I really want to get into a college, but I don't know how I can pull it off?
Question:
I was homeschooled my 9th and 10th grade years of highschool, the 9th grade year was offline, and run by my parents so obviously they did not count this year when I went back to a normal school.
My 10th grade year I was homeschooled through an online program and it was accreditted, however it only required 19 credits to graduate, which meant roughly 5 core classes a year...
Now I am back in normal schooling and they put me in the 9th grade because I only took 5 classes when I was in my 10th grade year.
I am 17 now and according to them I will have to go through all the years of school. So I will be 21 when I am out of schoool.
I planned to be done with college by then and I would much rather just go get my GED and be done with it... Since currently I am taking pretty much every required class they have so I can graduate...
Is there any way I can get into a good college with an Information Systems/Technology degree? (Before I am 21...)
Answer:
If you want to remain in highschool and graduate with a diploma...you may consider online degree programs from accredited colleges. You would be carrying both HS and college courses at the same time...but it's an option
just take lots of online courses its really easy and you get lots of credits. gosh i would be really mad at ur parents no offense
Depending on where you live, you can just take a test to opt out of high school... I know people who've done it when they were 16.
or you can take the same classes at a community college but more at a time and faster.
dude foget public school go back to homeschooling, colleges like good homeschoolers. you finsh at least 20 or so credits and your mom or dad or gardian make you up a transcript. then they get you a diploma. then you go to college. also there are many homeschool organizations that can help you out. good luck!
If that's how schools are where you live, that sucks. Such a thing would never happen here because they would have you work from what you've gotten done and progress from there. (That is, here, you can be taking gr. 10 courses at the same time as gr. 11--they would never make you do the whole thing through and if they really questioned your knowledge, you could test out of a course.) Mind you, here, you can't still be in a high school at age 20. You'd have to do an online program, night classes or special daytime classes for adults.
Personally, if I were the one in that situation, I would see if all the high schools were like that in my area and if so, I'd see about going back into homeschooling, maybe even doing my own thing to work towards SAT's instead of the online. You CAN get into college without an accredited diploma--those test scores matter more. If that's not an option, then I'd see about fasttracking my courses with the online school, getting it all done as quickly as possible. THEN, if none of those are possible, I'd just prepare for the GED and submit my college applications.
Sad story indeed, but don't let it get you down. I'd say go for the GED, it will prevent you from having to do all the boring repetitive stuff you already know. You'll still be able to get into a good school if you do well on your ACTs.
Lots of schools have good IT departments, so you'll be able to find one you like. Study that instead of the high school classes and you'll have a good jump on the other students. Also professional certifications count for a lot, so study up on the CCNE, and MSCE certs as well.
You said in your question that you were homeschooled through an online accredited program in 10th grade, but your high school is having you go all the way back to the beginning for some strange reason. Why not just go back to the online home school and finish up (don't know why they wouldn't let you)? It sounded like you only had a few credits left to graduate versus all the problems of the school system which sounds very rigid where you are. If the online school is accredited, I don't know why a college or at least most colleges would not accept their degree. It sounds better than dealing with the school system you are dealing with anyway!
I agree with the last answer by Karen that going back to your online accredited high school would be a good thing to do. But you didn't mention cost factors. I many states, students who are juniors and seniors--sometimes younger in special cases--can enroll in community or tech colleges and take courses for dual credit. In some states, those courses are paid by the public school system or state.
Also, if you want to get into a 4-year degree program, check with the colleges you are considering. Some colleges frown on the GED and you would be better off with a non-accredited homeschool diploma.
One more thing, your public school district sounds like it is discriminating against homeschoolers regardless of the program. You may want to check with HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) on your rights as a student regarding your credits from 9th and 10th grade. www.hslda.org
You do not have to have to have a diploma or GED to get into college. All you need is a transcript and either a Act or SAT score. You will probably have to take some courses that you won't receive credit for before you can take some of the courses required for your degree, but you will also have the option to test out of those courses and if you score high
enough you can skip those courses and move on, but you can still work on your degree in other areas while you are going through those courses. My mom put together my transcript for me based off the four years of work I had done, and it was accepted because I was home schooled.
You're getting shafted by a system that is REALLLLLLY anti-homeschool!
YOu didn't say where you are. In California, for example, you can go to a Junior College if you are 18 with or without a high school diploma.
Not so in NY. They REQUIRE at least a GED to even go to a JC.
The requirements for a stock college are simple.
You have to PASS a placement test in English and Math.
Math covers Algebra 1 and 2, Geometry 1 and 2. Sometimes they also cover Algebra 3 and 4 and Trig, but that's mostly the Ivy LEage schools.
Ivy Leage schools also want 2 years of highschool foreign language (up to French Spanish or German 4)
Most stock colleges don't have a foreign language requirement anymore.
I'm talking State College systems.
But CHECK them to see what they require by you. Yu may need at least French 1 and 2
I doubt, seriously, your school will keep you to 21. Most high schools oust you by age 19, becasue, you see, if you're 21 in highschool everyone will be your friend because you can buy beer.
English grammar and compostion.
Did you learn under the Chicago Manual of Style or a similar book?
1" margins
Double spaced
Annotated and not annotated
Single sided.
You don't over use your commas
You know how to simplify a sentence and make it strong
You know THAT is better than WHICH (what they call agressive or dominative writing or active writing).
In English Comp (English 1) they will teach you things like OBJECTIVE and SUBJECTIVE writing. Also Rhetorical writing and reading.
YOu will write an essay a week in English 1
This is TRAINING to get you to a MA degree which requires a THESIS which is 80 pages of annotated research on a topic with a goal to prove a point about something.
MOST books your read on computers are actually Doctorate Dissertatons. Especially if the author is from India.
For example: Object Oriented Programming.
It is basically a re-work of a dissertation.
Hierarchy's in Object Class Foundations
Another PHD Thesis.
Book publishers love to grab these up. They pay them $500 print up 10,000 copies and SOME college uses it as a text.
So they teach you GRAMMAR AND COMP to reach that level.
To get a BA you need 1 year of College Math which is all algebra oriented
The rest is Poly Sci, Fine Arts (music appreciation, intro to the theater, cinema history), science like observational astronomy or biology and your major.
Now, SOME colleges offer CERTIFICATIONS in which you can by-pass the required solids and JUST take the IT and get a Certificate in IT from a known College or University.
It is NOT as good as a BA, but still impressive.
Many community colleges have a GED program.
Or if you want a diploma go back to the online school, the classes are simple and you can pick through some fun ones.
good luck and I would definitely say that it sounds like traditional high schooling isn't for you right now..as it isn't for me
good luck with your career
You should look into CBE (credit-by-examination). It's a way to get high school credits for work you have completed outside the classroom. I know Texas Tech University's outreach and distance learning center offers CBEs.
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