Indiana Core 40 and College

[cricket1178]

I live in Indiana and they have made changes to their public school diploma requiring all students entering hs to complete a core 40 diploma. It is my understanding that The state colleges are only allowed to admit students who have this diploma. The 2 year colleges are not effected by this. Has anyone in Indiana considered how this will reflect on homeschoolers entering college? Will state colleges still grant admission to a homeschooler? Under the law it appears they can not unless the homeschooler has first completed 12 credit hours of college level course work. Anyone with more knowledge please enlighten me. :)

[kiana]

It says "or documented equivalent" -- I just checked several Indiana university admissions pages (by googling indiana core 40 homeschool college admission) and it *seems* that they want you to have covered similar minimum requirements in your homeschool program, and then it would be considered a documented equivalent.

 

Sample from PNC: Successful applicants from home schooling follow curriculum requirements of the Indiana CORE 40 or Academic Honors Diploma. Our admissions requirements for home- schooled students are the same requirements used for students attending a public or private high school.

 

Sample from IPFW: Successful applicants from home schooling follow curriculum requirements of the Indiana CORE 40 or Academic Honors Diploma. The IPFW Office of Admissions strongly encourages you to have personal interview with the home-school specialist.

[Halftime Hope]

Colleges weigh admissions standards

 

Homeschooling parents may want to fine-tune their high school programs if Indiana public four-year colleges follow the Education Roundtable's recommendation to require college applicants to take the Core 40 subjects or "the documented equivalent" to qualify for admission and financial aid.

 

The Roundtable is a state policy board that has authority to recommend—but not mandate—changes to public education in Indiana. It formally made the recommendation on October 12, 2004. While it did not initially allow for "the documented equivalent," the Roundtable added this language after Home School Legal Defense Association objected to the previous wording, concerned that strictly requiring the Core 40 subjects could create barriers for homeschool graduates.

 

To protect our members' rights, HSLDA is writing to all public four-year colleges in Indiana, reminding them that if they intend to follow the Roundtable's recommendation, they must also abide by the "documented equivalent" language. This will give parents and college administrators flexibility, since homeschool subjects are often different in name and content from comparable subjects in public school.

 

The Roundtable has recommended that the Core 40 or "the documented equivalent" be required beginning with the class that will graduate from high school in 2011 (currently 6th graders). The Indiana Department of Education lists the Core 40 subjects at http://www.doe.state.in.us/asap/core40.htm. Some colleges already expect applicants to have completed the Core 40; others expect even more.

Before your student starts 9th grade, check the websites of a dozen or so colleges he might want to attend and see what subjects are required or recommended. Planning your student's high school program to include those subjects can help him gain admission to the college of his choice.

 

 

 

Sounds like you really need to talk to the target colleges. BTW, on the Core 40 FAQ pages, there is an interesting discussion about what does and does not meet the Geography requirement--it is pretty specific. hth

[cricket1178]

I don't know how I missed the "documented equivalent", but even at that, the plan says the course must meet the ps guidelines and be taught by a licensed teacher. I am going to have to talk to the colleges and see what will be required. Indiana has always been a homeschool friendly state, but I think this core 40 stuff may be a way for them to discourage homeschooling in our state. I hope not.