UMass Boston

Early College Design Principles

Early College is grounded in five core design principles to empower and support student success.

Black student sits under a tree with cell phone
1. Equitable Access
  • Open pathways and opportunities for high school students to connect to a university setting  
  • Support for multilingual students and students with different learning abilities  
  • Active engagement with the campus community, with all classes taught in-person by university faculty (at the partner high schools or UMass Boston)
  • Robust student support, including embedded peer tutoring and mentoring, and additional support resources
Black female student at blackboard
2. Academic Pathways
  • Highly transferable college credits aligned with the MassTransfer Block 
  • Accelerated college degree completion by taking curated college courses within specific career-connected pathways 
  • Valuable insight for students into the transition from high school to college and college to career
pre-collegiate faculty student at whiteboard
3. Enhanced Student Support
  • Enhanced academic and non-academic guidance and support to ensure successful completion of courses and overall college success
  • Careful integration of First Year Experience (FYE) curriculum, including the Center for Academic Excellence, the Writing Center, the Academic and Career Engagement and Success (ACES) Center, and other wraparound services for student success
  • Integrated support for students with disabilities through the Ross Center for Disability Services 
students looking through microscope
4. Connections to Careers
  • Career-connected pathways aligned with Early College curricula 
  • Deliberate career and personal financial literacy content delivered through our FYE course 
  • Internship opportunities in various industries through partner schools, campus, and external companies  
students working at table in room with clear walls
5. High-Quality and Deep Partnerships
  • Intentional partnerships with schools to develop curricula that are relevant to students' college and career aspirations  
  • Targeted on-campus partnerships with academic departments and institutional wraparound support services to expand student exposure to college life 
  • Ongoing training and professional development of UMass Boston and partner school staff to ensure alignment of practices and expectations