Is this the right topic for this? I think so but idk if there’s a better one.
So, I’m graduating in 2019, after 3 years of high school. This isn’t really preventable and I’ve talked to my guidance counselor and my dad, they both agree that I won’t benefit from a 4th year enough to do it and i have all of the credits to graduate (I’ll be at 18.5 after this year). My birthday is in March, so I won’t be 18 until a ~2 months before finishing my first year of college. My top choice at the moment is to go to a PA state university (one of the passhe ones) and commute, but I’m wondering if anyone knows of any schools that are good for early grads? I’ve tried googling it and can’t find any information. As I’ve been in a cyber school since 7th grade and was always the weird kid so I didn’t really talk to anyone before that, my social skills are kinda lacking. I don’t think I’ll have many problems with the living away from home part but I’m worried about the college dorm part.
Other info about me specifically: I have one extracurricular, CAP. Other than that my grades are A’s and B’s + 1 official C and APUSH which I’m hoping I can get up to a B for fhe final grade.I’m in 2 AP classes this year and before that I’ve mostly been in honors in subjects where that’s a possibility. I’m in honors bio and honors chem this year because I had to take earth science last year and I want to get physics but didn’t want to do chem and physics together because that just sounds like a nightmare. Also, I’m probably going to start volunteering at the animal shelter and hospital later this year I just have to wait until I turn 16.+ I’m part of the NHS and I volunteer for the tutoring that they do (my school is K-12) for the elementary/middle school and I volunteer in the chemistry peer tutoring as well.
sorry this is a bit rambly it’s late at night and I just wrote this.
It is not advisable to graduate early in HS. It is better to do DE and spend your time to obtain better test score. Then you will have a much better chance at better schools or getting better merit scholarships.
Is there a nearby college where you can take college courses while still being enrolled in high school for the fourth year?
My school doesn’t offer dual enrollment and I don’t think that it’d be a possibility to do it on my own.
A 4th year wouldn’t be helpful. I wouldn’t have an English, unless I went back and did world and british lit or took an elective English. No science as I’m definitely not attempting an AP Science in a cyber school- the AP courses are mostly self-taught and class is only 2x a week for an hour (other core courses have class Monday-Friday). Math would have to be an elective math, as I’m going to Calculus next year and I don’t think doing an AP Math in a cyber school is a good idea for me. For History, I’d be going down a level as well, unless I took AP World and even then I already have a World History credit. Spanish 4 would help and I might even be able to do AP Spanish but other than that there’s no other courses. Switching schools isn’t an option. Also, I get very little social contact and I hate it. I’m literally stuck in a house 24/7 except for the 40 minutes that I walk around the neighborhood. Maybe it’ll get better when I can drive, but I’m not expecting much as I live in a pretty boring town.
What are your SAT/PSAT scores? It doesn’t sound like you are targeting highly selective schools but I know some that have accepted students after 11th grade without a HS diploma. It sounds like you have a workable option with commuting to a local school. I think Penn State has agreements with local
community colleges where students can transfer after 2 years.
The Google term you’re looking for is college early entrance programs. There is a list available here
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/early_college.htm
However most aren’t really aimed at kids graduating only one year early. You may find that you feel old next to a gifted 13 or 14 year old college freshman.
If your real concern is about starting college when you are a year younger than most of the other freshmen, then think about taking a gap year. You will have your high school diploma, and no one will particularly care that you finished in 3 rather than 4 years - especially given the type of school you have been attending.
During your gap year you can work on the social skills that you feel have been missing. Even a job at McDonalds or a supermarket would help with some of that. You could also do a study abroad program or a wilderness study program or the like. Lots of options out there. Just run a quick search and you should hit on a bunch of interesting suggestions.
Another advantage of a gap year would be that you would have more time to work up a college list that is good for you, and to take/re-take any required exams.
Being one year earlier/younger is probably not that big a deal.
What may be a bigger deal in terms of college admissions is whether you have the usual expected college-prep curriculum completed (varies somewhat by college, but http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/high-school-life/2055289-faq-high-school-college-prep-base-curriculum.html can give you an idea; check the web sites of colleges you are interested in for specific requirements and recommendations). If you have completed what your colleges of interest expect, then you can apply normally for frosh admissions at those colleges.
Have you and your parents figured out what will be available to pay for college? Since it looks like you are in Pennsylvania, your in-state publics may be expensive with poor financial aid. But if you have high stats (GPA, test scores), you may be able to find lower cost options though merit scholarships and admission to colleges with better financial aid than Pennsylvania public schools.