Admissions

Policies and Procedures Update

In 2019, DCCC began a review of existing policies and procedures.  This review and revision process will continue into 2020. Throughout this process, faculty, staff, and our Board of Trustees are working together to ensure the college’s policies and procedures align to state and federal law, state board code, and are revised or newly developed to guide our work and ensure the success of the students we serve.  Go to the DCCC Policies and Procedures Web Page (opens in new window) for more information.

Enrollment Center

The Enrollment Center is located on the first floor of the B.E. Mendenhall, Jr. Building. The Center represents Davidson County Community College’s commitment to student success and credential completion. Several important offices that offer significant support for students are located within or close by the Enrollment Center.

The College has sought to integrate and conveniently locate services for efficiency and ease of student access.

The Enrollment Center includes the following offices: Recruitment, Admissions, Financial Aid, and Student Records.

Admissions

All Curriculum Programs

Any person who is a legal resident of the United States and who is either a high school graduate or at least 18 years of age will be admitted to the college. The College uses assessments, academic records, and/or other indicators to determine the potential for success in programs offered by the College. Should a student desire a course of study but does not have the appropriate educational background, pre-curriculum studies are available to prepare the student for the desired program.

The admission process is essentially the same for all students applying for associate degree, diploma, and certificate programs; however, several programs have additional requirements, which are described in the Curriculum Programs section of this catalog. An abbreviated procedure has been developed for Special Credit (non-degree) students (students not working towards an associate degree, diploma, and certificate) at Davidson County Community College. Refer to Special Credit Students section for more information. Refer to the Continuing Education Programs section for admission information about continuing education courses.

The College welcomes the opportunity to assist each prospective student in evaluating their educational and career objectives. Enrollment Services lists its hours on the College website. The website also contains a great deal of useful information available to applicants and students at all times.

The steps in the general admissions process are briefly outlined below. All forms and correspondence should be addressed to: Enrollment Services Office, Davidson County Community College, P.O. Box 1287, Lexington, NC 27293-1287. Enrollment Services is located on the first floor of the B.E. Mendenhall, Jr. Building on the Davidson Campus and the Administrative Building on the Davie Campus, Enrollment Services.

1. Complete the online Application for Admission (opens in new window).
2. Submit a transcript of work completed at any previously attended institution of higher education to determine placement or prerequisite information. Official transcript must be submitted for transfer credit to be awarded.
3. Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) (opens in new window).
4. Attend an Enrollment Information Session to learn more about programs of study, discuss educational and career objectives and determine next steps for DCCC enrollment.
5. Applicants who plan to obtain a degree, diploma, or certificate are required to demonstrate readiness for college level courses through Reinforced Instruction for Student Excellence (RISE). To learn more about RISE go to the Reinforced Instruction for Student Excellence (RISE) section.
6.  Meet with Career Services to review the online career assessment, confirm program of study and make an appointment to attend orientation.
7. Attend the new student orientation to learn about college resources and success strategies, meet with your advisor to develop an academic plan, and take a tour of the campus.

Programs with Special Criteria

Admission to specific College programs is determined by available space and assessment criteria established for each program. Information on specific program criteria is available in the Enrollment Center and on the Programs with Special Criteria page on the college website.

Continuing Education Students

For admission to Continuing Education non-credit courses, it is recommended that the student be at least 18 years of age. Some continuing education courses have special admissions requirements.

International Students

Davidson County Community College welcomes students from all over the world. An international student is defined as a person seeking admission to the college who is not a U.S. citizen and requires a student visa.

Requirements and Responsibilities

• International students are required to observe the regulations of the United States Department of Homeland Security, (opens in new window) as well as those of the College.
• International students are only eligible to enroll at the start of a fall or spring term.
• A person holding a student visa cannot be classified as a North Carolina resident for tuition purposes.
• The College is required to enroll all F-1 International Students in the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS).
• Davidson County Community College is not authorized to issue I-20 forms or accept I-20 transfer students for F-1 International Students for High School Equivalency programs, English as a Second Language programs, or certain curriculum programs.  For a complete list of eligible programs, please see the International Student Procedures.
• F-1 International Students must submit evidence of adequate financial resources which include tuition, fees, and living expenses for one academic year. The documentary evidence must be in the form of either a bank statement signed by a bank official or a letter on official bank letterhead signed by a bank official. This documentation must be in English and converted to US dollars. If the student is being sponsored, then the sponsor should also complete an Affidavit of Support. (opens in new window)
• Davidson County Community College requires F-1 International Students to meet our English language requirement before receiving the I-20.  Students can demonstrate they meet this requirement in the following ways:
  • Appropriate scores on the TOEFL iBT® (opens in new window)
    • Reading 15
    • Listening 14
    • Speaking 16
    • Writing 16
  • Minimum score of 500 on the TOEFL PBT® (opens in new window)
  • Meeting benchmarks using college approved placement tests
  • Successful completion of a college level English course at a US college or university
  • Students who have obtained their secondary school diploma and/or a bachelor’s degree from countries where English is the official language of instruction are exempt from the English Language requirement. For complete list, see the International Student Procedures.
  • Exceptions to the policies above need to be approved by the Registrar.

