Hi, I have a question about homeschooling and getting into Ive League schools :)

Colleges & Universities Harvard University
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<p>Hi, y’all :slight_smile:
For a bit of introduction, I moved to the United States last year. I had lived in Korea for 16 years, and when I first came here, my speaking was just miserable.
I had never studied English in Korea, even if Korean students are really required to be good at English. Obviously, I wasn’t a really good student :stuck_out_tongue:
So the reason I decided to move to the U.S. was that I just wanted to be so good at English and to live with better living conditions. Also, I wanted to have a second chance to start all over again since there was already a huge gap between me and others who had been madly into studying. I was about to turn 17 when I started school here, but I went into freshmen. So I’m currently in juniors. I’m effectively using this second chance I’ve been given in my life :slight_smile: I passed all the E.S.L. classes in a year. Right after getting out of E.S.L., I got into a regular Eng class for a semester, and now I’m in AP Lang class. I’m in all the AP classes, which I would NEVER have imagined if I had stayed in my country, and doing well in all the classes I’m taking. It unexpectedly turned out that I’m kind of… talented in English(I also LOVE BIO as much as I do English!!! BIO RULES).</p>

<p>My only problem is I’m EXTREMELY shy. I am really, really shy. I’m just too introverted. :frowning:
I have a social phobia.
I don’t seem to be nervous with the people I feel comfortable being around, but whenever I have to come up and say something in front of people, I just can’t think of a word.
So even if I know a lot, I can’t show it to other people. I know that some people think I’m stupid, but who cares. I’m doing so much better than they do in terms of academics. :frowning:
It’s not that I just slightly get nervous when I present in front of them. I just have an anxiety issue. I get too nervous for small things. For example, I get nervous when I wait for a teacher to call my name for the attendance. I was scared that the ball was gonna come to me and that I wouldn’t be able to hit it right when I was playing volleyball in P.E. I just hate myself… :frowning: I have a lot of good friends, like 30 people, but I am mostly like a wallflower since I’m really quiet. I do better when I read by myself and study what I want to study than I do when I’m forced to do something or to make a presentation in front of people… I know I have to get over this problem, but… I just can’t do it and it’s been ruining my life. :frowning: </p>

<p>My biggest goal is to get into one of the Ivy League schools… It’s not because Ivy League schools are cool or whatever, but I just wanna compete with the most hard working people and challenge myself. OF COURSE, my dream school is Harvard.</p>

<p>To get over this issue, I’m planning to take an acting class. To be more outgoing. I feel like I would be so much better by the time I go to college if I just have time to study by myself and to spend for myself overcoming this difficulty… So I’m thinking of getting homeschooled, and I’m just wondering what you guys think I should do…</p>

<p>Is that really hard to get into Harvard or other Ivy schools if I get homeschooled? I know it’s hard for anyone in the world, but is it absolutely impossible??</p>

<p>Sorry, this thought wouldn’t leave me alone while I was doing my homework, so I’m quickly writing this on this website. It’s my first time posting a thread. Please please excuse all the grammatical mistakes or typos I have made :)</p>

<p>I would greatly appreciate if you can give me some advices :)</p>

<p>THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR READING!!! :wink: <3</p>

<p>P.S. I have taken SAT only once and my score was 2190. I’m planning to take 2 more, and I think I can get at least 2300 :slight_smile: also planning to take at least 3 subject tests, and I will still take AP exams even if I choose to get homeschooled. I think I will take more than 5 AP exams.
I have been a TA for English classes for 2 years and a tutor for elementary students for some months. I have got some community service hours, and I have been in Science Team. I have been recognized in Principal’s honor roll for all the semesters and CSF membership. (I live in California)
I just love reading quietly alone… I’ve read more than 300 books in English since last year. I read ALL THE TIME. I can’t get out of the books.</p>

2

<p>Your Sat seems fine and provided you have decent grades I would be confident that you will get in somewhere good. Top schools love homeschooled kids, so provided everything is in line you should just as good a shot as anyone else. The only thing that will work against you might be your ORM status as a korean.</p>

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<p>Thank you for replying :slight_smile:
I forgot to mention, but I’m a U.S. citizen even if I had lived in Korea (and even if I didn’t know a thing about English lol. My parents went back to Korea right after I was born here since they wanted to live closer to their parents. They couldn’t teach me how to write or talk in English since they were busy, so they felt kinda guilty and decided to move back here for my education).
I thought top schools do not really like homeschoolers. Is it true that they love homeschooled students???
Thanks again!</p>

4

<p>yes they do but even if your a US citizen, you will be considered an ORM</p>

5

<p>I can’t tell–how are you both being homeschooled and taking gym? Possibly I’m not reading closely enough, but I missed it.</p>

