Homeschoolers Can Achieve Admission to Colleges
Tuesday, June 13th, 2006By Mimi Rothschild
One of the fears of homeschooling parents in the past was that their children would not be able to gain admission to the college of their choice. Today those fears have all been pushed aside. Back in the 1980’s there was a big uproar in the media when a homeschooling student was granted admission to Harvard University. Many people just could not believe it. How could someone who never attended a public or private school system in their life be educated enough to gain entrance to college, especially one as prestigious as Harvard?
After the initial shock wore off, many people began to realize that maybe the public school system is not the best alternative for our children. Sure they may learn socialization skills by being around their peers, but many of the behaviors and attitudes that children learn in school are not really those that parents wish their children to learn or be exposed to.
In the past high school diplomas played a much bigger role in gaining admission to college and even in obtaining a job. Thankfully today this policy has greatly changed. Homeschoolers do not need a diploma or GED to gain entrance to college or even to enlist in the military. These institutions have changed their requirements due to the growing popularity of homeschooling around the country. However, if you still wish for your homeschooling student to have a diploma, there are other ways to acquire one without ever having to step foot in a public classroom setting. Your first option can be to create a diploma of your own. If this idea is not appealing to you or you want a more traditional type of diploma, you can contact your local school board for information on taking the General Education Diploma Test. This diploma is widely accepted by most colleges and employers as the equivalent of a traditional high school diploma.
If your homeschool student is approaching the high school level of study, you can start now to help make their admission to college a smooth process. Many colleges require homeschool students to take an SAT or ACT test before being considered for admission. Learn what topics are covered on these tests and what the questions are like. Practice ahead of time to make sure your child is well prepared and feels comfortable when taking the test. Both of these exams offer students a second opportunity to take the test in order to improve their scores.
If fact what many people fail to realize is that homeschoolers may even be at an advantage when preparing for college. Your children can complete their foreign language requirements even before they reach high school age. Another opportunity that is available to advanced homeschool students of high school age is enrollment in some college courses. Your homeschool student can both learn at home from your lessons and be offered courses at a college level to count towards future credit requirements. With all of the choices available, there is no reason today for parents to feel hesitant to homeschool their children.