dancingmama Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 Anyone have thoughts on the pro and cons of finishing high school in December instead of in the spring for a college bound student? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 I did that and was thrilled to be out, but I didn't have a positive high school experience. I worked full time (just a retail job) until I started college in the fall (I went on a full academic scholarship, so there wasn't a negative impact there).For me, there were no cons. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 Would you want the student to start college in the spring? For many majors, tehcourse sequence is designed to be started in fall, so the student may be off sequence, which can bring issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie of KY Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 If you are looking for merit scholarships, most are applied for in the fall of SR year for admission the next fall. Not sure how it would fall out if you start in the spring. As Regentrude says, some majors have a specific schedule of courses that might only be offered in the fall or spring - so your student might be off or need an additional semester to finish a four year sequence if the student starts in the spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancingmama Posted August 2, 2017 Author Share Posted August 2, 2017 We are not sure when we would start college. She's currently eighth but about ready to start high school. We are weighing the pros and cons of starting now (essentially skipping 8th), starting in six months (where I think she'd be most ready to start), or waiting until her actual time but taking more DE (but fear getting too many credits). Guess that's the problem of having a January bday and having done school Jan-Dec instead of a regular school year most of your life. I'm not sure, if she graduated in December, if there would be issues with scholarships (she will need financial assistance) or with admittance into college. She wants to go into Forensics or other biological science if that makes any difference. Would working after high school in the spring be looked down on? Would it make her financial aid change (I'm guessing yes)? How about volunteering? Would it be kinda like a "gap year" except a few months short? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 (edited) Or you could keep her as a high school student, have her do dual enrollment courses (English and math courses are less likely to have issues with being out of sequence) which are frequently not counted against the student when determining if they are incoming first year college students or transfers (there are some schools with caps on credits, but I think they are exceptions rather than the majority). Our experience was that being ahead academically let our kids take harder courses during their high school years. This paid off for them in acceptances to some harder to get into schools and good scholarships (both earned full tuition scholarships). ETA: I'll add that while it can be worth mocking out a 4 year plan, a lot can change over the course of high school. Growth isn't linear. Some kids mature incredibly and are ready to tackle high level work sooner than anticipated. Others may need extra time for algebra or adjusting to high school level work. Write your high school plans in pencil and be willing to adjust. Edited August 2, 2017 by Sebastian (a lady) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 (edited) We are not sure when we would start college. She's currently eighth but about ready to start high school. We are weighing the pros and cons of starting now (essentially skipping 8th), starting in six months (where I think she'd be most ready to start), or waiting until her actual time but taking more DE (but fear getting too many credits). Guess that's the problem of having a January bday and having done school Jan-Dec instead of a regular school year most of your life. I don't understand the issue. Just because a child is ready for high school level work does not mean they have to graduate half a year early. My DS started high school level math in 6th grade. My DD took her first college level course in what would have been 8th grade. In a homeschool, you can educate a child according to her abilities, no matter what the calendar month. You can keep her enrolled in your homeschool until the spring of 12th grade and simply have her learn more. She could also take DE courses. My DD had 32 college credits upon graduating high school, and the kids of some posters here have a lot more; if they are taken while in high school, they do not affect freshman status. Edited August 2, 2017 by regentrude 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 Unless she is looking at the small number of schools that restrict credits brought in, it is very doubtful she would have too many credits. Even then, those credits are what get them admitted to those elites in the first place even if the don't count toward graduation. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted August 2, 2017 Share Posted August 2, 2017 We are not sure when we would start college. She's currently eighth but about ready to start high school. We are weighing the pros and cons of starting now (essentially skipping 8th), starting in six months (where I think she'd be most ready to start), or waiting until her actual time but taking more DE (but fear getting too many credits). Guess that's the problem of having a January bday and having done school Jan-Dec instead of a regular school year most of your life. While I've heard about colleges who have a maximum number of DE credits for Freshman, I can't remember reading about any examples of problems in real life. There are definitely kids who get an AA degree before graduating high school who still are able to apply as freshman with freshman scholarship opportunities to their chosen universities/colleges. I have a Jan bday kid who has done Jan-Dec schooling since she started. I figured at some point that I would have to either half-grade skip her or give her the gift of an extra semester. As my kids are average overall (with areas of interest/aptitude), she'll most likely get the gift of an extra semester. I don't have to decide that until Sophomore/Junior year of high school when the PSAT/NMSQT opportunity comes up. I'd definitely not make that decision this early in her life! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dancingmama Posted August 2, 2017 Author Share Posted August 2, 2017 We were tossing around ideas as she talked about finishing early. She is the youngest of her friends and I think that gave her some pause knowing she'd be alone when all her friends went off to college. Being 13, that made her sad. Since I didn't know what, if anything, would effect college, I told her I would ask. Everything is most definitely in pencil as she is still constantly changing things up on me. She just added an additional history class she wants to learn about last night. I did tell her I would do the record keeping as if she were doing ninth so we didn't close any doors and could decide in three years. But I wanted to get some info under my belt. I appreciate the help. I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that both my children may be out of the house in four (-5) years. This all snuck up on me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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