• Students who have attended a college or university outside the United States must have their transcripts evaluated by World Education Services (WES) (opens in new window) before they can be reviewed for possible transfer credit. Evaluation of foreign transcripts by WES does not guarantee transfer credit will be granted, and the standard Transfer Credit Policy   will apply.

• F-1 students may be required to provide additional documentation or information in order to complete their SEVIS record and be issued the I-20.

Special Credit Students

 An applicant to the College who wishes to enroll in one or more curriculum course(s) but who does not plan to pursue a degree, diploma, or certificate may be accepted and may enroll as a special credit student. Before enrolling, a student must provide appropriate documentation showing they demonstrate competence for any course that has a required North Carolina Community College requisite. Options for demonstration of competence include GED/HISET, Accuplacer, NC RISE Placement Assessment, ACT or SAT scores no more than 10 years old, or unofficial high school transcripts that meet a specified GPA and course benchmark with a completion date no more than 10 years old; or unofficial or official college transcripts showing prior degree/course work completed. Special credit student enrollment status does not qualify for federal financial assistance.

Dual Enrollment Options

Career and College Promise

Career and College Promise provides dual enrollment opportunities for North Carolina high school students to accelerate completion of college certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees that lead to college transfer or provide entry-level job skills. DCCC offers the following Career and College Promise pathways aligned with the K-12 curriculum and career and college readiness standards adopted by the State Board of Education:

1. A College Pathway leading to a minimum of 30 hours of college transfer credit;
2. A Career and Technical Education Pathway leading to a certificate, diploma or degree;
3. A Cooperative Innovative High School Pathway (Early College High School).

 College Transfer Pathway

1. The Career and College Promise College Transfer Pathway may include up to 30 semester hours of transfer courses, including English and mathematics.
2. To be eligible for enrollment, a high school student must meet the following criteria:
   1. Be a high school junior or senior;

   2. Have an unweighted high school GPA of 2.8 or higher; or

   3. Demonstrate college readiness on approved assessments in English, reading, and math.

3. To maintain eligibility for continued enrollment, a student must
   1. Continue to make progress toward high school graduation, and
   2. Maintain a 2.0 GPA in college coursework after completing two courses.

Career Technical Education Pathway

1. The Career and College Promise Technical Education Pathway leads to a certificate or diploma aligned with a high school Career Cluster.
2. To be eligible for enrollment, a high school student must meet the following criteria:
   1. Be a high school junior or senior;

   2. Have an unweighted high school GPA of 2.8 or higher; or

   3. Demonstrate college readiness on approved assessments in English, reading, and math; or

   4. Have written recommendation from high school principal.
3. To maintain eligibility for continued enrollment, a student must
   1. Continue to make progress toward high school graduation; and
   2. Maintain a 2.0 GPA in college coursework after completing two courses.

For additional information, please email ccp@davidsonccc.edu.

Early College High Schools

Davidson and Davie Early College High Schools are small high schools located on the Davidson and Davie campuses of Davidson County Community College. They are collaborative efforts of Davidson County Schools, Davie County Schools, and Davidson County Community College. The Valley Academy is a collaborative effort with Davidson County Schools and is located at 2065 East Holly Grove Road Lexington, NC 27292. Each early college is a public school offering students who attend the opportunity to complete a high school education and an associate degree concurrently in four or five years. Tuition is free of charge, and class sizes are small.

Information about the application process is available by contacting the Principal’s office of the Davidson Early College High School, Davie Early College High School or the Valley Academy.

Continuous Enrollment

After a student registers, they must establish attendance by attending class, or completing the entry assignment if applicable, by the census date of the course to be considered enrolled at the college.  A break in enrollment occurs when a student is not enrolled in two consecutive semesters (i.e. fall and spring or spring and fall).  Students are not required to be enrolled during the summer term(s) to maintain continuous enrollment.  Students returning to the college who are not continuously enrolled must update their application information to re enroll.  

Readmission Policy

Davidson County Community College recognizes that circumstances may cause a disruption in the progress of a student toward the completion of their course of study and that the student may find it necessary to withdraw from their program of study or from the College. The student is encouraged, when the circumstances causing the disruption in academic progress have been corrected, to contact the Enrollment Services Office to re enroll.

