I am entering my senior year in HS. I’m enrolled in a five-week language program in Spain this summer and we were given an option to pay a $100 “transcript fee” and be eligible to receive four credits from Tulane University for this program. Will this make me a transfer student instead of an incoming freshman? They sold it as a way to opt out of language requirements at the university level, or enter at a higher level. I know some schools won’t accept these credits, and that’s okay, I just don’t want to mess up any potential financial aid.
^No!
As noted above, it won’t affect your financial aid and it won’t make you a transfer student.
However, one thing to keep in mind is that most universities will enable you to take a free departmental language placement test to establish your access to higher-level language courses. So if all you care about is placement, you can probably save the $100. Double-check with the schools to which you are applying to be sure.
In addition, while $100 for 4 credit hours is a great deal, as you point out there are many schools that will not take the credit when you apply as a freshman. So weigh whether it is really worth paying the fee for just one course that may not even transfer.
That is not different from dual enrollment. Before you pay that fee, you should find out about the credit transfer policy of your targeted colleges. On the other hand, it is around the same cost or less than taking an AP exam that it is not outrageous at all for 4 credits.