How do homeschooled kids get into college?

Answer 1

I'm a graduate of homeschooling who'll be a college senior this fall. Homeschooled kids get into college the same way as other kids do--by taking standardized tests, making good grades, and having a good list of extracurricular activities or community service to supplement their college application.

There are, unfortunately, some colleges that like to make it harder for homeschoolers to get in. One of the college I was going to apply to was going to require that I take several standardized tests that they didn't require of students who weren't homeschooled--after I'd taken the PSAT, the SAT, and the ACT and scored well all around. I decided that a college that was going to treat me differently because I was homeschooled wasn't worth it and picked another college that welcomed homeschoolers and treated me like all the other students.

There are sites that provide lists of homeschool-friendly colleges--they certainly don't list all of them, but it's nice to see a list of potential colleges that you already know are accepting of hosmechoolers. Here's a good site: http://www.homeschoolfriendlycolleges.com/

Answer 2

I homeschooled all three of my children through their entire schooling years. All three had no problems getting into college. One has a dual degree in Pysch/Criminal Justice from a top state university, one is working on a degree in criminal justice at a community college, and the third graduated from a well known engineering university with a degree in civil engineering. If you are a good student, most any college will want you. Many colleges do use the SAT or ACT scores, some do not. Some colleges even look for home schooled grads because they usually perform very well academically. In short, home schooled kids can, and do, get admitted to top colleges and do well in college.
And if you are wondering about finacial aid, home schooled kids can do as well as other kids with that. The P/CJ major was in an honor society in community college and received a scholarship, the engineer also was in the community college honor society and received a scholarship for that worth 9K plus a university sponsored scholarship. The third one hasn't yet joined the honor society.
Homeschooling can be an excellent choice. Good luck!

Answer 3

I'm not sure if anyone's mentioned going to a junior college before a four year university, but I had good results applying to go to the local two year community college first, then transferring to a larger four year university after I had proven my worth there.

It's been a while (I am a graduate student now), but I remember visiting the campus and talking to the admissions people at their offices. They explained the particular requirements for the school, and knew the general process for getting in. (In my case, to take an SAT, and write a letter to the Dean of Education asking for permission to take classes there, because I was somewhat young at the time. There were also some placement tests which they asked me to take internally, so I could start out in a set of classes suited to my foreknowledge.)

After taking classes at the Junior College, I used some letters of reference along with my transcript from there to transfer to my local State University.

I believe that some community colleges automatically accept applicants who are of a certain age and residents of the locality, so you might want to call the local one to ask, if you know someone who is concerned about their possible dearth of paperwork.

(Volunteer work is always a good thing to mention, if the applicant has some.)

Answer 4

well you've got to apply to colleges in order to get into them. I had a roommate that was homeschooled. Just take the tests, and ACT or SAT and then apply like any other high school aged senior. There might be a few more things to it...

Answer 5

My son is homeschooled. This year he is a senior and has just 2 courses left to earn his diploma. He has been dual enrolled in our community college throughout his junior and now in his senior year. He will have a certificate in CAD and one year of completed college courses in technical studies before he receives his diploma. It has been awesome. Wish I had known we could get this far when my adult kids were in high school.

Answer 6

Trust me, it's not that hard. SAT, ACT and apply. I know plenty of homeschooled kids who got into college. In fact, I don't know of any who didn't.

Answer 7

By taking the ACT/SAT. b/c most colleges will not accept a homeschool transcript.

Answer 8

I imagine they talk the standardized that all students have to take... Fill out applications -- of which part is usually an essay... They probably receive grades from the teacher (no matter who it is)... letters of recommendation where required... Personal interviews at colleges.

Any or all of the above... maybe more.

:)

Answer 9

They get good grades. The transition may be hard for the over sheltered ones, but must do very well in college.

Answer 10

I think they do the public exams with the schoolschooled kids and i think colleges only need public exam results to join them in.