Regardless of how many credit hours you bring to FSU, being engaged in your first semester is critical to helping students find their people, explore their passions, and shape their academic success. Engage 100 is an exciting, immersive program designed for all new first-year students at FSU—including high school AA students! Talk with your academic advisor at orientation about which Engage 100 activity will be best for you. You can browse all approved Engage 100 experiences here.

High school AA students should let their advisor at new student orientation know that they earned the AA degree. This is important because students who have earned the AA degree have different degree requirements than students who have not earned this degree.

We recommend that high school AA students build a balanced course schedule in their first semester with a good mix of major, minor, and/or university requirements. Be sure to talk with your academic advisor about fulfilling your mapping milestones for your major and what courses they recommend you take each semester.

The FSU Office of Admissions requires a final official transcript showing that the AA degree has been earned. A final official transcript will show both that the AA degree was earned and the date the degree was earned. Once the transcript is sent to FSU, students can monitor their FSU unofficial transcript to ensure that the AA degree is posted by following the steps found here.

If the AA degree-granting institution’s transcript only states that “AA general education requirements are satisfied”—or includes a similar general education statement—but does not include the date that the AA degree was earned, please note that this transcript is not the final official transcript that FSU needs. Students will need to contact their AA degree-granting institution to request that their final official transcript showing that the AA degree has been earned be sent to FSU.

There are countless ways to maximize your time at FSU! The Graduation Planning & Strategies Office’s (GPS) High School AA Mentorship Program enables first year students to connect with upperclassmen who have also earned an AA degree in high school. GPS also provides regular social opportunities for first year students to connect. Degree in Three is designed to help students who want to graduate in three years or less while More in Four is for students planning to advance to a master’s program at FSU after graduating with the bachelor’s degree in three years or less. Finally, GPS staff are always excited to connect with you to answer any questions and brainstorm how you can make the most of your time at FSU. Students can schedule an appointment through Campus Connect.

If your AA degree is from an institution in the Florida College System or a state university in Florida, your general education requirements are satisfied by the AA degree. If your AA degree is from a private or out-of-state institution, you may have remaining general education requirements to fulfill. Even though high school AA students come to FSU with 60+ credit hours already earned, they are still mapped at map term 1. Reach out to your academic advisor to learn more about your specific degree requirements.

As high school AA students start FSU with 60+ earned credit hours, it’s important to be aware that FSU has a policy that students must declare any second majors or dual degrees that they wish to pursue before earning 90 credit hours. In addition, students with 60+ hours may only use the late drop option for one course between the eighth and twelfth weeks of a semester throughout their entire undergraduate career. You can learn more about these policies here.