Schools with realistic chances of acceptance

[mermaidkitchen]

DS has a 3.9 GPA in his homeschool classes. He did a pretty rigorous workload but not very many outside classes. He has 10 credits from cc with an overal GPA of 3.75. He had a rigorous full time EC that he stopped junior year and a very involved job senior year. He has not taken the SAT or ACT, has no AP scores or anything like that. I'm wondering where he could get in under these circumstances and where he could get aid. Any advice welcome!!!!!!

[Lori D.]

Welcome! I see by your post count you are new.

I am not quite clear from your wording -- is he currently completing his senior year of high school? Or did he graduate high school already?

If he is finishing high school this year:
Yes, there are colleges that accept students with no test scores (ACT or SAT). No AP scores are needed for getting into most universities. His community college courses (assuming those were taken while in high school as dual enrollment??) will definitely show a higher level of work. I WOULD strongly encourage having him test, and SOON if this is his senior year, because test scores definitely help colleges award scholarships. The largest awards are given to incoming freshman, and those awards are usually "renewable" (in other words, as long as the student.

If he has already graduated high school:
Are his community college classes from after high school? If so, then look at the websites of the universities in your state and see what credits they will transfer. Also, if he knows what degree program he wants to get into, see if there are additional credits he could take at the community college that would transfer to the university and help knock out credits for that degree.

A few other things to be working on:

1. Fill out the FAFSA form as soon as you can, as free federal aid in the form of Pell Grants is awarded based on the student/parent financial information, and the sooner you apply the more money there is to be awarded. This year's FAFSA applications opened up on Oct. 1st, so you're in good time for getting this done by the end of the month. Even if your son is already a high school graduate, and will be a "transfer" student going to a university, he may be eligible for Pell Grant money -- students can receive this "free money" for up to 12 semesters, if the student + family financial information yields a low enough "Estimated Family Contribution Number" to be eligible for Pell Grant money.

2. Figure out the career path, and from there, what degree is needed. What does DS want to do as a career? What college degree program would best help him get there?

3. Research colleges, once he knows what kind of degree he needs. Find a school with that degree program. If needing financial aid, start with schools in your state (so no extra out-of-state tuition fee), and also look into which of these in-state colleges will accept the community college credits as transfer credits, and esp. as credits that will apply towards the degree he wants to earn.

4. Apply to college -- and again, do this as soon as you narrow down which college is the best fit for him. MANY colleges have an early application deadline of October 15 -- which just passed! -- and the sooner you apply, the more chance of financial aid/scholarships. So jump on getting #1, #2, and #3 done by the end of this month, so you can get #4 rolling by the end of this month, if at all possible.

BEST of luck!

Edited October 17, 2021 by Lori D.

[Miguelsmom]

1. Decide your budget
   1. some peoples budget is very low and some peoples budget is higher.
   2. Some people budget includes money they borrow, some do not borrow.
2. Sign up for the earliest SAT/ACT test
3. Look at what's available locally (You'll need at least 1 school to fill out FAFSA)
   1. We put our commutable community college as a place holder and the cheapest option.
   2. Tour local colleges to see the kind of campus your son wants. A small liberal art college, a big state school, a community college. Try to tour in the next couple of weeks.
4. Fill out FAFSA
   1. FAFSA will come back with a number. That number is what the government thinks you can pay a year. It's not what colleges will cost you. Colleges can be more expensive or less expensive then your Expected Family Contribution. It just says whether or not you qualify for grants. They also qualify you for loans but you do not have to take them if you don't want them
5. Fill out State aid application if it is separate
6. With your budget start narrowing down schools. Instate with a few exception have the lowest "sticker price", but private schools that offer merit can cost less depending on stats, need and other things. State schools also offer merit to some students. some things to think about
   1. which school type did he like?
   2. Is he planning on living on campus?
   3. How far away?
   4. What majors do they have?
7. Pick a major
   1. look at majors that pop out at him. Then look at the classes in that major, whichever major has more of the classes he enjoys that's his major.
   2. Also look up minors to add
   3. look up clubs
   4. Find jobs in that major
8. Look at the ROI for that major. Some majors start out making 30k others make 90+k to start. You don't want to take out 300+k for 30k job.
9. cut what you can out.
   1. If they're commuting you wont have room and board
   2. Getting a triple room vs a double or single room
   3. Off campus housing may be cheaper (If allowed)
   4. lower level meal plan
   5. Rent books if cheaper
10. Apply to schools in your budget
    1. Go back into your FAFSA and State site to add the schools you applied to.
11. Wait for acceptance letters
12. Apply to all the scholarships at each school that they qualify for.
13. Wait for all aid packages to come back
14. Pick the best school

[MamaSprout]

Honestly most schools would accept him. We’re not talking lottery/ ivy league, but most schools. The devil is in the details- is he interested in a specific program? Engineering and Computer Science programs are more competitive, for example.  What can you afford?

You’ve gotten useful info upthread, so the only thing I will add is that if he/ your family have a specific school in mind, and it is known to be somewhat competitive, it may be worth getting his application in by November 1st.

Two of my dd’s four schools she applied to for next fall state straight up the Early Action  applications do slightly better in both acceptance and aid. (I’m not talking about Early Decision, which is more binding).

[mermaidkitchen]

I guess to the point, do most schools that a homeschool gpa of 3.8 the same as they’d treat a public or private school gpa? Should we be targeting “alternative” schools or regular schools that would accept a 3.8 student.

[TexasProud]

12 minutes ago, mermaidkitchen said:

I guess to the point, do most schools that a homeschool gpa of 3.8 the same as they’d treat a public or private school gpa? Should we be targeting “alternative” schools or regular schools that would accept a 3.8 student.

