High School, from a College Admissions Perspective, Part 3

Continuing our series on aspects to consider, from a college prep perspective, when considering whether to homeschool high school or not, we here consider athletic participation and college recruitment, various “soft” skills students need to develop during the high school years in order to be successful on campus, and how to stay Catholic while in college.

Athletics

It IS possible for homeschooled athletes to be recruited by a college team. Although the NCAA reminds us that only 2% of high school athletes win athletic scholarships, it IS possible.  There are two aspects to consider: being seen by coaches and becoming and maintaining academic eligibility.  Sometimes homeschooled students can play on the public high school’s team.  Sometimes they are recruited through their club teams or other avenues.

Student athletes must register with NCAA and NAIA eligibility centers, both of which have guidelines for homeschooled students to follow in order to be eligible to be recruited.  Check the guidelines early on and frequently to ensure that the curricula and courses you choose meet the guidelines.

In reality, most college coaches don’t waste their time watching high school athletics; they watch club athletes.  If you are in a good club, you’ll be seen by plenty of coaches.  In general, nonetheless, you need to be proactive about promoting yourself and letting coaches know of your athletic abilities.  With the new rules, they won’t be able to reach out to you until junior year but that doesn’t stop you from reaching out to them every month or two to keep them updated about your activities and accomplishments.  They can keep an eye out for you when they are observing.

It’s essential that athletes train well.  Perhaps you can join an adult team or work out with another team in your club.  You may be able to compete at “open events,” especially for track, cross country, tennis, and swimming events.  Another option, of course, is the local gym.

Maturity & Life Skills

Colleges are reporting a number of characteristics of freshman that are making it difficult for them to be successful.  Each student’s strengths and weaknesses and situations differ from their peers, no matter how they are educated. 

Students need to be able to manage their time well.  The structured life of home and high school is absent on campus.  Students need to be able to prioritize and create routines on their own.

Personal skills like self-care (everything from hygiene to managing stress in healthy ways to managing loneliness and balancing work and relaxation), assertiveness, the ability to ask for help as needed, knowing how to keep safe in various situations and how to avoid risky behaviors are essential.  The ability to create, monitor, and manage a budget is also a necessary “soft” skill on campus.

Students need to develop strong relationship skills in order to resolve conflicts that arise, work collaboratively with peers and professors, and accept constructive criticism.  Students can develop the skills needed to effectively work with others in a number of ways which include participating in team sports, clubs, and other group based extracurricular activities.  Working on service activities/projects and at a job are other opportunities high school students have to develop these skills.

Sometimes, a person needs to lead a project, take charge of a situation, etc.  Many students have not learned how to do that before they arrive on campus.  That deficit makes many facets of adjusting to life on campus quite difficult.

Young people need to know how to carry on a conversation, ask questions, listen actively, and maintain eye contact.  These skills are important when working with professors, dealing with other students in the dorms, on jobs, and during interviews.  An internship in a professional setting is another way students can develop and hone these skills.

Another important skill is the ability to look at problems from a number of perspectives and to solve them in creative ways.  Sometimes there is no pre-determined path to the solution; students need to be able to create one.  Dealing with disappointments and set backs is an aspect of problem solving that students also need to learn to handle successfully.  Experiential learning based courses can help students learn these things.  Activities in unfamiliar settings can help, too, like Cotillion or debate, or anything outside the student’s comfort zone.

Independence/Study Skills

Successful college students need college level study skills.  These include excellent note taking skills, efficient study skills, effective test taking strategies, solid time management skills, and the ability to avoid procrastination.  Be sure that your student knows that effective studying involves notepaper, not a highlighter, and not a computer (at least not as a primary tool).  Being able to participate in class is essential. Proactively seeking answers to questions that linger after class is essential.  It often matters just as much that a student understands how to find an answer as that s/he can give the correct one.  Memorizing the textbook and definitions might be adequate to get good marks in high school; it isn’t at college. 

