By Jean Burk
For some homeschooling families, thinking ahead to college may be a huge concern that can often lead to great anxiety and in some cases, abandoning the home educated course that was set from the beginning. The thought of “not getting it all”, an inadequate transcript or fear of standardized tests can all seem very daunting. The good news is that colleges are now coveting homeschoolers more than ever.
Twenty five years ago, it was more difficult for a college to take homeschoolers seriously. After all, GEDs were the choice that many families used to indicate a completed education. Unfortunately, a GED was created on a 6th grade level which didn’t represent a homeschoolers true education.
Today, homeschoolers are very desirable to the college admission counselor. They are recognizing that homeschoolers tend to be very disciplined, self-governed and enter school with great study skills. It doesn’t appear to be the thirteenth year to them and they don’t need babysitting.
Admissions counselors give out many scholarships that are wasted. By the end of the freshman year, twenty-five percent drop out and at the end of the sophomore year, fifty percent have dropped out of school. Only about one-third of all students will graduate. These counselors are looking for the students who will appreciate the scholarship, represent their school well and ultimately be a supporting alumni.
Homeschoolers are not at a disadvantage to being a candidate for college. The same criterion is used for college entrance for all students. They will need to compete an application and provide a transcript and take an entrance exam. This could be the SAT or ACT. These tests will not only provide validity for the student, but also can yield amazing scholarships.
Homeschooling families should not fear the thought of college for their students but be encouraged and equipped by having the right information on how to prepare them for the next stepping stone in their life. This is an achievable goal and students just need to put themselves out there since colleges are already looking for them.
Jean Burk is the author of College Prep Genius and has written numerous articles about the SAT and PSAT/NMSQT. She has been featured as an SAT expert on Good Day Dallas (Fox 4) and KXAS (NBC 5 Today). She currently travels and speaks about the importance of college preparation, how to get free college and teaches her “Master the SAT” Prep Class all over Texas as well as other states. Both her children received incredible scholarships because of their PSAT and SAT scores. Her teaching DVD was released in the summer of 2008. The first edition of her brand new VocabCafé Book Series, “The Summer of Saint Nick” is now out. These books are intended to help teenagers and younger children increase their knowledge of SAT-level vocabulary words.
For some homeschooling families, thinking ahead to college may be a huge concern that can often lead to great anxiety and in some cases, abandoning the home educated course that was set from the beginning. The thought of “not getting it all”, an inadequate transcript or fear of standardized tests can all seem very daunting. The good news is that colleges are now coveting homeschoolers more than ever.
Twenty five years ago, it was more difficult for a college to take homeschoolers seriously. After all, GEDs were the choice that many families used to indicate a completed education. Unfortunately, a GED was created on a 6th grade level which didn’t represent a homeschoolers true education.
Today, homeschoolers are very desirable to the college admission counselor. They are recognizing that homeschoolers tend to be very disciplined, self-governed and enter school with great study skills. It doesn’t appear to be the thirteenth year to them and they don’t need babysitting.
Admissions counselors give out many scholarships that are wasted. By the end of the freshman year, twenty-five percent drop out and at the end of the sophomore year, fifty percent have dropped out of school. Only about one-third of all students will graduate. These counselors are looking for the students who will appreciate the scholarship, represent their school well and ultimately be a supporting alumni.
Homeschoolers are not at a disadvantage to being a candidate for college. The same criterion is used for college entrance for all students. They will need to compete an application and provide a transcript and take an entrance exam. This could be the SAT or ACT. These tests will not only provide validity for the student, but also can yield amazing scholarships.
Homeschooling families should not fear the thought of college for their students but be encouraged and equipped by having the right information on how to prepare them for the next stepping stone in their life. This is an achievable goal and students just need to put themselves out there since colleges are already looking for them.
Jean Burk is the author of College Prep Genius and has written numerous articles about the SAT and PSAT/NMSQT. She has been featured as an SAT expert on Good Day Dallas (Fox 4) and KXAS (NBC 5 Today). She currently travels and speaks about the importance of college preparation, how to get free college and teaches her “Master the SAT” Prep Class all over Texas as well as other states. Both her children received incredible scholarships because of their PSAT and SAT scores. Her teaching DVD was released in the summer of 2008. The first edition of her brand new VocabCafé Book Series, “The Summer of Saint Nick” is now out. These books are intended to help teenagers and younger children increase their knowledge of SAT-level vocabulary words.
