Disability: a hook?

Applying to College
1

<p>As unlikely as it is to see disability and hook in the same sentence... is it a hook?</p>

<p>Consider this: a person was ill during all years of high school. Confined to the home, they had no chance to do ECs, APs/honors, and had no class ranking. On top of that, the only high school courses taken from home schooling were about three years of math/english and nothing else, thus no real 'GPA' (although straight A's in all). As such, they graduated not with a diploma but a GED, although scoring in the 99% percentile on that test and also on the ACT.</p>

<p>How would top, private colleges react to this? Would the lack of well, everything, be an automatic disqualification in the admissions process? Or would the college take the few scores the person does have and give them an equal admissions chance compared to, say, a normal person who has identical scores but who also has the normal amount of ECs and APs.</p>

2

<p>I would think the major problem wouldn't be the lack of ECs but the lack of the requisite coursework. Three years of math/English are not enough for "top, private colleges." They will want at least four years of English (even lower ranked places want this -- it is a pretty common requirement), may want four years of math, and will want 2-3 years of science, social studies, and a foreign language. A GED would not be a substitute for this coursework.</p>

<p>Of course, the thing to do is to look at individual college web sites and see what course requirements they have and if they allow the GED to substitute for them.</p>

3

<p>Hmm, yes, that's what I was concerned about.</p>

<p>I did notice on a few college websites, even the prestigious Princeton University, that they claim to have a 'recommended' curriculum for entering college students rather than a required one. But that still doesn't guarantee a lack of discrimination during the admissions process.</p>

<p>Do you think a very high ACT score would help make up for the lack of courses at all in the eyes of the adcoms, suggesting that the person is well versed enough in the material to handle college coursework?</p>

4

<p>Sorry, no I wouldn't -- but be sure to check with potential colleges. You need to find colleges that will accept the GED, the ACT by itself, and don't have required courses (and aren't super selective).</p>

<p>I'm not sure how you can be well versed in material you say you haven't studied. The ACT doesn't test for everything is the usually recommended high school curricula by any means.</p>

<p>Searching about, I haven't found a general resource discussing this. But it is your situation so you need to do more extensive research for yourself. </p>

<p>Princeton requires SAT IIs (which you don't mention having) and says (according to its most recent common data set [that I can find!] -- you have to search for it <a href="http://registrar1.princeton.edu/data/common/cds2004.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://registrar1.princeton.edu/data/common/cds2004.pdf&lt;/a&gt;) that it does NOT accept the GED. Putting aside that very important point, so many people apply to places like Princeton that really "required" and "recommended" are close to the same thing. Successful applications probably go far beyond those courses.</p>

<p>Realize that the majority of people with high test scores are going to not be accepted, even if they have the coursework, ECs, and everything else. So going in with simply high test scores, I'm afraid, isn't going to cut it. Plus if you have a GED rather than a high school diploma you aren't going to get your foot in the door.</p>

<p>I homeschooled my daughter and I've always heard that it is best not to get a GED unless it is required for some reason. A homeschool diploma, with a transcript and course descriptions, etc. where asked for or you think appropriate, is far more acceptable.</p>

<p>One reason to get a GED is if you are a New York homeschooler and want to participate in intercollegiate athletics. For some reason, New York law is, or is viewed by the NCAA, in such a way that a high school diploma is not sufficient to establish eligibility. However, the GED is only viewed as a way to meet the diploma requirement; the core course requirement must still be met. I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't be surprised if colleges (at least selective ones) that even say they accept the GED in lieu of a diploma have the same policy.</p>

<p>So, explore web sites (search on the term "GED admission" or the like if you don't find what you want) or call or email admissions' departments. They can tell you for sure. Perhaps there are places that will take you if you do well on a number of SAT II and/or CLEP exams. Explain your situation -- maybe there is wiggle room if you work with them!</p>

<p>One thing you might consider is going to community college for a year or two and then transferring. I know this isn't what you want for now, but it would be a means to get to where you what to be.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for the suggestions.</p>

<p>Regarding the courses, do you think it would be more beneficial to NOT send my high school transcript, which lists only the three math/english credits, considering how many courses are 'lacking'?</p>

<p>I've read how some home schooled people don't really follow a high school curriculum, particularly when there is no actual teacher or the parent substitutes in as one. What would a college typically require of that sort of student in the admissions process? Is it merely the CLEP/SAT II's that were mentioned?</p>

<p>The reason I previously asked about colleges accepting an ACT score as somewhat of a replacement for all of the courses missed is because so many colleges which require SAT I and SAT II subject tests now accept the ACT in replacement of both of those. I was hoping that this meant that those colleges found the ACT comprehensive enough in judging the amount of academic material learned in order to be comparable to the SAT II's, which I hear are much more demanding for actual curriculum studied than the SAT I is.</p>

6

<p>Perhaps you need to ask that question on the homeschooling board on CC or even seek one out that is more active than the one here. (I'm on a Yahoo group called hs2coll. There are other high school homeschool boards as well but this ended up my favorite.)</p>

<p>Yes, there are some homeschoolers that don't follow a set curricula. But I think by the time they apply to colleges, if that is what they want, they have done work in the various areas sufficient to develop a high school transcript. The high school transcript of many homeschoolers does entail community college courses.</p>

<p>My daughter wasn't an unschooler like this -- we did actual courses, for much of which I was the "teacher" (although a lot of it was self-learning using textbooks that had associated study guides, answer keys, and the like). When she applied to colleges, except for her safety [which just needed a transcript and a certain minimum ACT score], we submitted a lengthy description of the home study program -- materials used, books read, writing and science labs done, and even some work samples. She also had a few outside courses, from which she had recommendations and evaluated work samples.</p>

<p>Some colleges have set policies of what they want from homeschoolers. A few, for instance, require a bunch of SAT IIs. But all the places my daughter applied lacked anything definite like this. It was like, "We have no special requirements; just give us what you have that will help us evaluate your application." So I know other homeschoolers go in with quite a few community college courses, a number of SAT II or AP tests, or the like. Still, everyone who has offered their experience has also had a complete transcript.</p>

<p>Thing is, you don't have coursework or study outside of English and math. It isn't that you went from subject to subject on your own and need a way to reflect that on a transcript (the stereotypical unschooler); you didn't study a lot of things at all.</p>

<p>I think you need to start researching colleges and see which ones will take a GED, and then ask what else they want to see. I suspect that going to community college, getting some general courses in, and then transferring will work the best. </p>

<p>Again, do ask on the homeschooling board. I don't have much experience with the unschooling approach and how that ends up translating into college admissions. I only really know of one boy who followed this sort of approach. He wasn't interested in academics at all and he worked on his own small business he had started up. He took some community college courses in things he though would interest him. He refused to even take the SAT or ACT. But then he decided he wanted to get a four year degree -- he became a full-time student at the CC, took the courses he had ignored before, and did well. (We lost track of him at this point; I assume he made it to a regular college since he was acing his CC courses.)</p>

<p>If you go to the homeschooling board, you will see a recent thread about the GED. Perhaps that will give you some insight into matters or you could ask your questions there and get more than my opinion. I haven't encountered your specific situation before and so getting the impressions of others could be useful!</p>