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jocelynDAD
Member
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 03:37 am |
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C-Fang:
A note of caution for your consideration. Some of the colleges on your initial listing (Bates - Bowdoin - Grinnell - Macalester) and others mentioned on this thread
(Kenyon - Whitman ) are all excellent schools but are known as being very competitive in the admissions 'game'.
Since your S will be needing extra help and time, gets B and C in Math and Science well that does not bode well for his chances in the highly competitive marketplace of college admissions.
With only average grades in Math and Science and the varied needs he has re tests and the like even the other LAC's (Beloit - Kalamazoo - Lawrence) could be considered reaches for your S.
An accurate and realistic assessment of your son;s capabilities, potential and the best environment for him is an absolute necessity.
You have IMO a challenging time ahead, but you have the good sense to ask and that is half the battle.
Good luck for both your son and yourself. 
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CardinalFang
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| Joined: | Mon Mar 17th, 2008 |
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 05:00 am |
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| True, JocelynDad-- but those are college grades, not high school grades. It's not like he's taking Algebra as a high school junior. He's taking calculus.
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Wstrdg
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 02:33 pm |
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CardinalFang,
JocelynDad's comment raises two important points common to homeschooling bright kids: asynchronous development and curricula off the traditional high school track.
These are very difficult to explain on the "Common App" or the UC online application. They are difficult even to explain on a multi-page transcript. College admissions officers are conditioned to look at the Alg1-Geom-Alg2 sequence, and they may not even recognize something post-high school as being far past the typical high school curriculum. And as for asynchronous studies, there is a prejudice that would require the same level of "precocity" in all subjects.
Some universities are better than others at handling homeschooled apps. Face it, these require lots more work (reading) than do the typical app form + transcript + essay + test scores. The admissions officers will actually have to think about the experience this kid has had, and not just tick off check boxes.
Explain, explain, explain. I really don't think you can give them too much info.
But I'm sure you knew that! 
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CardinalFang
Member
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 02:42 pm |
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| I can't even face the UC application. I know of several homeschoolers who've been admitted to UCs, but seemingly it's always a struggle to shoehorn the homeschooler's experiences into the UC boxes. Except UC Riverside, which welcomes homeschoolers, the UCs make it difficult.
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Wstrdg
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 02:53 pm |
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It really wasn't that difficult. We just stuck everything in a box, and he used the essays and "extra info" space to emphasize his very-non-traditional experiences. And having lots and lots of high test scores certainly didn't hurt. And I did phone admissions at each UC (except UCB and UCSC, since they are fairly famously homeschool friendly).
And when the UCSD admissions office told me he was ineligible, I asked for, and received a very nice and encouraging phone call from her supervisor (ViceChancellor), who told me that he was absolutely eligible under e-by-e or a-by-e, just be sure to put it all in the app! And turns out, he got Regents!
But I've got to admit, we were viewing the UC's as reaches, given his unusual background, and he did apply to private schools as safeties. I wouldn't recommend that any homeschooler treat the UC/CSU system as a safety, but don't give up on them, either.
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WestrnMom
Super Moderator
| Joined: | Fri May 26th, 2006 |
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 06:31 pm |
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Are you aware of the homeschooling/college websites?
http://www.homeschoolfriendlycolleges.com/
http://learninfreedom.org/colleges_4_hmsc.html
http://www.homeschoolacademy.com/academy/colleges.htm
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CarolynLawrence
Administrator
| Joined: | Sun Mar 5th, 2006 |
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 07:08 pm |
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I will say that Beloit's admissions team is very accepting of homeschool students. there were 8 homeschoolers out of my daughter's freshman class of 275. I think it helps that Beloit is a kind of "think outside the box" kind of place, even with their own curriculum. Two of my daughter's dearest friends were homeschoolers, and they've done well, although one was surprised at how hard the workload was. (So was my daughter, by the way)
Beloit also tends to "think outside the box" when it comes to admissions decisions. They seem willing to take risks on students who show academic promise but have C's and B's in math and science. Otherwise, my daughter wouldn't be there.