How to Survive as a Catholic

No matter what college or university you attend, you must choose to incorporate your faith into your life at college.  For the first time, you must motivate yourself to get out of bed and to Mass, alone.  Given the fact that human beings are social creatures, finding a group of peers who will reinforce your best habits (like getting enough sleep, eating well, and practicing your faith) is absolutely essential.  College students must be intentional about forming a group of friends who will support their goals, who share their values, and who will challenge them to become better versions of themselves.  At college, for the first time, you choose your peers.  You’ll have your dorm mates, but you won’t necessarily spend much time with them.  The same holds true for the students in your classes and those with whom you may work.

Choose your college carefully.  I strongly recommend getting a copy of Every Catholic’s Guide to College, The Best 315 US Colleges & Universities for Practicing Catholics from Amazon.com and using it to explore possible campuses.  In addition to information about admissions, academics, and financial aspects of each college, the Guide includes a profile of the Catholic community on campus.  And, only colleges with strong support for Catholic life were included in the Guide.  In July 2018, the 2019 version will be released; it will feature an index of the colleges by the majors they offer.  You’ll be able to find, for example, all the schools that offer a major in economics, or physics, or industrial engineering. 

Remember that you must choose to spend time with people in order to create your inner circle of peers.  The Catholic community on campus is the perfect place to find those people.

More to Come…

In the next installment, I will address financial aid, scholarships, and a few additional skills needed to be successful on today’s college campus

Katherine O’Brien, MA CCPS is a Catholic homeschooling mother of six who has homeschooled since 1998.  She is the founder of Celtic College Consultants and has served college bound teens all across the US since 2004.  Students in her 2015 -2018 classes were offered over $237,000 each, on average, in merit scholarships. In 2017, Katherine compiled and released Every Catholic’s Guide to College: The 315 Best US Colleges & Universities for Practicing Catholics, 2018.  It is available on Amazon.com.  

What is Admissions Looking For? An Overview for Homeschoolers and Others, Part 2

Photo by Debby Hudson on unspash.com

In this series of articles I will address a number of factors of high school education from a college admissions perspective.  As a Catholic homeschooling mother of six and a professional college consultant, I will share some of my experience and knowledge in this series of four articles.  In the first article, I discussed the overall perspective colleges have with regard to homeschoolers and the various tests that are often part of the high school experience.  In this article, I’ll examine the various types of courses high school students can take.  Next time, athletics, extracurricular activities, and leadership will be the focus of the article.  In the final article, financial aid, scholarships, and college funding topics will be addressed.

My goal is to educate families so that they can make the best decision for their children.  Each child and family is different.  Out of respect for that, I seek to provide information, not to persuade the reader to a particular action.

Not surprisingly, academics are the most important qualifications for college entrance and success.  Students will present their academic credentials to their prospective colleges in a number of ways.  The courses chosen, grades earned, and test scores earned are the main ways academic credentials are presented through the admissions process.  The various tests were addressed in the last article; we’ll explore course options in this one.

High School Courses

Homeschooled students have an advantage over traditionally schooled students because they have access to a limitless number of classes on various topics.  In order to capitalize on this opportunity, it’s essential to know your child’s needs and find the appropriate courses and opportunities for him or her.  This requires effort, good communication with your child, excellent organizational skills, and, sometimes, outside assistance.  Without a focus, however, selecting and prioritizing courses (and diploma programs) is impossible and there’s no choice but to guess or “go with the flow.”

Homeschooling families have the opportunity to tailor the curriculum of each student child according to his or her needs no matter their academic strengths and weaknesses, learning styles, or the extent of their extracurricular pursuits.  Homeschoolers can take a significant number of college courses, even completing an associate’s degree as a high school student.  While many institutional high schools will allow students to take a few college courses, most limit that access significantly.  Needless to say, students who graduate with significant numbers of college credits have a greater chance of being accepted and they typically shorten their length of time at university, saving tens of thousands of dollars and months and months of time.

Courses can be structured or unstructured, hands on or theoretical, in person or virtual, live or recorded.  The plethora of options can be overwhelming but becomes more manageable once the parent narrows down the field to those that are most appropriate to a given student.

Families who homeschool through Kolbe Academy, for example, will have graduation requirements to meet according to the different diploma programs.  Those who earn an accredited diploma will, as far as college admissions is concerned, be considered similarly to institutionally educated students.  Homeschooling families choosing a non-accredited diploma program may need to set their own graduation requirements and will need to pay close attention to any additional requirements set by the student’s prospective colleges. It is essential that parents meet the most rigorous and demanding of these requirements.  Consequently, determining the likely fields of study and colleges (or types of colleges) will need to be done as early as possible in order to ensure that the proper courses are all taken.

