Homeschooler getting a GED?

Question

Have any homeschoolers gotten a GED?

I will have to get one when I graduate, but it just seems like a GED is going to look very bad when I apply to a college, even though my cousin was homeschooled and he got a GED then got accepted into a university and got a masters degree.

Answer 1

A GED is actually a diploma these days and if you look into careerlink.com or your local career center where they offer the GED, they have a program where you can graduate from a local highschool and receive a highschool diploma verses a GED....colleges don't care so much about whether or not you have a GED or Diploma....it will be the scores you receive that they will be looking at. The GED mathmatics is far more advanced than is required by a highschool diploma.

Answer 2

You see the proof... it's in the pudding.  The College will ask you, from there you explain you are home schooled.  It's the truth, and it already happened...  So what else is stopping you?

Answer 3

If you are in the US, you do NOT *need* to get a GED.  There are NO states that still require the GED for graduation from homeschool.  Many colleges and universities are now recruiting homeschooler (yes, seeking them out) because they have proven to be more mature and self-directed than their peers.

You will likely need to take the SAT or ACT and it certainly wouldn't hurt to take a community or junior college course or two during your 'junior' or 'senior' year.  Doing well in these classes will show colleges that you are prepared for university-level work.

Answer 4

Ty,

You just mentioned:

"even though my cousin was homeschooled and he got a GED then got accepted into a university and got a masters degree"

...is your answer.

Answer 5

Why do you say, "I will have to get one when I graduate"?  You do not *need* a GED, even if you were HS'ed.  It's much better to take the ACT & SAT exams for college enrollment.  You'll most likely also need a high school transcript, which you can easily make, or use a site like this:

http://teascript.com/

Answer 6

A GED is not looked down upon as much anymore as it used to be.

Colleges know that, and have no problem with it.

A regular home school diploma is just as valid though, and is widely accepted as well.

Neither will be an obstacle in obtaining funding for college.

If you'd like to check out what it entails go to these links:

http://www.testprepreview.com/ged_practi...

http://www.4tests.com/exams/examdetail.a...

http://steckvaughn.harcourtachieve.com/e...

Good luck.

Answer 7

I was homeschooled up until highschool. A GED is treated the same way as a diploma completion by schools, it just has a negative connotation with people because they assume you dropped out of highschool and finished with a GED, as this is more often the case. People are ignorant about homeschooling, very ignorant. However, it is NECESSARY to have high SAT or ACT scores. I would suggest taking both, taking them as much as you can - definitely not once. Study for them, maybe take study classes. These will matter a LOT and will decide where you are placed since your high school equivilency will be determined off your general knowledge of this. If you do poorly on these, start with an AA at a community college of the same city as the university you go too, often after receving an AA they simply will not turn you down to the University. I went to highschool in public school to get a 'real' diploma. I wish I hadn't, even in advanced placement classes the other students were holding me back. Public schools are just not equipped for intelligent students who need to be challenged, and lucky for you, universities do realize this.

Answer 8

If you graduate from homeschool and if your state allows for your parent to legally give you a high school diploma there wouldn't be a need for you to get a GED.  Why not use a correspondence school, like Penn Foster.  You can transfer you credits to their school and it will be cheaper that way.  And when you finish, you will get a High School Diploma.  That's what I did.  My state does not allow for my parent to issue me a diploma so I am doing a correspondence school for graduation.

Answer 9

I believe in some states your parents can actually het you a diploma try a search on hslda.org but I can tell you that my brother has his ged after dropping out and was accepted a a top college for airline mechanics (which is what he wanted to do since childhood)

Answer 10

A GED is not looked down on at all by colleges. It is accepted just the same as a diploma. Especially since you were home schooled, you really do not have a choice. And some schools look at home schooling as the fact that you got one on one attention and that you are used to pushing yourself to succeed. Which means a great student to them(yeah i'm talking out of my public school ****!LOL)

Answer 11

Wait.. You are going to graduate and then get a GED? wtf... Anyways... Why not just apply for the test is really easy, you don't need to be thought anything

Answer 12

I got a GED, and just like the SAT's, you need to get a good score. A very high percentage of people who graduate traditionally from a high school cannot pass the GED exam, and colleges know this. Try to get an interview with the dean of admissions of the college you want to enroll with, even if it's a phone interview, so you can explain your situation. Your efforts will be rewarded. Good Luck!

Answer 13

They're not going to care.  As long as your score meets the requirements, it's not a big deal.  It's how you perform in your classes that's going to make the difference.  If you don't take your GED, how else are you going to get into college?

Answer 14

You do not need to get a GED, in fact even if you get one, I recommend not mentioning it to college officials right away, show them you SAT or ACT scores and your homeschool transcript.  Most colleges don't require a GED of homeschoolers, so you probably won't be asked for it.  The most important thing is getting an education, make sure you are studying hard and preparing for the SAT or ACT test.  If you do that then you will already be more than prepared to take the GED if it is ever needed, which it probably won't be.

Answer 15

Actually, you don't need one; there are homeschoolers that are accepted to Ivy League schools on their homeschool diploma and transcript along with their SAT/ACT scores.

There are tracking programs (Homeschool Tracker, Edu-Track for example) that will print out your grades, transcript, etc.  These are completely legit and regarded as highly as anything from a public or private school; you just need to make sure that you've documented everything you've done - the texts you use, test scores, books read, any special projects completed, etc.

You can also get a homeschool diploma that your parents sign, as they are technically your school administrators.  It's also completely legit.  A diploma is basically certification that you've completed your coursework and are eligible for graduation; from what I've seen from your other posts, that shouldn't be a problem.  And honestly, in the 15 years since I graduated, I've never had to show my diploma once, including college admittance and registration.  It's sat in a box or on a bookshelf that entire time.

http://www.homeschooldiploma.com/index.p...

Here's one company that provides diplomas for homeschool grads.  There are many others, as well.

Answer 16

Listen up, there is nothing wrong with that, But I am a bit concerned about what you know about the outside, hopefully you hav'nt been to confined.????

Answer 17

These days unless you are going somewhere that has extremly high expectations it really doesn't matter about a GED. What most people look at is the fact that you can actually finish a task you start without giving up. If you do your reseaech you will learn that most jobs look for someone who have the ability to complete an assignment without quitting. Blieve me there is some people out there with College degrees that don't have GED sense. you'll catch that later...