One other nice thing about Beloit, that could work to an LD student's advantage, is that they have a fairly open distribution requirement. Students are only required to take two courses in math and science, two courses in arts and humanities, and two in social sciences. They also must take a certain number of credits (can't recall the exact number) in courses identified as "writing to learn" courses, and one interdisciplinary course. A foreign language is not required. My daughter basically satisfied everything but the math and science requirement by the end of her first semester in sophomore year without even trying --- just by taking courses that interested her. For the math and science requirement, she took geology and human biology, so no math required! She had a somewhat weak science program in history (basically just took bio and chem, and did both in summer school), but she did OK with these two courses, and actually loved the human bio course.
Another thing that my daughter has really liked about Beloit is that many of the faculty do teach from an interdisciplinary perspective. My daughter has enjoyed that aspect quite a bit, and I think it has been a good fit for the way she learns. She's been able to discover interests she wouldn't have known about, and pursue them in some very interesting ways. (I think this tends to be true of many LACs, by the way, not just Beloit).
I do think it is important to look very closely at the actual graduation requirements if a student has weaknesses, or dislikes, for any particular area. Students who are strong across the board, and interested in many different subjects, like my son, are usually OK with a pretty rigid GE distribution requirement, but students like my daughter, who have stong dislikes for certain areas, and are weaker in some areas as well, may be better off at a school like Beloit where those areas can be avoided somewhat. (Of course, it could be argued that a good college education SHOULD include math and a foreign language, but that's a whole other discussion.)
Last edited on Wed Mar 19th, 2008 07:13 pm by CarolynLawrence
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WestrnMom
Super Moderator
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Posted: Wed Mar 19th, 2008 11:53 pm |
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Redlands has a similar arrangement, where students can fulfill certain requirements by taking courses in a wide variety of fields. You can take a history course in the music department or a religious studies in any number of other areas to fulfill requirements. They still get a very well-rounded education taking courses that interest them the most. Their policy is that they want students to try new things, even if they are difficult, even if they fail, because that makes them stronger and more well rounded.
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CarolynLawrence
Administrator
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Posted: Thu Mar 20th, 2008 12:25 am |
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| And, of course, Redlands also has the Johnston Center program. There are no distribution requirements for students in the Johnston program, and the students are able to customize their learning and projects in each class. That might be a good option for some motivated LD students.
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lfm
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| Joined: | Sat Jul 28th, 2007 |
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Posted: Thu Mar 20th, 2008 03:04 am |
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CardinalFang wrote: I can't even face the UC application. I know of several homeschoolers who've been admitted to UCs, but seemingly it's always a struggle to shoehorn the homeschooler's experiences into the UC boxes. Except UC Riverside, which welcomes homeschoolers, the UCs make it difficult.
It wasnt that bad, though I admit, I actually filled out my son's UC app (though, of course, he did the essays). It is definitely not designed for someone who has taken classes from 6 different groups, plus self study.
The UCs only get 200-300 Entrance-by-Exam students a year. They really do not know what to do with them. My son has been accepted at UCSD so we know it works. UCSC is a different story. They sent him a letter saying he was in the top 1% of their applicant pool. A month later they rejected him. I wrote to the person who sent the letter and she is looking into it.
The Calstates are worse! I figure it would have been easier to get my son into Harvard than Calstate LA!
Priavte colleges are much better!
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CardinalFang
Member
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Posted: Mon Mar 24th, 2008 05:47 pm |
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My son doesn't have Aspergers, but he has some similar issues. I find this checklist useful in considering what schools might be fits for him:
http://www.dixonlifecoaching.com/docs/IECA-Aspergers-chart.pdf
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Momof3
Member
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Posted: Tue May 20th, 2008 10:47 am |
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My son has some "spectrum" conditions of Aspergers from what I read about it, but I don't think would be diagonosed that way. He had unmedicated ADHD (did well in school, so it wasn't an issue) and always did well in a small nuturing environment. He sat up front, had teachers that were available for questions, etc. after school and didn't have a lot of noise/unruly classrooms going to a Catholic grade school.
He found a small LAC was the right fit for him, but as a sophomore, wishes he had a few more students, 4,000 vs the 2,000 he has now.The close relationship with his professors, the acessibility and small classrooms has him doing very well. He knew he would be lost in a huge university with TA's and 100+ classrooms. There are always trade-offs, nothing is perfect, but finding the right fit can be trial and error and visiting a college, at least for the day, is a good option if available.
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