Can we share/kids that have been accepted into college what

[rockala]

proved most helpful/beneficial in the end? What to do at the beginning high school level.

 

What I am trying to determine for my dd who is in 9th this year is what is best. She is planning for medical/dental/ortho or vet. No pressure here.

 

Some of my concerns and questions are these. What did you all find was most helpful in the end? Was it certain courses your kids took? Outsource vs not. Where your diploma came from accredited vs non? Test scores or history of/ or specific tests that were viewed favorably?

 

Did anything in the admissions process or interview made you say I am so glad we did that or boy I wish I had done that?

 

Did you go Accredited (NARS) vs unaccredited. If unaccredited Homelife Academy vs homeade or something like Transcript Pro. What seemed to work best in the end if you know?

 

What is the best course layout for best acceptance? Is there one or really depends on focus? here is what I am planning for dd possible medical major....

 

4 years English/comp

 

Math

Algebra one and two-

Geometry

Trigonemtney/PreCalc

Calculus

Should there be another??

 

Science

 

biology

chemistry

physics

human anatomy/physiolgy

 

History

American

World

Civics/gov

economics

 

Foreign lang

Latin

Hebrew -2-3 years

 

Electives include paino and art

health includes horseback and swim team

 

Phew.

 

Kathy

[Hockey Mom]

My DD is in a private school. She is graduating (top of her class! :D) in May. Her course load throughout high school is very similar to what you've outlined. She took two years of chemistry (honors, then AP) because it was 'easy' for her. She is finishing Physics this semester. The only thing on your list that she didn't take was human anatomy. Her private school doesn't offer it, and the public school would only allow you to take the course if you were in their "medical training academy". She wants to be a vet.

 

With that in mind, here is what we've done:

 

1. Volunteer at a local vet's office. This proved to be the most invaluable for her. The vet is not only teaching her basic procedures, but he's written letters on her behalf as well.

 

2. Community service. We started out doing Habitat for Humanity, and moved to the Humane Society.

 

3. Study for the SATs. DD was in an SAT Prep class for 2 semesters (one in her sophomore year, and one in her junior year).

 

4. Extra curricular activities. DD did the following: started a Christian club at her public school (that is still going strong even after she left), Drama/Music Production, and Softball.

 

5. Letters of recommendation. Everyone who has had contact with your child and can vouch for their character and work ethic. That means teachers, pastors, employers, etc.

 

6. Networking. It really is 'who you know' for some of these colleges. One of our friends owns a chartered fishing company. One of his 'regulars' happens to be the president of one of the universities DD was interested in.

 

Some of our clients sit on the Alumni board for another university. They've offered to put in a good word on her behalf should she choose to apply (she chose not to).

 

DD has been accepted to all three schools she applied to. All three have offered merit scholarships as well. She hasn't decided which one to attend yet.

 

One thing I've learned through all of this is that while GPA is important, it's only a part of what colleges are looking for. They want the 'whole package'. They are looking for kids with a passion. One administrator told me that they would rather take a kid who participates well in one activity, than a kid with a college resume that is all over the place. IOW, don't force the activities just because you think it will look good on a college resume. Do the things that you are passionate about.

 

HTH.

[CO MOM]

We are in the midst of this process, having college acceptances and waiting on scholarship/financial aid results. Some of our experiences:

 

We have homeschooled all the way through, so it seems test scores were more important than GPA or at least validated the GPA. We did not go with any outside accreditation though we considered it - used a fellow WTM-er, Kareni's (thanks!), transcript form that she so graciously shared - and I wrote up our own course descriptions.

 

We outsourced some classes each year except 9th, particularly in areas of my dd's strengths and my weaknesses. We chose online classes because they were of better quality than we could find locally. She also did a few AP's. They seemed to like seeing some outside validation of their grades, and it also provided some teachers that could provide academic references.

 

I would second the other poster's recommendation of getting some experience in different career options so she can narrow her interests a bit. This was recommended to us and it proved invaluable. She will either find out she likes or does not a particular field and might open up some interesting opportunities in those fields. Again, good for the "resume" and for references.

