Through a partnership between the Maine Department of Education, the University of Maine Orono and the University of Maine Machias, tuition is waived for all qualified Maine high school students, covering full tuition for up to 12 college credits per year at the two universities. Eligible students are able to earn college credit while still in high school, according to a news release from Allison Small, Early College Programs coordinator at UMaine.

UMaine and UMM offer more than 100 fully online summer courses suitable for qualified high school students. Course start dates are in May, June, July and August.

Early college classes are taught by world-class faculty and meet general education requirements of the University of Maine System, as well as the majority of colleges nationwide. Students across the state will benefit from the flexibility and variety of early college courses offered this summer.

According to the release, UMaine and UMM have a long history as leaders in supporting early college programming. UMaine’s signature online program, Academ-e, launched more than 16 years ago. UMM offers early college certificates, offering 14 options with 10 available completely online.

The UMaine/UMM Early College Program is committed to providing quality teaching and learning, college-level rigor and academic integrity; access and support to under-resourced communities and first-generation students; and multiple layers of support to ensure student success, including a comprehensive orientation experience and academic advising.

To register, visit explorec.maine.edu. Interested students and parents are encouraged to contact Small at 581-8004 or allison.small@maine.edu; or Christy Alley, director of Early College at UMM, at 255-1268 or christy.alley@maine.edu to learn more about the application process.

The Early College websites are umaine.edu/earlycollege and machias.edu/earlycollege.