Cafi Cohen - Homeschoolers College Admissions Handbook: Preparing 12- to 18-Year-Olds for Success in the College of Their Choice

PART ONE

PART TWO

PART THREE

L AST YEAR , thousands of teenagers who never attended high school and therefore lacked official diplomas entered college. Some were admitted to high-powered institutions, such as Harvard, Stanford, and the military academies. Many others won acceptance to hundreds of state and private colleges and universities. Dozens were recognized as National Merit Scholars. Most received thousands of dollars in academic scholarships, grants, ROTC awards, athletic scholarships, and other financial aid to continue their education.

All of these successful college applicants learned advanced math, biology and chemistry, history and government, and many other subjects not as high school students but instead as homeschoolers. Their families took responsibility for planning, implementing, and finally explaining high school at home to college admissions officers. Although getting into college as a homeschooler may sound difficult, any family that plans ahead can succeed.

Hence this book. To determine exactly how real home educators handle college admissions, we sought volunteers via Internet discussion boards and e-mail loops. In response to our pleas for help, thirty-two homeschooling parents and fourteen homeschool graduates generously donated their time to complete lengthy surveys. You will find throughout this book the survey respondents hard-won expertise relating to academic preparation, record keeping, and other related topics. Although we have assigned aliases to all the survey respondents, their locations and the names of the colleges they dealt with have not been changed.

We also provide all the background information homeschooling families need for college admissions. You will find the most important informationstatistics about admissions for homeschoolersup front. These numbers can help you decide whether high school at home makes sense for your teenager. The first chapter includes detailed descriptions of changing college admissions policies and a list of homeschool-friendly institutions.

In the following chapters, we discuss the topics you would expect to find in any book on college admissionsexploring alternatives to college, researching colleges, taking the SAT and ACT, writing application essays, visiting campuses, interviewing, and applying for financial aidall from a homeschool perspective. In addition, we talk about subjects of special concern to home educators. These include creating narratives, transcripts, and portfolios; calculating credit and grade point averages; granting diplomas; handling unreasonable testing requirements; and conducting your own financial aid search.

Throughout this book you will find examples of real reading lists, course descriptions, transcripts, application essays, resumes, and other documents homeschooling families have developed for their childrens college applications. We also include money-saving tips and resource lists to help you confidently act as your home-schooled teenagers high school counselor.

In , we hear again from some of our survey respondents, homeschooling parents, and graduates. They address the question How do homeschoolers do in college? From their experiences we learn that homeschoolers can expect a period of adjustment, just like everyone else. Do these teenagers succeed when they move from the kitchen table to the classroom? After reading the last chapter, you will only be able to answer a resounding yes.

With college admissions policies changing so rapidly, we urge you always to obtain specific information directly from applicable sourcesadmissions and financial aid officers and the College Board, which administers the SAT, for example. Do not assume that because the University of Illinois does things one way, the University of Indiana will do them the same way. Also, do not assume that the University of Illinois does things the same way this year as last year.

As a homeschooling mom emeritus, I know that any children you homeschool through high school will succeed. Your teenagers may go to college, win scholarships, and graduate with four-year degreesor not. Although Harvard on a full scholarship may have crossed your mind, please do not make that your goal. Listen to twentieth-century educational psychologist Jerome Bruner, who wrote, I think parents should forget the genius bitwhat you want is a human being, a mensch, not a genius. Few of us raise Ivy League contenders. Home education allows all of us, however, to aim for a higher goalraising good people and productive citizens.

M Y SINCERE thanks and appreciation to the survey respondent homeschooling families who took time out of their busy lives to answer my detailed questionnaire about their high school, college admission, and other post-high school experiences. In addition, approximately one dozen graduate homeschoolers completed a survey about their transition to college and the working world. Their unique insights give this book credibility.

Thanks, also, to the literary lights that helped to shaped and mold the workLinda Dobson, who read all the drafts; my agent, Ling Lucas, who likes my writing and supports home education; the Prima editors, especially Jamie Miller, who saw the need for this title, and Andi Reese Brady, who gave the book its final readable form.

Without my familys love and support, this information would exist only as randomly scribbled notes on my desk. Thanks to John and Dolores Fischer and Bernice Cohen, my parents, and Jeffrey and Tamara, my children, for their continual support and encouragement. And a very special thanks and I love you to my husband, Terrell Cohen, who holds down the fort.

Finally, thanks to God, who makes all things possible.

Part One
HOMESCHOOLERS AND COLLEGE

In This Chapter

Homeschool-friendly colleges

GED dilemmas

Colleges requiring homeschoolers to leap tall buildings in a single bound