Question for all unschoolers (and parents of unschoolers)...?

Question

I'm a 16 year old unschooler (girl) looking for art colleges (I would be taking graphic design and photography if they have it) to go to that I can get into with out taking all those tests and other things so called 'required' (SAT, GED etc.). I know it's be done before and I was wondering how?

For those of you who think I need to go to school just shut up. I'm not here for your go to school and get a real education c**p it's a free country and I can do whatever I darn well want to.

Thank you!

Answer 1

You can try to fenagle a good interview, but certification is a sad necessity.

If you live in NYC or that area, Sarah Lawrence doesn't want SAT scores.

Answer 2

Hmm, thinking out of the box, maybe you could immediately start a small business.  Study up a bit with something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Designers-Research...

Then drum up some clients among friends, family, or using local advertising.  Include your photography; maybe keep a separate portfolio for that.  Keep prices cheap, the goal is to get experience and portfolios.   With low prices, ($1) and friends/family customers you could put together a portfolio fairly quickly.  

Once you have a portfolio with paying customers, and a business history you have something to bring or send to prospective schools, alongside the ordinary documentation, (sans test scores), you might put together as an unschooled person applying to college, such as translations of your past activities into edu-speak.

The idea isn't to pretend to be a polished entrepreneur, but to have something unique that presents your ideas and skills, (and self-driven, business know-how) to the admissions personnel.

Also, you might try reposting this question under a different forum, such as "visual arts", or "higher education-university" to see if people trolling those forums can be more specific.  Or do a search, here, for "graphic arts" to find a good forum to draw more specialized answers.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I know that there are some out there, but I can tell you that admission is going to require a lot of paperwork from you if you don't have the test scores - portfolio, detailed transcripts, school-specific placement testing, etc.

I'm pretty eclectic and tend toward unschooling with my son, but I am going to have him take the SAT/ACT and some CLEP tests while in high school - partly because he can test out of some classes, and partly because it will help him gain eligibility for scholarships (which financially, we'll need).  It will also make the enrollment process go a lot more smoothly.

I know that the testing isn't something that a lot of homeschoolers necessarily agree with - I tend to think that they're a bit on the useless side myself - but colleges have to have something to go by with admissions, especially when they receive more apps than they have spots for.  You can do it, but it might honestly be easier to go ahead and take either the ACT or SAT.  You don't have to get your GED, but the entrance tests might help you not have to get a ton of other paperwork together.

I would suggest, however, to scout out schools that have programs you're interested in and send for their catalog.  Read through and see what alternate admissions requirements they have, and call to talk with the admissions departments.  You may find that they are willing to accept letters from people you've worked with and a portfolio of your work, along with some simple skills testing (to make sure you can handle college-level work).  Out of all the specialties that would be willing to work with you, you'll likely find that art schools are willing to "think outside the box", as it were.

Good luck!

Answer 4

I am not an unschooler, but I am a homeschooler.  The SAT is typically required of everyone, not just homeschoolers, but there are some community colleges with programs where you could get your prerequisites taken care of, then transfer to another school, you might make it around the SAT that way.

Answer 5

The SAT and ACT are the tests colleges usually require.  The reason they have those tests is to see if you are competent to do the school work, since otherwise you'll be wasting your time and money and someone else could be there who might actually be successful.  

Sometimes if you already have done college work they won't require the tests.  You may not need them to take community college work (I just realized that my youngest daughter is almost done with her freshman year and didn't ever get around to taking either of those!)  You should be able to look up the class schedule online and see if they have anything you'd be interested in taking.  A lot of places let highschoolers take community college classes--here in California they are actually free for high school students (although you'd have to pay for the books).  (And highschooler means anyone who would be in high school if they were in school, you don't have to be enrolled in one.)

Different colleges require different tests... When we lived in Arizona the colleges required the ACT, but in California they require the SAT, so first you need to decide what school you want to go to. Graphic design and photography are offered at  a lot of community colleges, which tend to have business oriented classes.

The GED is a test you take if you don't have a high school diploma.  It kind of implies that you dropped out of school and then went back again, since you often aren't allowed to take it until you're 18.  Which is ok if that's what you did, but it sounds like a High School Proficiency Exam might be more what you need, if that's offered in your area.  

Again it depends on what you need and where you live, but first see if you can just take a class--then slide into the rest of the program.

The community college Admissions office will know what you need to do.

Answer 6

Dear xshock:

(and first let me comment that I can relate to your name because my maiden name is Shockey).

First--I'm not sure about this, but I can find out if you need me to--as a home-schooled child, I think you are just entitled to take the SATs...etc...as any other child is (why shouldn't you be?)  So why not take them?  If a college doesn't require them (and several colleges have started to drop them as requirements because they think they are biased), then you haven't lost anything.  (Start with the pre-SATs, etc.  You have nothing to lose that I can see).

But if they DO require them--heck, you may surprise yourself.  You might do as well as the other kids, you may even beat 'em by a mile.  You'll never know unless you try.

DON'T BE AFRAID to seek out your community's high school counsellor for college advice.  They can't force you to go to HS if your state laws allow home schooling, and they're morally obligated to help you , as a student of their community, as best as they can (and I feel confident that they they will want to.  They are NOT your enemies).

My daughter, by the way, got her college degree in graphic design and advertising at San Jose State CA--she's now has a job in graphic design in Manhattan NY

Good luck to you.  My email is [e-mail].

Answer 7

Let me ask you, what do you hope to get from an art college, as an unschooler, that you couldn't get from life? What do you hope to learn? I know unschooling kids that have gotten jobs with Disney, Nintendo, Google, just based on their portfolio and experience. I don't think you need to go to any school to succeed, if you know what you want.

Other people have suggested, and rightfully so, that if you want to work in graphic design, getting a job or starting your own business is really just as appropriate as wasting thousands of dollars in tuition at a college. Build up a good portfolio. Contact someone who's working RIGHT now in what you want to do and ask them to mentor  you. Advertise yourself on Craigslist. You can do this!

Answer 8

You can actually start taking some classes at your local Junior College now to give you a headstart. Yes you do have to take some placement tests to see what classes you can take to start out in, but these are general ed tests. Then you can eventually transfer over to a 4 years as a Junior instead of a freshman, get the experience at the same time, cheaper, take fun courses too along with transfer courses, if you change your major no big deal. This is the route I would take if it were me.

Answer 9

Hi,

Sadly in this day and age everyone wants to see a bit of paper saying you have XYZ qualifications. :(

Alternatively, look into getting a work experience placement in a Graphic design/Photography studio. Basically you work for free, but experience is a massive bonus.

How to get a placement you ask? Search the net for ALL possible relevant places (local) and phone them. Otherwise, look into a work agency to do the work for you.

Good Luck

:)

Answer 10

Our local community college has a wonderful program for photography and graphic arts.   They require a placement test.   If you cannot pass the placement test they will require you to take remedial classes.  

Our state also has a website to help prepare you for college.  I imagine your state has something similar.  I'll give you the link to ours so you can see what they suggest and it might help you prepare.

Thirdly, I'd like to give a personal story of our stepdaughter who graduated from public high school.  She applied for community college and had to take math and language arts classes before she could be accepted into a career training program.    She flunked out of the classes which were merely teaching her basic math and reading skills.   Her high school diploma was nothing more than a piece of paper saying she sat in class for 4 years.

Answer 11

It's time to start looking into schools. More and more schools are looking to attract homeschoolers, so look for those that specifically look for you. Then determine what testing or combination of experience they would prefer. You may find that some of the Art Colleges would be more willing to work with you than a traditional 4 year university.  Good luck!