 

For the competitive scholarships that are beyond just academics, they seem very interested in leadership. This can come through extracurricular activities - officers of a club, starting a group or project, anything where they took initiative and did something above and beyond and led others in the process. They want students who will become leaders on campus and beyond.

 

Another area as the other poster mentioned is community service. They want to see that your student is outwardly focused, not just doing stuff for themselves, and aware of what is going on in the world and wanting to do something to contribute. I don't know if you are involved in church activities, but for some scholarships, they want to see your student doing things beyond church - actually out in the community. For other situations, church recommendations and activities are very important.

 

As the other poster also said, the student doesn't need to have done 100 things in all areas, just a few focused areas where they have gone above and beyond.

 

It looks like you have a good framework for the academics and even though it sounds overwhelming at times, it all seems to all fall together over time. Good that you are thinking ahead!

 

HTH,

 

Jane

[creekland]

I'm essentially agreeing with the others. From what I've found:

 

#1 is high SAT/ACT scores - PSAT if in National Merit contention

- While this isn't the be all, end all, it does get your student noticed and is always a plus. At some schools it is also a "basic" requirement for admission or merit aid. Preparing for it is worth it, but we never did anything expensive. All we did was the free questions of the day and Barron's review books. (Well, then there's all the math/English prep all through the years!)

 

#2 is outside confirmation of grades

- This can come in the form of AP, SAT 2, cc classes and maybe one or two other options I'm not thinking of, but in general, for homeschoolers, those mommy grades need to be confirmed outside of co-op classes. This doesn't necessarily take much. My oldest got by with high SAT/ACT and one cc class. That said, I'm having my middle son do a little bit more - probably more cc classes, but maybe AP.

 

#3 are those extra curriculars

- Well described above, so no need to really add much. Leadership and passion are important. Plus, reference letters can come from some of these sources. One tidbit I found - colleges liked seeing the unusual on this. One mentioned my son being certified in scuba + many of his travels in an interview. All the "usuals" don't necessarily stand out. The usuals are good for admission (as are the unusual), but you do want to stand out in a good way for competitive merit aid.

 

#4 reference letters

- We had some from my son's cc prof, chess coaches, neighbors and church leaders. Some were mentioned specifically in the letters of notification we got of merit aid (where it was competitive as opposed to set guides based on scores).

 

Accredited vs non was a non-issue for us. Every single admission counselor we talked to told us they didn't feel it was an issue (but remember, we didn't talk to EVERY college). They all said homeschoolers were some of their best students - or worst students. Their job was to figure out who was who using the above criteria. Anyone can tell you their son/daughter is terrific. Outside sources showing and saying the same counts for far more.

 

For science, consider outsourcing a science class or two just to be sure they have really nice lab experience. It'll also help affirm (or deny) their career choice. However, if it's a cc course (as my son will do), don't expect all colleges to accept the credit. Many top colleges will not accept cc credits WITHIN the desired major. They will only accept those outside of it - or anything counting as electives. For instance, my son plans to have one of his majors in business. Colleges would accept an English "A," but would not accept Economics for credit since Economics was a required course in the major.

 

One thing I am doing for my middle son that I wished I had done for my oldest is going to be a public speaking course. My oldest son does well naturally. He's a fairly natural leader, so missing it didn't hurt him. My middle son isn't - though is more talented academically. A public speaking course should help him fill in a bit.

[outtamyshell]

Every student is so different. They've got different strengths and a different journey to follow. Since you are asking about college, and we had a more academically focused journey, I'll share some of our story. There's so much I wish we would have done differently. But this was our journey because this is what we needed. All of those flaws and weaknesses that bubbled up because of homeschooling are the ones we need to learn to deal with. I don't know if my rambling thoughts will be useful to anyone, but I'm willing to put them out there anyway.

