Since you are saying that you’re not especially concerned about the credit-earning issue, it seems like it would be helpful to talk to the counselor/director of the DE program and find out more about the types of colleges kids in that program have applied to and been accepted to over the past few years. Also, even though you are several years away from the college application process and don’t know what your son will want, it also could be helpful to choose a handful of private colleges you think could possibly be a good fit, and call an admissions officer from each to get their opinions about how they perceive AP/IB vs. DE. I know it can be very different from one area or state to another, but in our area the DE classes I’ve seen kids take (some kids from our high school and several others I’ve worked with) seem much less rigorous than the AP/IB classes at our school. My S19 took several AP courses and also did the full IBD. At his school, all the kids applying to competitive colleges went that route vs. DE. However, your program does sound like a different set up than what we have.