Chance/advise a homeschool student looking at classics and history

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>North Carolina resident
White male
Homeschooled senior ('unschooling'/concurrent enrollment)</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA: 4.0; I have no idea what weighted would be.</p>

<p>SAT: 2220 (790 CR / 690 MAT / 740 WR)
ACT: 33 (35 E / 26 M / 34 R / 36 S)</p>

<p>I have taken 10 concurrent enrollment courses at a local community college with a 4.0 GPA. I would have taken more this semester but financial constraints have forced schools to cut down significantly on their concurrent enrollment programs, so I was only able to enroll in two classes. I am expecting outstanding recommendations, one from a biology instructor and one from an English instructor, and am confident in my essay writing abilities.</p>

<p>I attended a small private school for my freshman and sophomore years of high school before growing frustrated (two years too late, as I now realize) with the lack of intellectual stimulation and educational opportunities and the overall unhealthy and oppressive environment. Unfortunately, the school had absolutely no extracurricular offerings for those not interested in sports, so although I am planning on becoming involved with International Club and doing some volunteer work with the local chapter of Gamma Beta Phi, I am worried that my general lack of ECs/awards/etc., coupled with my homeschool status, will negatively affect my chances, especially since some (most?) of these schools would likely be reaches, regardless. The problem I have encountered is that my interests do not seem to translate very well into local EC activities (I live in a very rural, out-of-the-way area). I spend most of my time reading, as part of an autodidactic approach to homeschooling, and studying languages (Spanish, French, and German), which is something of a hobby of mine and one of the reasons I am interested in pursuing classics.</p>

<p>I'd welcome any advice about other schools I might consider applying to, preferably with good classics/history programs. I'd also like to know if any of these schools are particularly stingy with financial aid.</p>

<p>Some of the schools I am currently contemplating are</p>

<p>Brown
Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Univ. of Pittsburgh
Holy Cross (I've heard they place great emphasis on the optional interview; what if it turns out one is not possible?)
Colgate
Amherst
Wesleyan
Tufts
Vanderbilt
Wake Forest
Tulane (I'm not very familiar with the school, but the free application seems worth considering)</p>

<p>Thanks a lot.</p>

2

<p>If language and history are your thing, New Orleans and Tulane are worth a look (visit.) Ruled by the French (1718-1763, 1801-1803) and Spanish (1763-1801) there are so many attributes of each culture still visible today in New Orleans. </p>

<p>Tulane’s history program is one of their stronger ones. The school tends to be very generous with financial aid for people with stats similar to yours. Tulane has a very strong international student body that is good for brushing up on languages. French, Indian, Chinese, German, and South American are the largest groups from my experience there a few years back. </p>

<p>Try to visit the schools that you can. Best of Luck!</p>

3

<p>Thanks for the information; I’m not too sure how much I would like New Orleans though. I’d really like to get out of the South if possible, though I wouldn’t necessarily object to something a bit closer to home. Anyone else mind commenting, etc.?</p>

4

<p>Holy Cross can arrange for an alumni interview in your geographic area.</p>

5

<p>Bump. Anyone willing to chance me on some of these schools (I realize some, like Brown, are usually crapshoots, but do I at least have a solid shot at getting into some of the more selective ones)? Would it be worth taking the money and time to apply to the Univ of Alabama as a safety because I am guaranteed full tuition? I’ve read that Pittsburgh gives very generous aid to OOS students with stats similar to mine. How true is this? Am I a strong enough applicant to consider it a “safety”, provided I get my application in early? Any other advice would be appreciated; I’m finding myself slightly overwhelmed with information at the moment, which I expect is typical.</p>

6

<p>Just curious how will you be defined as a highschool graduate using the un-schooling method, will you be appling to schools as a transfer student or have you recieved all of your “official” highschool credits through the Dual enrollment?</p>