Shanaes Akhtar first heard about Pathways in Technology Early College High (P-TECH) as a middle schooler. She read an article about the Brooklyn high school and learned that students there spend six years instead of the traditional four but they graduate with an associate degree along with their high school diploma – all for free. That caught her eye.
Shanaes is going into her fifth year at P-TECH Brooklyn and she expects to graduate with both degrees next June. Like many of her peers, she will manage to finish all her coursework earlier than the six-year timeline the school lays out. Looking ahead to enrolling in a four-year college, she said the practice of balancing work, college and high school all at the same time has fortified her against the stress freshmen typically face.