With all of that in mind, it is important for families to create a tentative four-year course plan for each student.  Revisions may need to be made as you progress.  Nonetheless , planning enables the parent teacher and the student to see the flow of the subjects, ensure that all high school graduation and college entrance requirements will be met, and to schedule out the various college entrance tests that will need to be taken during the high school years.  Additionally, seeing the sequence of courses required for a certain major or cluster of majors can confirm or dissuade a student from pursuing that path.  Remember, it doesn’t cost a penny to change majors while you are still in high school.

All of that begs the question, what types of colleges will we be applying to and for what purpose.  Will we be applying to apprenticeship or certificate programs?  Liberal arts colleges?  Research universities with a strong Catholic presence?  Schools with internship or cooperative education programs?  Arts programs?  Engineering schools?...  Taking time to assess the personality, interests, inclinations, and God’s call for each child during freshman year is incredibly helpful.  In my private college consulting practice, I use a tool called Focus2career that combines data from surveys the students complete to suggest possible careers.  To that I add personal meetings and prayer to assist students with the process of identifying possible career paths to explore and with defining their college goals.  Knowing those, as well as their learning style and the available course options, are essential to creative an effective high school course plan.

AP Classes 

Homeschooled students have access to all of the AP courses through the Pennsylvania homeschool website.  AP courses are designed and approved by the College Board.  Consequently, they are strongly Common Core aligned and emphasize the perspectives espoused by the College Board.  Catholic students will need to broaden the scope of these courses in order to incorporate a Catholic perspective on the subject or historical period(s) being studied.  

Admissions committees see AP courses as an indicator of rigor.  For very competitive colleges, top applicants will have taken eight or more AP courses.

Please note: students do not need to take the AP class in order to take the AP test in that subject.  Please see the previous article in this series for more information about AP tests.  Additionally, students who take AP courses are not required to take AP tests.  However, the colleges will wonder why the test was not taken.  Some students will substitute the SAT subject test or CLEP test for the AP test.  

Class grades show admissions how a student performs day in and day out.  Tests show how they did on a given date for a few hours.  Consistent high level performance in their classes is a greater indicator of college success.  However, test scores are convenient measures so are held in high regard.  

Dual Enrollment

Taking college courses while in high school will enable students to study subjects not typically taught in high school and/or to take more advanced courses than they otherwise could.  In many states, tuition is waived for high school students taking community college courses.  At many community colleges, courses may be taken online in addition to being on campus.  Your local high school and/or community college will be able to advise you about the policies and procedures in your area.  This information is often available on the community college’s website.  Some colleges have age requirements and other policies that will affect your plans.  Be sure to explore the possibility carefully.

Admissions committees recognize that students with college credits have already learned how to be successful doing college level work.  College courses are run differently from high school courses and these students have learned how to schedule their work, take responsibility for themselves, advocate for themselves, and work to a higher standard than high school students do.  High school students who take college courses before they graduate will still apply to college as first year students.  Thus, they have the advantage of being eligible for the many scholarships available to first year students (as opposed to the relatively few available for transfer students).  Remember, high school students applying to college are typically considered first year applicants, whether or not they’ve taken college classes while they were in high school.

Transcripts

Creating a transcript can seem like a daunting task.  It doesn’t have to be.  Indicating when courses were taken, the course provider, and the grades are the primary tasks. Weighting grades is optional, but will need to be indicated on the transcript.  For those not familiar, to weight grades is to give more points for an A in an honors, accelerated, AP, or college class than for an A in a “regular” course.  The use of weighted grades is how some students have grade point averages (GPAs) higher than 4.0.  Using a scale of 0-100 is an option, as well. 

Numerous templates are available for creating transcripts for those who do not use a program like Kolbe’s that creates transcripts for you.  There are also professionals (myself and others) who will do this work for you.  Additionally, there are services that can accredit a non-accredited diploma.  Independent homeschooling families should keep track of all text books used, course providers, and books read as part of coursework.  Some colleges will ask for this additional information.

