I would start emailing AO at colleges he is interested in applying to and ask them what their protocol is for (by that time) 14? year olds and entrance to their university.
While you can be very proud of your son because he is truly academically amazing, theres many kids just like him who get rejected from t20 schools all the time.
Other than being smart, what would his entrance essays be about? Not many hospitals allow children less than 16 years old to volunteer so exactly what capacity or job duties is he performing there? Other than something to put down on a college app, what is this doing for him as a person or how is he helping others?
Wow there’s so many comments. For other schools he likes, he was looking at Unc Chapel Hill, Pepperdine, BU, BC, VTech, William and Mary, and UCF. All of his science classes except Orgo chem and Biochem were at a high school. Also I forgot to say he took Gen chem with lab at our CC. Orgo Chem was also with a lab at a CC. He likes the Bs/Md at Drexel and the one at BU so we will hopefully apply there. I personally think he should go to a “less prestige” school where he can succeed. At the hospital, he works in the place for the elderly and makes them less lonely I guess you could say. So it’s kind of like being at a nursing home. He wants to write his essays about his first experience at the hospital and the words of wisdom a patient told him. He was accompanied by his grandfather who knows a few people there. The one patient changed his views on the way of life. I could definitely see him as a Family Medicine doctor. And for band, he did that with the youth symphony here and did All District which is our highest for his age.
Be aware that for out of state residents, some of the schools on this list are extremely competitive and would still be reaches. As for any applicant, you’ll need to find some true safety schools.
Hmmm, I am usually a fan of acceleration, having started college myself at a T20 at 16. I knew at least a few others who lived on campus and were also 16.
However, if your son is only 13 now, he is going to be 14ish when he enrolls. I really think that is too young. As he is homeschooled, would it really be so difficult to extend high school one more year? There are so many great online opportunities to accelerate in mathematics and the sciences, and no one would be hurt by spending some more time reading history and literature.
We also have a very precocious hs junior (scored >1500 SAT in 7th grade, and 800/800/760 subject tests in 8th and 10th grades). The high school years have been a little challenging to find the right courses in math, but the extra time spent has been well worth it in our opinion. Even for very high performing kids, there is a great deal of maturing that happens between 13 and 16. After that, I am less convinced that delaying matters.
Try to give high school one more year would be my advice. Best of luck.
You want to look into Bard College at Simon’s Rock in MA (not Bard College in NY). I suggest you look carefully through the school’s website for details.
UCLA had a 12-year-old transfer student a few years ago. He and his parents did live in the area (where he had been taking courses at East Los Angeles College, a community college). According to news articles, he and his parents moved into campus housing normally used by graduate students (presumably family-friendly apartments, rather than rowdy frosh dorms).
This is sort of off topic, but my other son wants to do Stanford OHS for high school, he’s a seventh grader now. Do you guys have any ideas on what could help him? He’s in Duke tip and CTY.
Bard at Simon’s Rock was my first thought because he could do college work and have peers who were his age and equally engaged intellectually. While OHS could be an academic option, you may do well to find a solution that isn’t just about academics.
I suspect T20 schools will be a huge reach. They have tons of applications from kids who look like yours academically but without the baggage of being minors and who bring more than smarts to their community.
If it’s college or bust, you may consider one where your whole family can live near campus and your son attends as a commuter. A bigger university might be your best bet, maybe your state flagship? They tend to be set up well to deliver content, which is what you want, and to give students the freedom to create their own experience outside that.
A friend of mine finished high school at 15, then triple majored at Johns Hopkins and finished by age 18. He then applied to Harvard Medical School and was accepted. He deferred a year and then started med school at age 19.
Your son is clearly advanced. Send him to a place that can handle his ambition and drive. Don’t worry about what the others say, if he shows maturity, getting into medical school at a young age definitely possible.
I think I have already told the story on here that the valedictorian of my graduating college class (at an Ivy) was 18. That person is now world famous in their field.
I also had a good friend who matriculated at one of HPY at 15 turning 16 (double skipped in grade school), and received a simultaneous bachelors/masters four years later from that institution. I never knew anyone more well read and conversant in more subjects and fields (in addition to being a prodigy musician). Nationally famous in their professional field.