<p>PS Your written English is very impressive for how late you started.</p>

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<p>I think it’s a gross exaggeration to say that “top schools love homeschooled kids.” In fact, I think top schools prefer to accept students from organized schools, but there are enough really compelling homeschooled kids that every college accepts several of them each year. Most of whom do a lot of stuff outside their homes, so it’s possible to get a semi-objective sense of where they stand relative to their peers. So it’s far from impossible to get accepted from a homeschool situation.</p>

<p>That said, extreme shyness to the point of “social phobia” is close to a disqualification. One of the things these colleges care deeply about is creating networks among their students and alumni, networks that both advance learning/scholarship and the college’s prestige, and also serve as a platform for supporting the college. Not every student has to be super-outgoing and an incredible leader, but if you can’t participate in the networking the college tried to promote, you are not participating fully in what the college offers.</p>

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<p>Exultationsy-- I don’t think I mentioned “gym” up there… did I? I’m sorry, haha :wink: I guess you’re probably pointing at “an acting class.” I was talking about going to an acting school. Sorry if it’s the one that created confusion :stuck_out_tongue: and thank u :)</p>

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<p>JHS-- yes. I’m trying hard to get over this issue but it seems really impossible for me to get away from this monster :frowning: yeah, I was slightly confused since I thought only a few homeschooled students got into top colleges… I really have to give a deep thought to it :slight_smile: thank you for your comment! ;)</p>

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<p>As an introvert myself, I can assure you of two things:</p>

<ul>
<li><p>You’re not going to change yourself into an extrovert, but</p></li>
<li><p>You can adjust to the point most people will think you are one</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Introversion is rooted in where your inner life is focused and how you motivate and energize yourself, but it is <em>not</em> a congenital inability to relate and connect with people.</p>

<p>It was doing theater that got me out of my shell. I did more backstage tech work than acting, but I did a little acting too. And being in a tight-knit community like that really opened me up to other people.</p>

<p>Maybe there is a community theater group you could join. Or you could do what my friend E did and join Toastmasters, which is a group that builds people’s skills in public speaking, presentations, and group discussion. They have a Youth Leadership Program that many chapters offer for younger participants. It could be a great way for you to build some confidence and skill in social situations. [Toastmasters</a> International - Youth Leadership Program](<a href=“http://www.toastmasters.org/Members/MemberExperience/SatellitePrograms/YouthLeadership.aspx]Toastmasters”>Toastmasters International -Community-Based Programs)</p>

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<p>I think Exultationsy is talking about your fear of not hitting the ball right in P.E. (gym). She also did not realize that you said you are “thinking” of being homeschooled. I have to echo JHS’s comments that being extremely shy will be a major roadblock to you being accepted at top colleges. It will be hard for you to get stellar recommendations if your recommenders aren’t seeing you as not just bright but also a natural leader. </p>

<p>FWIW, the idea that you want to retreat into solitude in order to work on overcoming your shyness by yourself doesn’t seem like a really good plan to me. You seem like a very talented, hardworking kid with a lot to offer. Your confidence and shyness will improve as you get older just believe in yourself and let it happen. We all like you! :)</p>

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<p>Thanks, Falcon1. I, too, completely missed that the OP was only thinking about maybe being homeschooled.</p>

<p>OP: I think that would be a bad choice, but I want to be clear about my advice, because it’s the same advice I would give to anyone who desperately wants to go to Harvard.</p>

<p>The long odds on getting into Harvard (or Yale, Stanford, Princeton, wherever) should not stop you from trying, but they should stop you from selling yourself out in any way to make yourself look like what you imagine the Harvard admissions department wants. Short of movie stars and sports stars – real stars, not just local heros – absolutely no one has more than a distant chance to get accepted at Harvard. If you do things you don’t love because you think they will help you get into Harvard, the most likely outcome is that you wind up bitter and angry someplace other than Harvard. If, instead, you do what excites you, challenges you, makes you into the kind of person you really admire, makes you want to get up in the morning and get at it . . . then, if you don’t get into Harvard, you will still be excited and engaged and smart, and in the long run that, not Harvard, is what will ensure your success and happiness. And that should be your goal – success and happiness in the long run – not admission to Harvard. But the added bonus of taking that approach is that it gives you a better chance of getting into Harvard – just a “better” chance, not all the way to a good chance – than you would get by trying to turn yourself into what high schoolers think is the best Harvard candidate.</p>

<p>Do what will make you into a good person, and you will be a guaranteed winner, with or without Harvard. Do what you think other people think is appropriate and . . . well, you won’t be a guaranteed loser, because plenty of people survive that and grow out of it, but you will definitely have some dark days.</p>