College and Career ReadinessAcademic Excellence :

Center for Postsecondary Success

All Minnesota students need to be prepared to move successfully from middle school to high school and into an increasingly wide array of postsecondary options. The Minnesota Department of Education’s Center for Postsecondary Success was created to help Minnesota students and educators address the opportunities and new expectations of the 21st century, including global competition, rapidly changing technologies, and the emergence of careers unheard of a generation ago.

The Center provides and supports the development of quality tools and strategies, centralizes and disseminates resources, and develops and promotes models that successfully implement multiple pathways to postsecondary training or college.

NEW! Map Your Future - from Wired for 2020

Wired for 2020 is the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota’s year long engagement campaign. The goal is to get more mentors involved with youth in the state of Minnesota. A link to the site has been added under Related Links. Visit the site and get involved. Map Your Future is a cool new tool on the site for students, parents, teachers, counselors, mentors and more. The tool is still in development and your feedback on populating the variety of stops on the way through your own educational journey is welcome.

International Baccalaureate (IB) Training

IB Training is now available for school teams who wish to learn how to plan and implement an IB program. View the Calendar at the top of the page and search for IB to find training dates and locations.

Dual Credit Brochure Available to Schools

This exciting planning resource provides an overview of postsecondary options and helps students and parents make informed decisions about the future. A number of schools around the state are piloting the tool as a part of their student registration process. If you are interested in participating in the pilot and need print copies of the brochure, e-mail mychoices-dualcredit@state.mn.us or download the My Choices-Dual Credit brochure.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) Opportunities

CTE programs give students the opportunity to gain academic and technical skills in various occupational pathways. Some programs offer industry certifications that allow students to move seamlessly into postsecondary technical training programs or work. See Related Links to view the CTE Website.

Project Lead The Way®

Project Lead the Way® (PLTW) is hands-on project and problem-based program for students interested in engineering, biomechanics, aeronautics and other applied math and science arenas. PLTW is a not-for-profit organization that promotes pre-engineering courses for middle and high school students. PLTW partners with public schools, higher education institutions and the private sector to increase the quantity and quality of engineers and engineering technologists.
 

Project Lead the Way® has agreements with the University of Minnesota and other major universities. The program offers the opportunity for students to take an optional test in order to earn transcripted college of engineering credits. Many of the Minnesota Colleges and Universities in the MnSCU system also have articulation agreements in place through their local Perkins Consortium to allow advance placement of PLTW students within their technology education programs. Please visit the Related Links section for more information about this program.