<p>This is my first year of filing a FAFSA, but homeschooling friends of mine with older kids told me that students were only given the choice between "diploma" or "GED" on the form, and that absent these you were left doing the back-and-forth dance with the financial aid offices at colleges as to whether you needed to take an Ability to Benefit test or not. I understand that you are not actually required to do it, and all that, but sometimes it took a little re-educating of the finaid staff to help them understand this.</p>
<p>But aside from all that........ this year there seems to be three options: diploma, GED, and homeschool.</p>
<p>Does this now render moot all questions of the ATB tests right off the bat? What is it there for? How does it impact the ATB issue?</p>
<p>Really? I haven't looked at the form yet. I have always put "diploma," since I did make up a nice homeschool diploma for my sons. I will probably just continue to put that in. However, I have no idea how that will affect anything, for those filling it out for the first time.</p>
<p>yeah, I was planning to just check "diploma" myself. It seems to side-step the confusion around ATB tests. Since the homeschool option was there, though, I felt like I ought to choose it since it's the most accurate answer. I'll let you know how it plays out. ;)</p>
<p>I'm also going to make a nice homeschool diploma for my son. Or maybe buy one... I'm not too swift with the graphic arts and desktop publishing.</p>
<p>I have read in previous years (before the "homeschool" option existed on the FAFSA), that the best thing to do was definitely to check "diploma." If I was you I'd stick with it too at this point.</p>