Discovering Uni Options

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

Perhaps this is a silly question, but… how did your homeschooler discover their college options?

I was thinking the other day about university & it occurred to me that DS really only knows of a few schools: two local universities, an Ivy that has been mentioned in our literature, & two who have BattleBots teams 😅

DH & I both attended public schools & throughout the high school years college choice was a HUGE ongoing discussion. We learned about options from peers, teachers, counselors. It occurred to me that DS might not get the same organic exposure if he elects to continue homeschooling through high school.

Were you &/or your spouse their primary information source? Did they research schools themselves? Does the discussion permeate online & in-person classes for homeschoolers the way it does a public school campus? 

Edited July 14, 2023 by Shoes+Ships+SealingWax

[Bootsie]

Our situation was a bit different because DH and I are both college professors, so discussions of various colleges was a part of every day conversation.  If you are near college campuses, I would try to take advantage of casual visits, a walk through the campus, a visit to the campus bookstore, coffee in the coffeeshop.  I would also try to attend some activities on the campus like a music concert, an athletic event, or a play.  When traveling, I would drive by other campuses, eat lunch near the campus, take a walk through the campus, etc.  Take notice of opportunities to discuss college choices with summer camp counselors, older siblings of friends, older teens in activities, etc.

FWIW, I think that the HUGE ongoing discussion in many high schools is overdone.  I was recently discussing with a high school counselor all of the work she put into this.  The number of colleges visiting her school, the number college nights, the number of campus visits students were going on, the number of applications the average student was submitting--all were astounding.  But, the result--of those going to college over 90% went one of two places--the local university or the local community college

[kirstenhill]

So, I'm not exactly the target of your question because so far my two older kids went to public school for high school...but I feel like their school doesn't push information about certain colleges much at all (as a parent, I've seen certain announcements like "xyz univeristy will be room 123 during lunch if you want to visit with a representative" but my kids have never done any of those rep visits.  And DD was online for most of her junior year for COVID, the prime time when she needed to start thinking about colleges...so I feel like everything that has happened in terms of any serious consideration of any universities happened at home.

So, that being said my kids are growing up hearing a lot about the University DH and I went to.  DH did both undergrad and grad degree there, so we were in that city a long time, made friends that we still keep up with, DD was born in that city, etc.  We are big fans, wear the shirts, etc.  They've also been familiar with our state flagship university because we've attended events on the campus. 

DD knew by her junior year what she wanted to study, but was the type who didn't really want to think through where to go.   Honestly with no input from DH or I, she probably would have just gone to our alma mater, just because she was most familiar with it and they have her major (a less common one, that is not available just anywhere).  DH insisted that she visit at least 3 campuses, so she could really feel like she was choosing and not just defaulting.  I helped her get started...we sat down with a few research sites I found from the college motherload thread here, and asked her some questions (Do you want to consider in-state? How far away is the most you are willing to go?) and then we worked together to make a spreadsheet of maybe a dozen options, most of which she knew nothing about before we did this.  Then honestly, she starting crossing some off right away for arbitrary reasons.  (North Dakota? That seems like a really boring place, cross it off!).  😁  She picked the three closest out of state options that weren't already crossed off (happened to include our alma mater), and said she wanted to start with those three.  In the end, she picked our alma mater anyway, but she did it knowing that she liked it better than other schools she toured.  So, in her case it was kind of a tag team research effort. 

DS16 is a whole different story.  He is a super driven kid, and in 9th grade he was googling things like "best universities for math majors" and stuff like that.  By mid way through this past year, he was posting on reddit threads and reading other forums...and he has made many, many lists of schools he is interested in, and I have pointed him in the direction of where to look for things like cost and acceptance rates of said schools.  He has refined his list a few times, and I think we have a game plan of the first few he wants to visit during his junior year.  But he has totally taken the research into his own hands and is eager to learn about alllll the options.

[ScoutTN]

We have several colleges and universities in our city or nearby. Dd had been on many of these campuses for various events over the years and we know students at all of them. Also watching her friends and friends older siblings go through the process was helpful. So lots of informal learning and data collecting.

We began discussing options her 10th grade year and she knew that money would be the bottom line decision-maker. We have limited resources and both she and we are firmly opposed to borrowing.

By her junior year she’d decided to major in a language and that she did not want to be far away, but also not right here, in town. We made a list of options. She knew she did not want a large school. She knew certain ECs and good study abroad programs were non-negotiables for her. 
 

We visited one school (low on the list) as a test run, to see how a visit on a Preview Day goes, to learn what questions to ask. Then we just jumped into the process. More visits helped us clarify and notice differences. We learned how to research study abroad and other things of interest to Dd by doing it. 
 

Enjoy the ride! Dd and I enjoyed the trips, scholarship competitions,  learning together and exploring options. She knows herself better for the process. I hope you and your dc do the same!

Edited July 14, 2023 by ScoutTN

[BusyMom5]

This is a really good question.  When I teach at co-op I try to share lots of local options bc those are the most likely places for kids to go.  The local high schools also have College Fairs- you may need to call and ask when and where it is in your area. There are tables and tables of technical schools, colleges, and military representatives that will talk to your kid.  You can pick up booklets at any you are interested in.   