Students who have been suspended from the College must apply for readmission. Consideration of requests for readmission of students who have been suspended for any reason will be made in light of the applicant’s prior academic and disciplinary record, credits earned at another institution, and time elapsed since leaving the College.

Students readmitted to the College after suspension will automatically be placed on probation for a period of one semester.

Readmission to Health, Wellness & Public Safety Programs

Re-entry into a Health, Wellness, and Public Safety program is contingent upon space being available in the class, lab, or clinical component of the program and faculty resources. Qualified applicants re-enter with appropriate placement as determined by the applicant’s prior academic record and/or curriculum changes. Readmission to a program is determined by the program director and/or the dean responsible for the program, is limited to one time, and must be initiated with a letter from the student requesting program reinstatement.

Change of Major/Program of Study

If a student decides to change their program of study, the student should discuss the program change with their academic advisor. The intent is to ensure well-informed decision-making and an awareness of how program changes may affect the student’s enrollment.

When a student changes programs, the program grade point average (GPA) will be recomputed at the time of graduation to reflect only those specific courses applicable to the new program.

Multiple Majors Policy

Once a student has chosen a major, they will be assigned to every program of study (credential) that falls within that major. A student who wishes to pursue programs of study with different majors must seek approval from their academic advisor. A student will have only one primary major even though they may have multiple majors. During a term, the student’s academic advisor will require the student to take all courses possible in the primary major before allowing registration in courses in other majors. Appeals of the academic advisor’s decision must be made in writing to the School of Learning Dean associated with the student’s primary major.

Reinforced Instruction for Student Excellence (RISE)

Overview

Students entering a NC Community College will be placed by unweighted high school GPA into one of three opportunities. Students with a GPA 2.8+ may register for any class without mandatory additional supports.  Students with a GPA 2.2-2.799 may enroll in a gateway math or English course with a mandatory co-requisite.  Students with a GPA < 2.2 must enroll in a one semester transition math and/or English course.

Objective

The objective of RISE is to increase gatekeeper momentum. Over the last several years, developmental education has been reformed from semester-long courses to one-credit math modules and 8-week integrated reading and writing courses, a new placement test has been created, and the primary form of placement has been unweighted high school GPA of 2.6. Success in gateway classes has improved but not quickly enough. Goals of RISE include properly placing students into gateway level courses with or without mandated co-requisite supports, elimination of a placement test (except for students more than 10 years out of high school and other rare cases), and raising the GPA criteria from 2.6 to 2.8.

Tenets

The following tenets should guide our development decisions:

• Improve success rates in gateway level math and English classes
• Place more students in gateway level math and English with mandated co-requisite support
• Provide one semester (or less) of developmental education to students entering the community college system with an unweighted high school GPA below 2.2 and more than two points below the ACT benchmarks
• Provide student success skills, growth mindset activities, and soft skills in co-requisite and transition courses
• Provide co-requisite courses that are aligned specifically with a student’s gateway level math and English courses
• Strive to ensure we are able to effectively collect data and assess the efficacy of RISE
• Eliminate placement testing, except for students more than 10 years out of high school and in other rare cases

Denial of Admission

Davidson County Community College reserves the right, per section 02C.0301(e) and (f) of the NC Administrative Code, to refuse admission to any applicant when there is an articulable, imminent, and significant safety threat to the applicant or other individuals. Decisions to refuse admission are based upon the following definitions:

• Articulable: A community college official can provide specification about what leads the official to conclude that an applicant poses a safety threat. The college official should be able to document specific words or specific actions that create a safety threat for the threat to be articulable.
• Imminent: Statements or actions by an applicant that pose a threat that is likely to occur at any moment.
• Significant: An applicant could cause substantial bodily injury to any person. The State Board of Community Colleges has granted community colleges the authority to determine what is a significant safety threat.

Davidson County Community College has the authority to evaluate whether an applicant has exhibited behavior or made statements that would constitute an articulable, imminent, and significant threat to the applicant or others. The College will not deny admission to any applicant because of any disability the applicant may have.

Upon denial of admission, the applicant will receive a letter including the following information:

• Detailed facts supporting the decision to deny admission;
• The time period in which the applicant will not be admitted and the rationale for determining the time;
• Conditions under which the applicant would be eligible for admission; and
• The process for filing an appeal.

Davidson County Community College also reserves the right, per section 02C.0301 of the NC Administrative Code, to refuse admission to any applicant during any period of time that the student is suspended or expelled from any other educational entity.

Appeal Process

Applicants who have been denied admission and wish to appeal should follow instructions in the College’s General Complaint Policy starting with Step 2.