@Hoggirl , you are absolutely correct. But exchange programs, for example, often are for high school kids, including ones who just graduated. Repeating senior year, in another language and with a college acceptance in hand, could be great!
And there are also kids who devote themselves full time to a sport or some other EC for a year between college and high school.
Why would you not want her to attend due to her age? That’s quite an ageist and prejudice statement. Its maturity that matters, not age.
Dealing with children is not an “ageist” issue- that is for adults. Being gifted implies discordance with age. Parents do wonder if their acdemically qualified child will have the life experience and maturity to handle the college setting. Some of us with experiences with gifted (ahead of age for grade) children can offer reassurance about the college experience. The social experience depends on the child. There are various types of maturity- social is merely one.
OP- let your child go to a real, top tier college (state flagships count) instead of messing with community college. The college experience is different for every student. Your gifted student will never be a typical college student regardless of age- needs to be with academic peers. I can’t think of any “gap year” experience that will be a substitute for continuing the academic classes available at a four year college. Also, when we thought about options, there were none that were good for an underage child that could excel in the university environment with its challenging honors classes. No reason to halt forward momentum with learning. Let her (finally) take those high end college classes and don’t mess with the lower ones anymore.
The OP has not been back since posting, but for other readers who might be weighing these sorts of options, here is a perspective that I didn’t see shared in the thread. We don’t allow our kids to graduate early for multiple reasons, but by not graduating early, they have been more competitive for scholarships and longer term objectives (like grad school). This is probably not that important for a student planning on terminating their higher ed at a BS in engineering, but for other fields, it can matter.
One of our kids was accelerated in math and physics. He dual enrolled at the local universities during high school b/c he was beyond CC levels. He graduated from high school having completed multiple 300 level math and physics courses. The additional time during high school essentially had a snowball effect. He was more competitive when he applied to summer programs during high school and attended SSP. He was more competitive when he applied to REUs as an UG and received multiple excellent offers every yr he applied. He was able to take grad level courses as an UG. All together those made him more competitive for grad school when he applied. Attending a lower rank school on full scholarship did not negatively impact his grad school applications.
Our dd studied her interests to a high level, competed regionally and internationally, and was on a US olympiad team. This experience would not have been open to her if she had graduated early. She also received scholarship awards (several with special program incentives as well) from every university she applied to. Recently she decided to pursue new 5th yr accelerated masters program her U is starting. She will be the first student in the program.
Every situation is different, but there can be pros to not graduating early if there is a way for students to keep progressing in their studies. I know both of my kids would not have been anywhere near as competitive for scholarships and other opportunities they have received as UGs if they had graduated when they could have creditwise.
17 is probably fine, but she’s going to feel like a misfit. Being a minor, it’s going to be harder making friends. want to College at 16…no. College at 15…hahahah!
This. It’s not a huge deal to go one year early but can be and without providing much advantage. If she is this smart, next year she can get full ride and DE credit at many schools in Texas. If she has enough credit, she can graduate college in 3 years and use one year scholarship for double major or masters. That’s an average solution for high achievers but you know her better than any of us so decide what seems right to you.
“The gifted are different” is a direct quote from a poem from one I was introduced to while part of a parents committee for gifted and talented of our local school district of many years ago. Don’t laugh at the younger than 16 college students. They can have a rich social life as well as be advanced academically- ask a current neighbor.
This student already IS a misfit. She has not yet found her peer group because there are too few like her in a typical HS or community college. It is most refreshing to finally be with people you can talk with on the same level. It doesn’t matter what age you are, if you are gifted (even lower end) you do not fit in with your agemates. One size does not fit all. It is so much easier for those in that huge portion of the Bell curve. Most college bound HS students do not fit the profile of those who are attending classes outside their school. Those of you who stay in the HS do not interact with them. What are they missing by waiting to get their HS diploma?
College students who take the advanced and honors classes are not hung up on a student’s age. Outside the classroom the social life at any school is varied based on many factors. Top college students, regardless of age, are more serious about academics and not as into the mundane activities so many are. The cliques and other social life atmosphere of HS does not exist in college.
I could continue.
btw- spending another year taking classes as she has been doing and aiming for a more academically regarded school could be an advantage intellectually. I’ve avoided the “why Arkansas” question.
Oh- an anecdote from the past. When son was in 5th grade or so he had an older also gifted friend/classmate that he spent time with. I once asked the boy’s mother why he enjoyed playing with my younger son. She replied it was more fun for her son to interact with my son because of the similar intellectual level than with the more average same age boy closer to home. Even playing the card game Uno was a different experience.
Fast forward. The relative age difference in college is far less. A 21 year old could be in the same class as an 18 year old (or younger). A gifted student likely is much more able to process things that go over the head/are unnoticed by a bright kid. Imagine a college bound kid being required to spend their days with the well below average students. Frustrating when no one else “gets it”.
So a friend of our son went to an accelerated 7/8 grade program. He was done credit wise with high school at 16. He had like 3 credits to go or something like that. He applied to some program in Germany for high school. He learned German, according to him, in 3 months. All classes were taught in German. It was a great experience for him. The next year he spent a year in China (maybe not the best plan right now) and spent a year at an American high school school taught in English.
He was able to actually graduate with his class in the states and just started UChicago on a free ride this year.
So there are options out there like these and these were applied for and complete free rides.
But if only one year early to me that’s just not that big of a deal but of course if she is a “young” seventeen then maybe no. Having her join Wise or the like might be helpful so she’s around “her” people.
Our kids have found wonderful peer groups on their large flagship campuses.
BUT, equally, I do wonder why the race forward to UArk. Why UArk? Is it a school that has been on the student’s radar for a long time? Are there specific programs at the school that are not available elsewhere? If the only draw is being able to graduate early and attend, long term that might be a big let down. I would only even consider it for our kids if the U offered something specific that is pulling in that direction (and not simply choice of default for early graduation.) Have other schools’ programs been researched and compared? Honors specialty programs? UG research options? Co-op/internship options? Is it clearly the right program for her compared to a wider array of options?