 

I haven't been terribly focused on college acceptance. I've been more focused on my kid and what she needs next. Basic parenting. Filling holes. Meeting her needs. Building skills. Helping her grow emotionally. Three years ago, she was just deciding she likes science afterall and wasn't willing to rule out any career options including science and engineering. Since we had no idea what we were shooting for, we focused on her development and the requirements to get her into BYU or UNC. I figured we would take our journey where we needed to go and we would find a college that would fit her later. So a college that requires an accredited diploma wouldn't be on our list. I'm not going to change my family life to fit the desires of a college we may or may not want to attend some day. I've tried to work on my daughter's strengths and weaknesses. She's still just figuring out some of her strengths that I've been aware of for years. And we've both discovered some weaknesses through this process.

 

My approach to curriculum planning is to take a look at the options available and choose the best education available for her for this year. You could say my hobby is to look for resources and opportunities for her. And I'm always pushing her a little more than she thinks she's capable. She audited a CC course the summer after sophmore year. Then started dual enrollment at CC her Junior year (2 classes), then dual enrollment at the university the next semester (2 classes). Outsourcing was key for us since I work full-time. When things got tough, I looked for additional resources in the form of tutors, etc. You may have seen my posts about Classical Conversations. They were great! I love that we were able to pick and choose the courses that worked for her from so many different places.

 

My college acceptance concerns faded when dd got a 30 on her ACT at the end of Sophmore year. She did nothing to prepare for it. I was just using it as year-end testing and to get a gauge of where she was. I didn't even know if that was a good score when she got it. I think if she hadn't tested well, then I would have focused more on making sure she had the letters of recommendation and better grades in her outsourced classes. I have taken the attitude that a B in a tough class is better than an A in the class you thought you could ace. This year, dd took a 300 level university class. The subject was perfect for her, and we couldn't pass up the opportunity. I was a little worried about her GPA since she doesn't have that high of an accredited GPA. But she got the gentleman's B- and learned a lot in that class.

 

Now it's time for true confessions... I never prepared a school overview, course descriptions or reading list. DD decided not to apply to UNC Chapel Hill, and the schools she chose didn't require it. I never even wrote a counsellor letter. I just plugged her info into an unaccredited transcript and sent it off. If dd didn't get accepted into her first or second choice school, she would be graduating from the CC next year. I read a lot of great books on college admissions, high school opportunities, etc along the way. Looking back I wish I had written out my school overview and educational philosophy at the beginning of high school.

 

In the end I decided that we didn't really need to modify our educational goals or philosophy to fit a potential college. We would just do our best and find a school that was a good fit for us. I would have been thrilled if dd would have been interested in pursuing vocational training while in high school rather than college dual enrollment. I just happen to have an academic kid. Here's the credits she'll end up with at the end of Sr year.

 

English - 4.5 credits

Math - 6 credits

Science - 4 credits

Foreign Language - 4 credits (3 latin & 1 university Arabic)

History / Social Studies / Politics - 8 credits

Electives - 3 credits (logic, debate, philosophy, pe)

 

Her cumulative GPA (unweighted) was 3.5.

Her accredited cumulative GPA (unweighted) was 3.4.

If she does well on her one AP test at the end of the year, she'll have 30 college credit hours when she graduates.

 

Keep in mind the average GPA for those accepted into BYU is 3.8 (unweighted) and you'll see why I was concerned by her grades and frustrated with the whole grading process. I can't believe that many kids earn straight As. I think dd's transcript looks good because her classes were very academically focused.

[mcconnellboys]

My son entered a private high school as a sophomore, because he was dying to have the "high school experience", so I'm not sure that I will be all that helpful, but I will try.

 

"What did you all find was most helpful in the end?"

 

My son had done high school level work during junior high, as well as dual credit work his freshman year, before returning to private school. His school will not incorporate outside grades into their transcript. So they picked 7 courses from my transcript that were things they offer routinely and gave him a 'pass' credit for that.

