Applying 8 years after high school?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Stanford University
1

<p>I'm planning to apply to Stanford but it's been 8 years since I graduated from high school. All of my close teachers have left, and my high school might have lost my transcript. In the worst case scenario, I think the best I can conjure are my old SAT scores and a few professional recommendations. Would this suffice? What would you advise?</p>

<p>I'll give an overview of the exact circumstances, in case CC is still as judgmental as it used to be ;): I was supposed to start at a mid-tier college 8 years ago, but sudden circumstances left my family in financial hardship. I weighed the pros and cons, but decided that a career in mathematics would not alleviate my family's circumstances in time. So I set aside those ambitions and started a data analytics company. My firm became relatively successful, and I've been yearning to go back to finish a degree. I decided on Stanford because it's near my workplace, and I think I still have to devote some time to work before we transition to my successor. I've worked very closely with a few professors, so I guess that is a plus and I have a decent idea of what to expect of student life and work. I did earn enough to donate a building to a department, but that's not a route that I want to consider.</p>

<p>(There's a few groups that I'll call next week, e.g. the admissions office, Collegeboard and my high school, but I'm hoping to work out a preliminary plan over the weekend.)</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

2

<p>so you never took a class after leaving high school? I think you can only go from high school directly to stanford or be a transfer student. I could be totally wrong but an adult freshman doesnt sound right. </p>

3

<p>Everything is possible because it’s Stanford. There is exactly one person who just got into Stanford after taking 8-year break; she will be attending Stanford as a freshman this fall. </p>

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<p>@theonewhodares‌: Thanks for the heads-up on that. It does give me a sense of relief to know that this not unprecedented.</p>

<p>@lamelcriada‌: I’ve ‘audited’ a couple of classes, but these were at the college/grad school level and not as an officially registered student. I do work very closely with the professors who taught those classes even today, so I intend to have them write my reference letters if it’s possible. But that’s precisely my question though - these don’t seem to substitute a traditional high school transcript/recommendation letter.</p>

5

<p>I called Stanford admissions a while back after having some issues with getting in my school transcript. They told me to write a letter explaining to them why I couldn’t get my transcript in. Thankfully my issues were fixed and I didn’t have to.</p>