Students taking college courses during their high school years need to remember to submit both their high school and college transcripts to prospective colleges during the application process.  The colleges require both despite the fact that all of the courses will be listed on the high school transcript.

Admissions officers will use transcripts for two main purposes.  First, to see the grades the student has earned and any trends of increase or decrease among the grades.  Second, they will also notice the level of challenge the student has chosen.  Along with a transcript, the school (or parent) will send a one-page description of the school.  Among other things, this will indicate the course options available to the student.  For example, a student who took 6 AP courses sounds like a more robust candidate if s/he attended a school that only offered 6 than one whose school offered 15 AP courses.

What’s Next?

Now that we’ve covered the academic areas, the next article will focus on leadership, extracurricular activities, and athletics.  The final article will cover financial aid, scholarships, and college funding.

Katherine O’Brien, MA CCPS is a Catholic homeschooling mother of six who has homeschooled since 1998.  She is the founder of Celtic College Consultants and has served college bound teens all across the US since 2004.  Students in her 2015 -2018 classes were offered over $237,000 each, on average, in merit scholarships. In 2017, Katherine compiled and released Every Catholic’s Guide to College: The 315 Best US Colleges & Universities for Practicing Catholics, 2018.  It is available on Amazon.com. More information can be found at CelticCollegeConsultants.com.

What is Admissions looking for? An Overview of High School Should You Homeschool High School?

Part 1 of 4

In this series of articles I will address a number of factors of high school education from a college admissions perspective.  As a Catholic homeschooling mother of six and a professional college consultant, I will share some of my experience and knowledge in this series of four articles.  In this first article, I’ll discuss the overall perspective colleges have with regard to homeschoolers and I’ll explore the various tests that are often part of the high school experience.  In the second article, I’ll examine the various types of courses high school students can take.  Next, athletics, extracurricular activities, and leadership will be the focus of the article.  In the final article, financial aid, scholarships, and college funding topics will be addressed.

My goal is to educate families through these articles so that you can prayerfully make the best decision for your children.  Each child and family is different.  Out of respect for that, I seek to provide information, not to persuade you to a particular action when I do not know your situation.

Not Sure Whether Your Student(s) Is/Are College Bound?

What if you aren’t sure that college will be the appropriate path after high school for your child(ren)?  At this stage, it is important to both keep the various higher education options open as well as foster the emerging interests and inclinations of our children.  If you aren’t certain, proceed in a manner that leaves college as an option.  However, if it is already clear that a different path will best serve your child(ren), skip the academically focused sections of this series and focus your attention on the other sections. Explore the certificate and apprenticeship programs available in your area and in your child(ren)’s area(s) of interest.  The Occupation Outlook Handbook found on the Bureau of Labor Statistics website, bls.gov, will be helpful when researching any prospective careers’ expected growth and pay ranges.

Homeschooled students are welcome on campus!

Before going any further, it’s important to make it clear that homeschooled students are welcome on college campuses.  Many admissions offices have special instructions and/or admissions counselors just for homeschooled students.  On campus, homeschooled students fit in just as well as, if not better than, students schooled in other situations.  Academically, as long as they have learned to turn in their work on time during high school, homeschooled students tend to flourish.

If his or her high school transcript will be unaccredited, there are a few schools that won’t accept the student.  Most notably, the UC system is considered closed to homeschooled students.  Officially the University of California colleges accept homeschoolers, but it is quite challenging to meet all their requirements.  For full information about those requirements, please see the homeschool portion of their admissions website:

http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/homeschool/index.html.

While special admissions requirements for homeschooled applicants are somewhat common, the more selective the college is, the more likely it is that there will be special requirements and that they may be significant and/or take time and planning to meet.  The most common requirement is for homeschooled students to submit subject test scores to validate their coursework.  Most often SAT subject tests are requested although it is often possible to use CLEP or AP test scores instead.  The advantage of CLEP and AP scores is that many colleges and universities will give college credit and/or waive course requirements for students with high scores on these tests.  Each college has its own policy regarding whether and how they accept scores in lieu of required courses.  Some give no credit while others give elective credits and still others will waive required courses, accepting the scores instead.