Yes and no. With public and private schools, they know what a 3.8 means. For example, from our local high school that isn't worth anything. At my niece's high school it means a lot.  So they need scores to verify your student is on target. ALL schools are going to want some kind of outside verification of what he can do...well other than a community college and even then, they will require some kind of test, even if it is their own to see where he places. Our community college uses the SAT/ACT to see if they need remedial ( 50 percent of students, even honors students in my district, need remedial). If they don't have such test, then they take a different test there at the college. 

Now, that said, you have CC, so they can see he can do the work. If I understood your post, his gpa for his CC work is 3.75, so that is pretty equivalent to your homeschool GPA.  Since he has CC, you may have more options. You will just have to look at whether schools require ACT/SAT.  Also, as Lori mentioned, he might get accepted but not get any merit aid.  Mine got money for their SAT/ACT scores. The schools we applied to had it on their website: score this, get this. 

The other option could be to just continue at the CC and transfer, but transfer aid is worse than freshman aid. And my kids went in with 40-60 hours worth of CC credit as a freshman ( check with school, not all do that. Ours did and I wouldn't have looked at one that did not.).  2 of the 3 couldn't graduate early because their majors had tons of coursework, but that way they only took 12-15 hours a semester instead of 18-20 each semester to graduate. 1 was able to graduate in 3 years, should have been 2 1/2, but he changed his major. 

Edited October 17, 2021 by TexasProud

[mermaidkitchen]

When is he officially done with high school? He got his GED last year, but we were considering this year his final year of high school while he takes some cc classes and some home classes.

[regentrude]

2 hours ago, mermaidkitchen said:

I guess to the point, do most schools that a homeschool gpa of 3.8 the same as they’d treat a public or private school gpa? Should we be targeting “alternative” schools or regular schools that would accept a 3.8 student.

Most schools will accept most students. "Getting into college" isn't really hard, unless you are aiming for highly selective schools

I recommend first narrowing down the possible schools depending on his major/preferences, and then looking at their specific criteria.

I don't know what you mean by "alternative" schools. You always want a mix of schools that are target, safety, and reach.

Edited October 17, 2021 by regentrude

[regentrude]

1 hour ago, mermaidkitchen said:

When is he officially done with high school? He got his GED last year, but we were considering this year his final year of high school while he takes some cc classes and some home classes.

Depends on your state.

In my state, only students who are no longer in highschool are eligible to take the GED, so having taken the GED would mean the highschool education ended before then.

[mermaidkitchen]

In my state there is an exception for homeschool students. 

[regentrude]

17 minutes ago, mermaidkitchen said:

In my state there is an exception for homeschool students. 

OK, then YOU get to decide when he graduates. 

[Lanny]

1 hour ago, mermaidkitchen said:

When is he officially done with high school? He got his GED last year, but we were considering this year his final year of high school while he takes some cc classes and some home classes.

The GED may be problematic for him getting into a college or university? Depends on the school whether they will accept a GED or not.  Depends on the laws of the state you live in if a public college or university is the goal.

[Lori D.]

3 hours ago, mermaidkitchen said:

When is he officially done with high school? He got his GED last year, but we were considering this year his final year of high school while he takes some cc classes and some home classes.

The GED is unfortunate.

In almost all cases, a GED is NOT needed, and in some cases, it actually hurts the homeschool student to have gotten the GED. The ONLY time I have ever seen a homeschooler NEED a GED is when going to a trade school or cosmetology school after homeschool high school graduation. Those are the only institutions that I've seen that absolutely demand either an "accredited" diploma or a GED. The US military, and virtually all US universities accept a parent-awarded diploma (although some schools do require more hoop-jumping for homeschoolers).

While the GED shouldn't cause problems with being admitted to college (according to this GED Blog article, 98% of colleges accept applicants with a GED), it is definitely going to reduce eligibility for scholarships, which the high GPA from homeschooling would have provided.

Because of the GED, colleges will assume he is "done" with high school, and any community college classes he took after earning the GED will be looked on as "post high school" -- which means he will be considered a transfer student, and not an incoming freshman. So that will knock out any aid from freshman scholarships that he would have been eligible for. However, he may be eligible for a transfer scholarship (although transfer scholarships tend to be smaller, and "1-time awards").

The key now for getting financial aid is still going to be filling out the FAFSA, which will determine if he is eligible for Pell Grant money from the Federal Gov't (a grant is free money for college that NOT get paid back by the student), and colleges use the FAFSA information in awarding scholarships, so that may also determine his eligibility for a transfer scholarship. His high GPAs from the community college and from homeschool will help.

So the 2 immediate needs are: 1.) choose a college (or several colleges), and, 2.) apply to and fill out the FAFSA. I would highly recommend getting both of those steps done by the end of this month, for best chances of financial aid.

BEST of luck!

Edited October 17, 2021 by Lori D.

[Dmmetler]

I'd seriously look at transfer vs freshman. Since he got the GED and has taken college classes since, he might be considered a transfer regardless, and even if he isn't, a transfer with a 3.75 GPA may well qualify for more scholarships than an incoming freshman with no test scores, especially at state U's, which are much less likely to be test optional for scholarships. This is especially true if your state has been encouraging starting at CC and transferring. 

[Lanny]

@mermaidkitchenNote: There are always forms for 2 different school years on the FAFSA web site. It is VERY important that you and your DS fill out the form for the correct school year!  Both of you will need accounts on the FAFSA web site. This is the URL where you begin:  https://studentaid.gov/h/apply-for-aid/fafsa

Edited October 17, 2021 by Lanny
correct link