You should call ahead and register- ours has a scan code on your phone that gives schools your info if you want more info, so you don't have to fill out anything while there.  Sometimes there are give aways!  

All this said, oldest ended up at a school far-away that did not go to the local college fair.  It had a great scholarship.  Second kid did ended up at the closest 4 year to home- I think it's the best fit for her.  

[teachermom2834]

My first three dc were homeschooled all the way through. I feel like we talked about college a lot. Oldest heard a lot at co-op and I was really concerned with doing everything right for him as a homeschooler. And he was hoping to play a college sport so there was a lot of discussion both in the house and out. That trickled down to the next two kids and I don’t feel like there was tons of discussion. We kind of had our ideas from the first and just went through and did the things that needed to be done and applied the places we figured out worked financially. 
 

My youngest is in private school. She is going into 10th grade. I tell her not to listen to all the college talk. It is too much too soon and too angst driven. The majority of graduates from her private school go to the handful of state schools and neighboring state publics and all the fretting is unnecessary. So I say it is not a bad thing to miss out on until type of exposure high schools are doing these days. 
 

I feel like we just talked about it a lot. When we drove by a college on vacation, we talked about it. When we watched college sports or went to a performance or competition at a school we just naturally discussed it. When they are juniors they can really start researching but until then it is fine just to discuss in the course of life and focus on doing the right things to prepare (doing well in school, exploring extracurriculars, etc). 

[Clarita]

So just putting this in here for another option. 

I went to PS and my parents while they were college grads didn't know much about college (Dad graduated overseas, mom got her degree when I was 11 - she just went to the most doable school in terms of commute and schedule). My high school only presented the local community college and vaguely the University of California's and California State University's as in they exist. So, my parents signed me up for paid school counseling. It wasn't cheap but after talking with me they presented me with a list of schools that they thought could be good fits for me. They really opened my eyes to some really good options. Even though I still ended up at a UC and because of finances and insecurity on my parents part never tried to go to some of the other amazing private schools they suggested (also a different time when UC was a lot cheaper than private), I felt like they did a lot to help me find the school that I was ultimately very happy with. 

Honestly when the time comes and we have the means to afford it I'm not against paying for college counseling for my own kids.  

[easypeasy]

For my girls (the oldest two), it was mostly me doing the research. They were extremely busy in high school and, if I'd have left it up to them, they wouldn't have had time to find the scholarships that we NEEDED in order for them to go to school.

So, I did the initial research (I love researching this kind of thing and they do not). Then we sat down over the summer before senior year and I had a spreadsheet that listed the schools I thought were a good fit, scholarships available there, majors available, etc. My oldest was an athlete, so she had some input to add at that point and my second is a musician, so she also had some things to add to the list at that time. For both girls, I had to open decision emails and such. They had absolutely zero interest in any of the process except for making the final decision, lol.

My DS1 did it all on his own. But his situation was unusual; it was Covid and I was encouraging a gap year. He is a musician and wanted to study with *one* person. So, he applied and auditioned at the *one* school, which is a) the most selective studio to get into with his primary instrument and b) a highly rejective university itself, without the music issue. He said if he didn't get in there, he'd take a gap year.

He got in.

So - zero work on my part, hahaha.

DS2 came to our family at 17, so we really hit the ground running. He had a small list of schools and, after researching, I added to it. His list was all safeties or, at least, solid matches. My list was <20% acceptance schools. He got into several Ivies/rejective schools and is now attending one of them. Funnily enough, he tagged one Ivy onto the list at the verylast moment after reading an article about a student's research project there - and that's where he wound up attending - the one where he wrote the "basically, why us" essay in 5 frantic minutes. It was raw and heartfelt, though. 😅

[MagistraKennedy]

On 7/13/2023 at 4:05 PM, Shoes+Ships+SealingWax said:

Perhaps this is a silly question, but… how did your homeschooler discover their college options?

I was thinking the other day about university & it occurred to me that DS really only knows of a few schools: two local universities, an Ivy that has been mentioned in our literature, & two who have BattleBots teams 😅

DH & I both attended public schools & throughout the high school years college choice was a HUGE ongoing discussion. We learned about options from peers, teachers, counselors. It occurred to me that DS might not get the same organic exposure if he elects to continue homeschooling through high school.

Were you &/or your spouse their primary information source? Did they research schools themselves? Does the discussion permeate online & in-person classes for homeschoolers the way it does a public school campus? 

I don't think this is a silly question at ALL. 

In my public high school years, we learned about schools from our guidance counselor, peers, teachers, and maybe summer programs. It seemed fairly low key. I don't remember folks applying to multiple schools, etc. I think I decided on a school relatively early in my senior year. 

For my children, I'm mostly their primary information source, along with the internet, maybe their peers, and the college admissions counselor at our cottage school. (minimal) My senior is beginning to research schools, but mostly after I've 'vetted' them. 

I think it's beginning to filter into the conversation for my daughter in her in person classes and activities, but definitely not for my boys yet. (freshmen) They've been on college visits with us, so they're better versed than most kids their age, only because we've drug them along.