<p>I posted this earlier, but it disappeared in the giant database reset. Which colleges are you looking at? My oldest only applied to one--Hillsdale--she's been there several years and loves it. Dd#2 has been accepted to USAFA, USNA, CO School of Mines, and Embry-Riddle, Fl--NROTC. She's still waiting to hear from USGA and Hillsdale. How about you?</p>
<p>My homeschooled daughter is attending Northwestern University, after applying ED last year.</p>
<p>Does she like it?</p>
<p>She absolutely loves it. Attending NU was her long standing goal. She arrived there as well informed as one could be, which helped her make a smooth adjustment. </p>
<p>She had visited a number of times and attended a summer program on campus, but one thing she couldn't know ahead of time was how the people would be. Although it's a very competitive school full of over-achievers, she has found a spirit of cooperation and a very supportive atmosphere. She loves living with friends, who intend to make a difference in the world.</p>
<p>So, how do you find a school that suits you so well? We visited a lot of campuses over the years. Any time we traveled, we visited local colleges and universities, which helped give focus to her homeschooling. Then, when her aunt took her to visit NU, she had enough experience to know it was different. She felt the connection right away and the more she learned about it, the more perfect it seemed. </p>
<p>Of course, she had a list of other schools she would have applied to, but it all worked out with ED, even the financial aid.</p>
<p>Well, in my dd's case, she had visited several schools, even auditioned at one. But, she called me that night and said she didn't think it was the place. She just knew when she hit Hillsdale... She called THAT night and said--I found it! They offered her $ and admission on the spot. (though she still jumped through all the hoops) </p>
<p>Dd#2 has been in a slightly different boat (pun intended) with the academies. She went to three of the summer seminars offered--didn't do USMA. Her list changed after that. She never expected to be facing a choice, (she thought she'd be lucky to get ONE appointment) so is now headed out again for "Candidate View Weekends". They offer a chance to stay in the plebe dorms and be "dragged" by an upperclassman. She only applied ROTC because the academies always ask why you didn't if you are serious about a military career???? But, now, having got the scholarship, she wants to look at it more seriously. She's been doing applications for 12 months now---she and I are tired!</p>
<p>heartcross, I can imagine how tired you are. I only have one child, and she applied to only one school, and that was excruciating enough. To turn around and do it again, and to deal with so many schools must be very exhausting. What a relief it will be for you both when she finally gets it all worked out!</p>
<p>Ah, but then I get to do it all over again with 3 more children... ;-) Actually, as frustrating and nerve-wracking as it's been, it's been a neat experience. Even if she had not gotten the appointments, the process taught her a lot of things...</p>
<p>Wow... three more? Well, at least you'll know the ropes. I hope you get a little break in between.</p>
<p>Yeah--I get a few years off... ;-) The next one will be easy--she'll be on a full-ride cross-country scholarship--quite possibly at our local college--he's already interested and she's only a 6th grader! Funny thing when she beat half his track team on a hill race... ;-)</p>
<p>Im a 10th grader and ive been interested forever my sisters barely had any interest till liek late Junior/early senior year...they did end up going to college though...but i want to go to better colleges so yah. and i could never do service academys(not my think to go into Military/stuff) and i cannot do sports if it was my life!</p>
<p>lesmizzie, my daughter chose the school she was interested in (and is now attending) when she was at about the same stage you are. It's a very good idea to start looking at colleges now, and start interacting with the ones you are most interested in. Schools track contact with potential students, and interest you show counts when they consider your application. </p>
<p>Looking at particular schools early on, will also give focus to your homeschooling. If you find out exactly what different colleges require from homeschoolers, you will have enough time to fill in any gaps you might have in your transcript. You can prepare take your SAT and SATII tests leaving plenty of time to repeat if necessary and have good scores ready when you apply. You'll also have time to get some AP tests under your belt if you need to.</p>
<p>Do you have some particular colleges in mind already, or are you just starting to look?</p>
<p>My daughter's been talking about college since she was 12! (She wants to major in Biology, possibly Pre-Med)</p>
<p>She already has her college list planned out and we've visited 3 schools already (going to visit the 4th on Saturday) and she's a Freshman.</p>
<p>None of the colleges have said, "Oh, you're starting too early". Most have said, "I wish other students would do this!" </p>
