I am possibly going to pursue an Associates degree at my local Community College. But I am confused if I would be applying as a freshman or transfer applicant? I was told that if I was a transfer applicant the chances of getting into an elite college are slimmer than they are as a freshman a freshman applicant.
Not positive, but I think the AA is an issue you need to investigate per school. I don’t think there is a uniform answer. Is there a reason you want to earn your AA vs. just DEing?
@Mom2aphysicsgeek After sophomore year, I will only need to take 2 more courses in order to graduate. I also want to add more to my college applications ( even though it might not make a difference) and my mother says she will only pay for DE and refuses to pay for any online AP classes. So, I would take my core classes and an electives there and a language at home. I was going to just take the AP exams that are the equivalent of those exams. Plus, I would only need to take 6 additional class in order to get an AA degree, of which I could take 3 over the summer.
There are no one size fits all answers. You need to spend time reading college admission websites.
Without the full picture it is really hard to know now to answer. When you say at the end of your sophomore yr you’ll only need 2 credits, how do your classes from freshman and sophomore yr line up with
4 English
4 math (alg, geo, alg 2, plus one math beyond alg 2)
3, preferably 4 science (preferably bio, chem, physics, and one advanced science, 3 labs)
3, preferably 4 history
3, preferably 4 foreign language
(Basically the 3s are minimum, but most top schools are going to expect or have most students apply with 4)
Why does the above matter? Bc some schools will not allow you to double dip. That means if you are using a history and an English toward your AA degree but you need them to fulfill the above requirements, you are double dipping.
Some schools don’t care how many DE credits you take prior to high school graduation and will still allow you to apply as a freshman, but with an AA you have to apply as a transfer student. (I have not run into this personally bc my kids don’t even attemp to earn their AA, but I have read a couple of stories about this happening.). Equally, some schools will allow you to transfer in all the credits that match their courses. Others, however, will severely limit what you can carry in. Some won’t let any credit transfer in but will allow you to use those courses to place into higher courses.
What sort of colleges are you hoping to apply to? That will really impact the answers you need to hear. Our help is really liking throwing darts at a board blindfolded bc there is so much information unknown.
Fwiw, adding more to you college applications does not require DE. My current high school sr has 0 DE credits at this point, though she is going to take stats DE in the spring. But, her transcript is rock solid with multiple advanced level courses. We have just taken a completely non-traditional approach to high school and allowed her to excel at home (our purpose in homeschooling in the first place.)
Her college age brother, otoh, had numerous DE credits. DE is what worked for him (he took 200-300 level math and physics courses bc by 10th grade he had maxed out math and science through AP level, well, except for bio which he strongly disliked.) DE met his needs and was what he wanted.
My point is that there is no single answer. You need to take the path you want, but you need to know why you want it. One of the questions you might need to answer is why did you homeschool and how did you use homeschooling to the best of your ability. That question is easy for my kids to answer bc our homeschool is not just replacing a ps at home. Their educations are radically different than any traditional school. So know why you are making the choices that you are. You also need to make those choices knowing how they impact your college selections.
Another FWIW, don’t forget to use high school to learn more about yourself. Part of you college application is going to focus on the you that is not a list of courses on a transcript. What are you doing to be 3 dimensional in that direction. Do you need to add more that way?