The state agency has updated rules on required math coursework and how AP, IB and Cambridge exam scores translate to college credit, with changes phasing in this fall.
The S.C. Commission on Higher Education has revised two policies affecting students preparing for college, with implementation beginning this fall, according to the commission.
The College Preparatory Course Prerequisite Requirements for Entering College Freshmen Policy keeps the existing 20-unit course framework but clarifies what counts as the required fourth, higher-level mathematics course. Under the update, that course must require Algebra 2 with Probability as a prerequisite, and AP Statistics does not meet the requirement, according to the commission. The previous policy had defined the course only as one intended for students who already completed Algebra 2 with Probability content.
That policy applies to students entering high school in fall 2026 and will be fully in effect for incoming college freshmen starting fall 2030, according to the commission.
Separately, the South Carolina Exam-Based Credit Awards Policy sets a single statewide standard for awarding college credit through Advanced Placement, Cambridge Assessment International Education and International Baccalaureate exams. The revised policy removes the College-Level Examination Program and DANTES Subject Standardized Tests from coverage, according to the commission.
For Cambridge/AICE exams, the policy now requires a minimum score of C or higher and specifies which Advanced Subsidiary Level exams qualify for credit, while all Advanced Level subjects remain eligible, according to the commission. The previous standard required institutions to award credit for scores of E or higher.
The exam-based credit policy takes effect in fall 2026, and colleges and universities are expected to update their catalogs and websites to reflect the changes by fall 2027, according to the commission.
Based on a release from S.C. Commission on Higher Education.
Source: S.C. Commission on Higher Education original release.
