I’m a sophomore this year, and next year, I’m thinking about applying to college when I’m a junior. My question is: assuming that I’m eligible for everything else like credit and grades, are there four-year universities out there that will accept me as a regular college student if I have not hit my senior year and don’t have a diploma? So basically, I would be skipping 12th grade and instead start my freshman year in college. I’m wondering if that’s possible. Now, I know some schools have special programs where you can earn both college and high school credit for special honors programs, but that’s not what I’m concerned about. I’m talking about going to college like any other student.
<p>I am doing this.
I am a junior and was accepted to the University of Houston Honors program and the University of St. Thomas program for next year, and my high school is counting freshman english in college as my senior year English. I will graduate from high school with my class next year and get my diploma then.</p>
<p>If you have enough credits, you will be able to get a diploma. Consider taking summer school or something so that you will be able to graduate in 3 years, or ask your HS if you can do what I did. Most colleges want a letter from your HS stating that they are supporting your decision to go to college early...</p>
<p>Colleges who explicitly allow this:</p>
<p>Stanford
University of Chicago
Wellesley
(?)Emory
(?)Carnegie Mellon</p>
<p>Not sure about the last two. Many schools have a special program where you can apply a year early, though. Dig a little.</p>
<p>I did something similar. I applied to the University of California as a high school sophomore and got into the honors program. But I recently just took a high school proficiency test which counts as a diploma (the actual test varies state by state), and I had all of my subject requirements done from my years at a community college (concurrent enrollment in high school). I'd actually just taken about an extra college course every semester in high school and after awhile it just so happened that the last two years of high school would be a repeat for me. You should look into taking whatever diploma test your state offers and making up some credits at a community college.</p>
<p>check out Simon's rock college of bard.. i know st. john's college allows you to do so as well</p>
<p>Well see, my school does allow early graduation - but only a semester early during your senior year. They have a requirement that every student must complete at least 7 semesters of high school to receive a diploma, regardless of how many courses they've taken or what grades they get. And my school's pretty deadbeat, so the only summer school courses they offer are the ones for students who failed some class. </p>
<p>I know USC offers a program that allows high school seniors to attend classes there and earn high school credit at the same time. The thing is, that's for like, total geniuses - you have to have at least a 32 on the ACT and I believe, a 4.0 GPA (I only have a 3.76) as well as many other additional factors that I unfortunately don't possess. </p>
<p>The reason I asked is because I was thinking about California State University, Long Beach. It's not a horrible school, but it's definitely not as difficult to get into as the UC's. I figured a school that isn't difficult would be acceptive of juniors with good GPAs (I think a 3.7 is good for CSU). Anyway, that's besides my point. I looked at the eligibility index and completed course requirements on the website, and I know I'll have all the requirements completed by the end of my junior year. The only thing is, I was reading that most of these colleges require you to have graduated from high school in order to enroll. ???</p>
<p>If you're in California, there's a test called the CHPSE (California High School Proficiency Exam) that counts as your diploma if you pass it. That and the courses I took at community college (you still need to fulfill the A-G requirements) got me into the UCI Honors program.</p>
<p>Here's the link. I just got my proficiency certificate in the mail a couple of days ago:</p>
<p><a href="http://www.chspe.net%5B/url%5D">www.chspe.net</a></p>
<p>It's only slightly harder than the CAHSEE if you've taken it. If you pass, you'll still need to take one semester of english from a community college (it counts as a high school year) and whatever else you need to make up for your lost senior year.</p>
<p>why would you want to do this??? enjoy your high school years! you wil never get them back! have fun, hang out with friends, go on dates, go to dances and proms, graduate with your class. why do we all want to rush things????</p>
<p>i'm leaving high school a year early because, to put it simply, i hate it. if you can't find a good reason to stay, why stay? anyway... since early graduation isn't an option for you, then i guess early admissions is your main option. there's a website somewhere that lists some programs. i don't remember what it is, so just try to google it. another option... though more risky, is to get your GED or some other diploma replacement. Discuss it with the universities you apply to, check and see how they will evaluate you considering the lack of senior year and diploma alternative. sometimes universities view GED inferior to a hs diploma, but if you explain your situation in a personal statement or something it could be okay. just contact them before you apply.</p>
<p>im assuming its much harder to get into select schools if you are applying as a junior?</p>
<p>hilary duff in the movie "a cinderella story" went to princeton a year early... haha just felt like bring that up</p>
<p>Clarkson University has a program specifically for people who want to leave highschool a year early. I just finished up a year in the program. I think it was a really good decision to attend it and would recommend it for motivated people who dislike being in highschool.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.clarkson.edu/tcs/%5B/url%5D">http://www.clarkson.edu/tcs/</a></p>
<p>Oh no, I live in Illinois. I probably should've said that earlier, sorry. I think there might even be some state laws against getting a diploma earlier here. I'm not sure.</p>
<p>The reason I want to leave early is because I don't want to waste time in high school, and I'm a goal-oriented person. High school's not terrible, but if I could be doing something more useful like working toward my degree already, there's no point in wasting another year in high school. Also, I started school later than most students when I was younger, so I don't want to be the oldest one in whatever classes I'm in at college. That's not an important reason, but when I weigh the pro's and cons, it makes more sense to start college if I can.</p>
<p>CK61188, yeah I was going to ask about the GED. And yeah, that would be something I would only get if I was 100% would work out. But I think you even have to complete special courses for that, too. And they take a while, I'm assuming.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies, everyone.</p>
<p>i have a friend that went to school early (5ish years old) since elementary school... so she's been younger, and then she skipped 7th grade, so that makes her REALLY young... and now she wants to finish early.. that makes her SUPER SUPER young.</p>
<p>A lot of college will take juniors. Off the top of my head, Ithaca, Haverford, and Grinnell will. Just dig a little. There are a bunch.</p>
<p>My mother went to a rural high school in New Jersey. She skipped her senior year, went to Wellesley instead, and then went to Stanford Law. She is now a corporate attorney. She never regretted her decision. :)</p>
<p>!!!! Thank you wondrlst! How could I have forgotten my soon-to-be Alma Mater!! Oh, my poor soon-to-be Alma Mater!!</p>
<p>You cannot get a better education ANYWHERE than you can at Simon's Rock College of Bard. You could actually start there next year, instead of senior year, if you want to. About a third of the students stay all four years, but if you want to transfer after you get your AA it's quite easy. I went to Simon's Rock for three semesters, and so far I've gotten into a top 5 LAC, a top 15 LAC, and three Top 25 universities(one of them top 15)-- and I'm still waiting on 4 college decisions! Tons of people go from here to UChicago and complain that UChicago is too easy. Same with Cornell and Stanford. Apparently Yale manages to be almost as academically challenging as here...</p>
<p>So yeah! Look at the Rock!!!</p>
<p>Hey, I got into UPenn, Rice, UMichigan-Ann Arbor and Cal Tech as a Junior. I was deferred from Harvard early, and am currently on the wait list. So it's possible-definitely. But, you need really good extra curricular involvement.</p>
<p>where are you going, thatindiandude? i hope Upenn or caltech!</p>