identify by name who they contact to receive the required documents
• Annually distribute the letter to all students in POS programs

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Help students learn which colleges accept their credit in which majors

How to find colleges and free credits offered:

• Scroll over to the Search tab at the top of the page
• Scroll down and click on PA BUREAU OF CTE SOAR PROGRAMS

A box will pop up

• Step 1: Using the dropdown box, select your high school Program of Study by title or CIP Code
• Step 2:  Select the student’s graduation year
• Click the Search button
• A list of colleges will appear with the courses available for no cost and the majors that accept these credits at the college.

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Find all the POS paperwork the career and technical education (CTE) program needs to complete in one easy location

• Search first by CIP code/POS name then by year the student graduates.
• Download the pdf file.

You can fill the pdf file out on the computer by completing all of the fill-in fields or print out and fill in by hand.

• After completing the paperwork for each eligible student, save a copy and print it out.
• The instructor must sign as well as well as a locally designated representative of your school.
• Provide these materials to the student so that they can forward them to the college where they have applied with the other materials identified in the student letter.

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