 

Because of this, I had to prepare my transcript and course descriptions for all the things I had done with him and send that entire packet (three years worth of stuff) along with the application packets. I already had prepared those for use when he applied to the high school. It was a ton of stuff, but the first couple of schools I contacted indicated that they wanted to see it, so I made the print as small as I thought I could get away with for readability, LOL, and sent the quarter-inch pile to all of 'em! No one questioned anything I did or asked for more information, so my thought is that shock and awe work, LOL.....

 

"Was it certain courses your kids took?"

 

My son is interested in Classical Studies, Lit, Writing, those sorts of liberal arts things. So I think applying to schools that specialize in those types of things, indicating your interest in those areas, and showing courses that relate to those sorts of things, as well as outside activities that are related, will go a long way.

 

"Outsource vs not"

 

My son had outside courses as well as work at home in most of his coursework areas. I think it absolutely lends credence when the grades given by others agree with your grades. And it certainly probably didn't hurt that his grades in the private school he now attends have stayed comparable to those other grades over time, too. Similarly, outside testing may lend credence; but so may outside work and volunteer experiences. Volunteer work is HUGE right now.....

 

"Where your diploma came from accredited vs non?"

 

I really have not heard from most other folks I know who have kids graduating from homeschool high school that they have been questioned about such a thing. Accredidation, because of the way it is set up, is not possible when you are schooling only one student. You must run an entire series of students through all four years and then start again, using the same curriculum, as part of receiving accredidation. When you homeschool, you tend to never teach two students in precisely the same way, so you could not receive accredidation (and, I would argue, would not want to).....

 

"Test scores or history of/ or specific tests that were viewed favorably?"

 

I think AP's are generally more valued at this time than CLEP tests. Sometimes students may take tests offered by the schools, themselves, to test out of lower level college classes. Taking the SAT and doing well as a seventh grader; good PSAT scores; good ACT/SAT, of course, might all be taken into consideration. I believe the National Latin Exam is well regarded. Probably the National Mythology Exam. Other national competitions in math, geography, etc......

 

"Did anything in the admissions process or interview made you say I am so glad we did that or boy I wish I had done that?"

 

We were not applying to a bunch of ivy league universities, so perhaps didn't have the concern of the most competitive sorts of admissions. My son was really not grilled by anyone, nor was I.

 

"Did you go Accredited (NARS) vs unaccredited. If unaccredited Homelife Academy vs homeade or something like Transcript Pro. What seemed to work best in the end if you know?"

 

Because my son switched over to a private school, this probably doesn't really apply to me. But if he'd continued to homeschool, I would have continued with the transcript and course descriptions just as I'd been doing. I don't think you need any of those things - just a clear, concise, readable transcript with plenty of supporting data. Outside corroboration from other instructors, employers, supervisors, etc., also help.

 

"What is the best course layout for best acceptance? Is there one or really depends on focus?"

 

I would think that you need to make sure you're fulfilling the graduation requirements for college track students in your state, that your daughter's transcript is math and science heavy, and that she's taking advanced classes in her major area of interest.

[TravelingChris]

I have graduated one and am in 11th grade with second one. My first had very high SAT scores. He had attended two summer programs which along with his drawing and watercoloring classes were the only outside classes he had that were stand-alone. We were overseas and taking online was difficult because of the time zone difference and he didn't like the local UMd classes plus we had transportation issues. He was an Eagle Scout too. We did use an outside school to give him his diploma- Clonlara. THey wrote the counselor letter and sent his transcript to colleges. I provided course descriptions to them along with portfolio of his work. His only issues with one college was his age-16. He got accepted to four colleges including his top two choices. He didn't take any SAT subject tests.

 

My next one will have at least one CC class and probably more. SHe has one class from her virtual school too. She is deciding this week whether she will take an AP test. She will take some SAT subject tests but which ones and when is still the question. We aren't using a school this time.

[rockala]

so helpful, thank you. I am still rereading the posts, gleaning from all of what was said. I may post more later but just wanted to say this is great and very helpful.

 

Kathy