Testing 

Test scores typically form a significant part of college applications for all students.  For homeschoolers, as mentioned, tests are often used to validate the student’s grades.  There are many tests, all of which have different goals and are available on different bases to homeschooled students.  Keep in mind that there are currently approximately 1,000 colleges and universities that are “test optional” or “test flexible” for admissions.  FairTest.org has information about them.  However, be aware that most test optional schools still require test scores to qualify for their academic merit scholarships.

75-80% of colleges and universities require applicants to take the SAT or ACT and submit their scores as part of the application process.  Be aware that both the College Board and the ACT sell student information to colleges (if you look closely there is an option to opt-out on their registration form).  Be sure to have your student use a different email address, not their usual one, when s/he registers for the tests.  That way the flood of marketing emails will not overwhelm their primary email account.

ACT Aspire – This test is a “standards based system of assessments to monitor progress toward college and career readiness from grade 3 through early high school.  Based on the information on the DiscoverACTAspire.org website, this test seems to be geared to give educators feedback about this students.  As such, it is not applicable to homeschooling families.  This test will not be part of any student’s college admissions application.

ACT Tessera – This test is offered by the ACT organization to measure social and emotional learning skills of 6^th – 12^th grade students.  Each student will receive a personal proficiency and growth report and be encouraged to set goals and identify strategies for improvement.  Having a child with Asperger’s compelled me to include a note on this test.  This test will also not be part of any student’s college admissions application.

PSAT 8/9 – This preliminary SAT test is given to 8^th and 9^th grade students. The score is on the same scale as the SAT and a national ranking is provided.  Score information can be used to create a high school course plan.  Primarily, the test gives an additional opportunity to take an official, proctored national exam.  This test score is not used as part of the college admissions process.

PSAT10 – The Preliminary SAT test is given to sophomores and usually provides the first nationally ranked test score students see. The PSAT score report also provides the student’s equivalent SAT score, which is very helpful information to have when exploring the academic fit of various prospective colleges.   This test score is not used as part of the college admissions process.  Many find it helpful to have a nationalized test score early in their college search as well as to have the opportunity to take an official, proctored test before taking the SAT, ACT, or CLT.

The PSAT is Common Core correlated and includes an English and a math section.  This test is only given to the students of brick and mortar high schools.  Contact your local schools’ testing coordinator in August of sophomore year to arrange for your student to take the test on their campus.  Public schools are often welcoming but are not required to allow homeschooled students onto the campus.  If they do not welcome you, contact private high schools in your area.  The test is typically given in mid-October.  Recently, some schools have begun to offer the PSAT10 during the spring instead.  Consult your local schools directly to obtain their testing schedule.

PSAT/NMSQT – The Preliminary SAT test given in October of the junior year and is the National Merit Scholarship qualifying test.  The only way to win a national merit scholarship is to score in the top 10% of the juniors who took the PSAT/NMSQT in your state.  Those students are semi-finalists and will be contacted by the National Merit Corporation and asked to submit a high SAT score and a transcript as part of the scholarship qualification process. The PSAT is Common Core correlated and includes an English and a math section.  It is only given at brick and mortar high schools.  Contact your local schools in August of junior year to arrange for your student to take the test on their campus in October.  Public schools are often welcoming but are not required to allow homeschooled students onto the campus.  If they do not welcome you, contact local private high schools in your area. 

Pre-ACT - The Pre-ACT is given to sophomores and provides a practice ACT experience and score as well as information on students’ college and career readiness.  The score report also provides the student’s equivalent ACT score, which is very helpful when exploring the academic fit of various prospective colleges.   The test is Common Core correlated and includes English, math, science, and reading sections. Like the PSAT, the Pre-ACT is only given at brick and mortar high schools.  Contact your local school’s test coordinator in August of sophomore year to arrange for your student to take the test on their campus.  Public schools are often welcoming but are not required to allow homeschooled students onto the campus.  If they do not welcome you, contact private high schools in your area.

SAT – Homeschooled students register for the SAT just like all other students, by going to the CollegeBoard.org website and registering.  Testers can select the test site (you can even take it far from home if you’re traveling!)  There is a special high school code for homeschoolers.  If you homeschool through a program that gives an accredited diploma check with your school; it might have a high school code.  The SAT may be taken with or without the essay.  Check the admissions requirements of your student’s prospective schools regarding whether or not the essay is required.  If so, be aware that admissions staff will be able to read students’ SAT essays.

