About Us

Project Advance is a partnership linking Syracuse University with secondary schools. Through this partnership, high schools can offer qualified seniors the opportunity to enroll in Syracuse University courses for credit. Partnering with SU also provides other important services for participating high schools: in-service training and professional development for high school instructors, a continuing forum for communication between educators from the high school and university settings, and extensive ongoing research and evaluation for systematic improvement of instruction.


All SU courses offered through Project Advance are regular offerings in the colleges and schools of Syracuse University. They are the same courses normally taken by SU students during their first year. University faculty and Project Advance administrators work directly with high schools to ensure that SU courses taught in participating schools maintain standards identical to those of sections taught on the SU campus. Students who register and successfully complete SU courses offered through Project Advance earn Syracuse University credit, verified by an official Syracuse University transcript.

High school faculty who teach SU courses must meet the academic requirements for instructors in the academic departments whose courses they teach. In most cases they must have at least a master's degree and five years of successful teaching experience in the subject area. Teachers who meet these requirements participate in intensive summer workshops to familiarize themselves with the specific course to be taught and the materials, methods, and grading standards involved. Upon successful completion of the workshop, qualified high school teachers receive SU adjunct instructor appointments and teach the University courses for which they are trained as part of their regular high school teaching schedules. The Project Advance concept originated in 1972 to address growing concerns about "senioritis," senior-year boredom among capable high school students who complete most graduation requirements by the end of their junior year. As more educators, students, and parents realized the value of taking actual college courses before leaving high school, the program grew from the original six schools participating in the pilot program. Today, Project Advance serves more than 165 high schools in New York, New Jersey, Maine and Michigan, with the largest concentration in New York State. Approximately 8,000 students enroll annually in SU courses, taught by more than 700 high school faculty members with SU adjunct instructor appointments. Studies show that SU courses offered through Project Advance provide a unique opportunity for college-bound seniors to gauge their ability to do typical first year college work and to do so before full-time college study.

Course Offerings

Project Advance currently offers 31 SU courses from 19 academic disciplines, with new courses added annually. The broad spectrum of introductory college courses offered through Project Advance includes accounting, American history, biology, calculus, chemistry, college learning strategies, computer engineering, cybersecurity, economics, English/writing, forensic science, French, German, information technology, Italian, presentational speaking, psychology, public affairs, Spanish, sociology, and statistics. These courses are identical in all important aspects to courses offered to matriculated Syracuse University students on the main campus, using the same syllabi (where appropriate), materials, textbooks, assignments, and examinations.

Detailed student and teacher manuals, testing and evaluation instruments, course outlines, and record-keeping instruments have been developed for these courses. Course descriptions and syllabi can be found here.

Maintaining College Standards

Syracuse University faculty members work closely with their colleagues in the high school and Project Advance administrative staff to maintain the University's academic standards throughout the program.

At least once each semester, Syracuse University faculty members and Project Advance administrative staff members visit each class to review folders of all work kept for each student, talk with the teacher and students about the program, and discuss community response and overall administration of the program with the high school principal. SU faculty also read papers and review tests that students have completed for their University courses to ensure that the grading standards applied are consistent with those applied in the same courses on the SU campus. In addition to site visits, faculty members and administrators at the University are accessible to high school instructors by phone and e-mail, as are SUPA office staff members who assist with logistical support for the high school sections.

Preparing Students to Advance in College

More than 34 years of surveys consistently show that whether recognition of their earlier SU studies was in the form of exemption or credit, students received grades in the advanced courses that were equal to or higher than their Syracuse University grades.

Why Colleges Are Interested in Project Advance Students

Survey and evaluation data suggest that students who take SU courses through Project Advance and go on to college are highly motivated achievers. Such students are desirable, low-risk prospects who are unlikely to drop out, seldom seek time-shortened degrees, and often go on to graduate study. Impact studies are conducted every five years. According to research conducted in 2003, 75 percent of the respondents from the Project Advance high school Class of 2000 reported planning to attend graduate programs upon completion of their undergraduate degrees.