Getting Started: Running Start

How to Get Started in Running Start at SVC

---

Getting started as a first-time Running Start student requires the following steps:

1. Apply to SVC
2. Establish Placement
3. Complete and Submit your Running Start Enrollment Verification Form
4. Attend a New Student Registration Event or meet one-on-one with an SVC Advisor to register for your first quarter classes

Please see details on each of these steps below as well as some extra tips to help you as you begin classes. Also, we recommend you check with your high school guidance office to see if they have any steps they need you to complete.

The Dual Credit team offers Running Start Information Sessions on Zoom, and we talk about all of these steps in detail. You can see the schedule of sessions and sign up to attend online:

Sign up for a session online

 

1. Apply to SVC

---

Apply to SVC through the Online Admissions Application Portal (OAAP). This is a statewide portal used to apply to any community and technical college throughout the state, so you need to make sure to select Skagit Valley College and Running Start when you apply.

Apply Now

Once you create an account*, you will be automatically directed to start a new application. Here’s what you need to select on that page:

 

Click Apply and complete the required application questions.

Application tips:

• Please remember to click SUBMIT NOW when you finish the application.
• The questions with red asterisks are required. If you’re not able to submit your application, you probably missed a required question.
• If you’re not sure about a question, please answer to the best of your ability. We can always help you change the information later.

SVC will need to process your application which typically takes 2-3 business days, but during high-volume intervals it can take longer. Once it is processed, you will receive an email with your ctcLink ID number – this is a system-generated email, so please check your spam or promotions folder in your email account. If you do not receive your ctcLink ID number, please request help with your application status by emailing enrollment@skagit.edu and please include your full name, birthdate and the date you applied.

 

2. Establish Placement

---

Once you receive your ctcLink number by email, the next step is to help SVC assess your reading and mathematics skills so that you can choose the best classes for you. We call this ‘establishing placement’ in English and Math. Here are the two simplest ways to work with SVC to establish your English and Math placement:

• Send an unofficial copy of your high school transcript to SVC by emailing it to enrollment@skagit.edu. Include your full name and ctcLink number in the body of the email, and say that you’re submitting your high school transcript to be evaluated for placement. Enrollment Services is looking at your overall grade point average and completion of specific classes on your transcript. It is ok to send a transcript with classes still in progress to find out if it establishes placement – Enrollment Services will let you know.

-OR-

• Sign up to complete the Accuplacer Placement Exam to establish placement. You can find test locations and times and sign up for an Accuplacer session here. You can also use the Accuplacer if your high school transcript establishes placement in either English or Math (not both). For example, if you establish English placement with your high school transcript, but not Math, you can take the Accuplacer for Math only.

You can learn more about options for establishing placement here: www.skagit.edu/admissions/course-placement/.

 

3. Submit Enrollment Verification Form

---

Once you have established placement, you will need to make an appointment to meet with your high school guidance counselor. When you meet, have your placement results handy so you can talk about your educational plans together. You will decide what you want to take through Running Start and which classes you will continue to take at the high school (as an example, it is very common for Running Start students to take math classes at the high school, as well as activity-based classes like Marching Band). You should also discuss your remaining high school graduation requirements to make sure you are making progress toward graduation with as you select classes each quarter.

Several important pieces of eligibility are determined with this form:

• The number of college credits you are eligible for through Running Start funding
• Whether or not you qualify for fee assistance at SVC (this is the FRFL check box completed and initialed by the guidance counselor)
• To be valid, the form needs to be signed by the high school guidance counselor, the student and the parent/guardian (if the student is under 18)

This form must be completed, signed and submitted to SVC every quarter in order for Running Start students to register for classes at SVC.

Once you have this form completed and signed, please submit it to SVC by emailing a scan or picture to enrollment@skagit.edu.

Download Running Start Enrollment Verification Form

4. Attend a New Student Registration Event

---

New Student Registration Days are events on campus at SVC or on zoom where SVC staff members help new students register for classes for the first time. At a New Student Registration Day, SVC staff will help you activate all of the accounts you’ll need as an SVC student and an SVC advisor will guide you through the process of registering for classes.

You can find dates for these registration events here:

View New Student Orientation Schedule

Once you’re registered for classes, you are ready to start your first quarter at SVC!

Here are a couple more tips to get you started:

• Don’t forget to buy books you’ll need for your classes. You can find book requirements by looking up your classes at the Cardinal Bookstore: cardinalbookstore.com/home.
• It’s a great idea to start checking your SVC email and Canvas account for messages, beginning a week or so before classes start.
• It’s important to check your SVC balance in your ctcLink account and pay applicable fees and tuition before each quarter begins. You can find information about student financials here: https://www.skagit.edu/business-services/student-financial-accounts.html
• You will need to complete and submit your Running Start Enrollment Verification Form every quarter while you’re eligible for Running Start Funding. You will have a hold on your account stopping you from registering for classes until you have submitted that form to SVC.

 

Admissions Resource Videos

---

Step by Step SVC’s Admissions Videos / Videos paso a paso sobre procesos de Admisiones en SVC

Click on the links below to find step by step videos designed to help you navigate through the Intake process:

If you have additional questions about any of the steps of your intake process, please contact outreach@skagit.edu or by phone at 360.416.7600.