What is the AICE Program?
The AICE program is an international high school curriculum that has been created by Cambridge University in England. An AICE course runs just like AP (Advanced Placement) courses. In both AP and AICE, students take the course all year long to prepare for an exam at the end of the year. If students perform well enough on the end of the year exams in these courses, college credit can be awarded by the college or university that the student ends up attending. The reason we say ‘can’ earn college credit is because not all colleges and universities have the same policies regarding accepting credits from AP or AICE exams. Research into the colleges or universities that students are considering applying to should be done in regards to that college/university’s policy towards accepting such credits. Like AP courses, the exams are separate from the grade that students earn in the course, meaning that doing poorly on the exam will not affect the grade the student earns in the course during the school year. The exams are solely for the purpose of potential college credit, which could save families significant amounts of money in financing a college education.
Overview of the AICE Diploma
The AICE Diploma can be earned by passing seven AICE exams in three years of high school study. Ideally, it is best to start in grade 9 and have the requirements earned by the end of grade 11 so that the AICE Diploma may be considered throughout the college application process. The seven AICE exams that must be passed must come through 4 different categories: Math & Science, Humanities, Languages, and Interdisciplinary. Students must pass at least one exam from all 4 categories, with a course called ‘Global Perspectives’ the only required course to pass the exam.
Cambridge AICE Diploma
Florida Bright Futures Scholarship
The Florida Bright Futures scholarship is the scholarship program funded through the Florida lottery that is merit based, and students have the opportunity to earn one of three possible awards upon graduation from high school. The highest Bright Futures award (called FAS – Florida Academic Scholars) includes 100% tuition paid for students who meet these requirements for all four years of undergraduate study. There are basically three requirements for students: {1} minimum of 100 documented hours of community service, {2} a weighted GPA of 3.5 or higher in the core subjects and 2 years of foreign language courses (4 English, 4 Mathematics, 3 Social Studies, 3 Science, and 2 Foreign Language high school credits), and {3} an SAT score of 1330 or an ACT score of 29 composite. For more information on the Florida Bright Futures scholarship, please see the link below:
Florida Bright Futures
The Value of the AICE Diploma to Charlotte High Students & Families
After looking at the previous section about the requirements for earning the Florida Academic Scholars award from the Florida Bright Futures, many may be concerned about achieving the necessary ACT/SAT test scores that are required for that particular scholarship. This is where the AICE Diploma comes in. If
students meet all the requirements of the AICE Diploma, they will have earned the Florida Academic Scholars award regardless of the GPA and ACT/SAT test score requirements. You read that correctly, students can earn the Florida Academic Scholars award by meeting all the requirements of the AICE Diploma. The only Bright Futures requirement the AICE Diploma will not meet is the community service hours requirement mentioned above. This is an opportunity for our Charlotte High School students to earn the highest Bright Futures scholarship without the pressure of getting a high enough ACT/SAT score.
Conclusion
The AICE Diploma can be earned, but it involves courses that are rigorous. This is not a program that students should enter into lightly as passing the exams, not just successfully completing the courses, is the requirement of earning the AICE Diploma. The AICE Diploma is manageable to achieve, but it will require a lot of dedication, discipline, and commitment to the program. Students who enter the program, but do not put forth the effort to be successful may be removed from it.
If the AICE Diploma is a path that you are considering, please reach out to your grade level school counselor.
Email is the best mode of communication for this topic. Your attention to this announcement is greatly appreciated, and it is the desire of all the staff at Charlotte High School to be able to offer such an opportunity for our students. Thank you!
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