ACT - Homeschooled students register for the ACT just like all other students, by going to the ACT.org website and registering.  Testers can select the test site (you can even take it far from home if you’re traveling!)  There is a special high school code for homeschoolers.  If you homeschool through a program that gives an accredited diploma check with your school; it might have a high school code.  The ACT may be taken with or without the essay.  Check the admissions requirements of your student’s prospective schools regarding whether or not the essay is required.  If so, be aware that admissions staff will be able to read students’ essays.

CLT – The Classic Learning Test was developed in recent years and is accepted by more than 100 colleges and universities in lieu of the SAT or ACT.  For full information on this test, which is offered at sites all over the US, please see CLTExam.com.  Many homeschooling families using a Christian and/or Classical curriculum find the CLT, which is not Common Core correlated, to be a more appropriate test.  The CLT includes an English and a math section.  Check their website frequently as the list of colleges accepting the CLT is increasing steadily.  If you are interested in the test and in a college that does not yet accept it, do not hesitate to call the admissions office and suggest they start to accept it.  Contact the CLT team as well; they might be able to assist you with getting the test accepted by that/those college(s).

AP exams are given in physical high schools every May.  Students are NOT required to take AP courses in order to take the exams.  AP exams are offered in many subjects and may be taken during any year of high school.  It is possible to take several AP exams during the same year. See the CollegeBoard.org website for a complete list.  Contact your local school in January to arrange for your student(s) to take the test with their students in May.  Be aware that not every school offers every AP test.  Just as is the case for the PSAT and Pre-ACT, homeschooled students must get permission of the testing coordinator in order to join the students on campus for the AP exams.  The fee for AP exams is handled by the high schools.

IB exams - The IB/International Baccalaureate program is a robust program consisting of six courses taken in the junior and senior years of high school, each ending in a test.  At this time, these are only available through institutional schools.  They are highly regarded by colleges and universities, including the most selective campuses.

SAT Subject exams – Some colleges and universities recommend or require these tests for admissions.  “Recommend” means the test is not absolutely required.  However, it is expected that all successful applicants will take them, unless there are geographical or financial constraints that prohibit the student from doing so.  A list of the subjects and the dates each test is offered may be found on the CollegeBoard.org website.  Homeschooled students register for SAT subject tests just like all other students, by going to the CollegeBoard.org website and registering.  Up to three SAT subject tests can be taken on most test dates.  The SAT and SAT subject tests cannot be taken on the same day. Testers can select the test site (you can even take it far from home if you’re traveling!)  There is a special high school code for homeschoolers.  If you homeschool through a program that gives an accredited diploma check with your school; it might have a high school code.

CLEP tests – Homeschooled students can take CLEP exams any month at sites all over the country.  See the CollegeBoard.org site for a complete list of the subjects tests as well as to find test sites in your area.  Testers make arrangements with the local test site to take the tests.  The website also has a list of the colleges and universities that accept CLEP scores.  Families will need to make arrangements with the test site directly to schedule and pay for CLEP exams.  Students may take more than one exam at a time, if they wish.

DSST tests – Homeschooled students can take DSST exams in a wide variety of subjects (including business math and criminal justice, for example). These college equivalency exams are offered at test sites all over the country and are designed to give college credit for job training,etc.  A complete list can be found on the getcollegecredit.com website.  A list of institutions which accept these scores is also available on the website.  Testers register on the DSST website as well.

More to Come…

In the next installments, I will address financial aid, scholarships, athletics, high school courses, transcripts, AP courses, dual enrollment, leadership, & extracurricular activities.

Katherine O’Brien, MA CCPS is a Catholic homeschooling mother of six who has homeschooled since 1998.  She is the founder of Celtic College Consultants and has served college bound teens all across the US since 2004.  Students in her recent classes were offered over $225,000 each, on average, in merit scholarships. In 2017, Katherine compiled and released Every Catholic’s Guide to College: The 315 Best US Colleges & Universities for Practicing Catholics, 2018.  It is available on Amazon.com.