<p>The visits have been invaluable as far as planning curriculum and testing!!</p>
<p>For instance, I wasn't sure if my daughter needed to take Calculus, but, after speaking with the Dean of Admissions at UVA last weekend, we found out that she should take Calculus, if she wants to be competitive for admissions. Not only that, but they want to see lots of AP tests. (I hadn't even thought about having her take AP tests!)</p>
<p>So we've already worked out her curriculum and her AP testing schedule (she'll end up with 8 AP exams by the end of her Senior Year).</p>
<p>Btw...here's my daughter's college list (assuming she likes all of them! -- Btw...this is another good reason for early visits! If she doesn't like all 9 colleges, she doesn't end up applying to 9, or paying extra to send multiple scores on the SAT / ACT exam, interviewing, etc.)</p>
<p>Auburn University
Clemson University
College of William & Mary (visiting Saturday)
Duke University
Elon University
James Madison University (visited)
University of Mary Washington (visited)
University of Virginia (visited)
Virginia Tech</p>
<p>Kelly</p>
<p>What did she think of Mary Washington? I have a neice there in Classics--and she loves it.</p>
<p>She liked it a lot! Beautiful campus...no TAs teaching classes...really focus on undergraduate study.</p>
<p>Two drawbacks for my dd, though: (a) no football team -- my daughter is a college football junkie ;) and, (b) we live less than 30 minutes from Mary Washington...so it's a tad too close to home! LOL! She's looking forward to "going away" to college.</p>
<p>But she did want to keep it on the list and visit again during her Junior Year.</p>
<p>Kelly</p>
<p>I applied to Taylor University -Fort Wayne and have been accepted.
My dad wants me to keep my options open though so I am applying to Cornerstone as well. But I will probably end up going to Taylor.</p>
<p>Columbia University
Harvard University
Rice University
Saint Mary's College of California (accepted)
Stanford University (accepted)
UC San Diego
Yale University</p>
<p>University of Chicago
Lawrence University
St. Olaf College</p>
<p>I live on the U. of C. campus, and I truly have been spoiled by it. I visited St. Olaf and Lawrence, but the general ambience of the schools just didn't feel right to me. </p>
<p>I was accepted to all three, and I am relieved. I will be attending the U. of C.</p>
<p>Any help you can give on what hoops they have for homeschoolers? They require transcript, 3 SAT II's, and SAT or ACT, correct? Did you get a feel for what they prefer to see from homeschoolers to make them comfortable with selecting them? Thanks! Ds is only an 8th grader, so his wishes may change, but at this point he wants to go to school in Chicago where we live, and that means Northwestern or University of Chicago if he wants a top tier school.</p>
<p>What hoops does University of Chicago have for homeschoolers, and did you get a clear signal on what they prefer to see to be comfortable in selecting a homeschooler?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>LSC-</p>
<p>Believe it or not, Chicago has no hoops- no 20 AP's and SAT II's. Of course, they say that they do encourage them, though the only scores I sent were those of the SAT I.</p>
<p>One thing that I think would help a homeschoolers is to position yourself well. I play piano and clarinet and have won awards on those instruments, so I pushed that. I also positioned myself as a prospective Classics major; obviously, if I said I wanted to major in English or Biology, I don't think they would have looked as favorably on me, as everyone wants to major in them. And, being a prospective Classics major, I can back myself up. I have been taken Latin for many years, earned top scores in the National Latin Exam, taken the intensive Attic Greek at the U. of C. over the summer, received recs from the Greek prof and TA, and I am currently auditing Intermediate Greek at the U. of C. Position yourself well is the best thing to do.</p>
<p>Also, be prepared to describe your curriculum when asked to (which I am sure you will!) during your interview. I had to go into full detail about all my subjects and extracurricular activities. Know what you did so you won't fumble when you are asked about labs! Also, know the school well. During my interview, I expressed particular interests in generally obscure clubs at the U. of C. (I live on campus, so I have had years to acquire this knowledge.). I think I came off as interested solely in the U. of C. and the kind of life and education it has to offer. </p>
<p>I had ten recs from outside teachers, mostly affiliated with the U. of C., to back me up. I have only one grade (an 'A' from the summer Greek course), so I needed people to say that, yes, I actually DID do calculus . . . . When the U. of C. says that homeschoolers can send in extra recommendations, do so!</p>
<p>And my parents are alums, so I am sure that helped . . . .</p>
<p>I think I went off on a tangent, LSC, but I wanted to tell you a bit about what I did. There is a lot more, actually, but I hope this helps.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>