<p>I’m a homeschooled junior. I went to school until 7th grade, so all of my high school classes have been online or through books. I’m definitely either Commended or a NMSF (won’t know which until September), and my test scores (SAT ii, PSAT, AP, SAT, etc.) are all in the 85-99th percentile range. I don’t know if any of this really helps when applying to an Ivy, though.
I also started rowing this year, after quitting competitive swimming (which I did for six years), and even though I’m still a novice I’m doing pretty well. I did my first 2k a few weeks ago and got a sub-8 minute time. I’m training a lot and I have a pretty good shot at making the varsity boat next year. Is rowing a big sport at Princeton? I know their womens team does well, but does it help at all in the admissions process to be a rower?
Will any of this help me in the admissions process? Will being homeschooled hurt me, or will it be to my advantage? I know homeschool applications get looked at in a different system at most schools because they’re not your classic transcript, but is that a good or a bad thing?</p>
<p>Unless you’re recruited, being on the crew team is much like any other varsity sport. It doesn’t stand out as something spectacular, but it does help you as would any other strong EC.</p>
<p>If you combine the rosters from every squad–HW men, LW men, Open women, LW women, then the aggregate number of people totals near 200. I would say that that’s quite large. It may not be a huge spectator sport, but generally rowers don’t have a problem with that.</p>
<p>You should contact coaches at colleges you’re targeting and inform them of your times (do you have erg times?). See where it takes you. It can’t hurt.</p>
<p>My last (and first ever) 2k erg was a few weeks ago and I got a 7:56.
My next one is coming up in a few weeks and I’m aiming for a 7:50. I’m on the average/smaller side, so from what I can tell I’ll be a lightweight when I get to college. Are lightweights recruited as much as open/heavyweights?</p>
<p>Try to get it at 7:45 or below. That’s recruitable to less competitive programs. At 7:40 or below you could probably take your pick of the women’s lw squads and some openweight ones would want you as well (weight-adjusted 2k time would blow some girls’ out of the water)</p>
<p>It also depends on how many homeschoolers applied. Is that number the percentage of homeschoolers who applied that were accepted? Most of the other homeschooled juniors/seniors that I know start taking community college classes around 10th grade, and are pretty happy with just graduating from cc. A few will transition into State school, but not many. I’m not saying there aren’t other homeschoolers applying to the Ivy Leagues – I know there are – I’m just saying the 2% accepted might be out of, you know, the 3% of applicants that were actually homeschooled.</p>
<p>We don’t know the number of home schoolers who applied, and I haven’t seen Princeton give numbers on this in the past. Amherst college for several years did, with the number accepted. They still may, I don’t know. For the years I followed it, the home school admissions rate tended to be the same, or sometimes higher, as that of other applicants.
At Princeton I can tell you that my home schooled daughter was one of 4 enrolled in the class of 2011, and there appear to have been 4 enrolled in the class of 2014 (0.3% of the class, according to Princeton figures). There was a Daily Princetonian article in recent years implying that the number was usually higher, and the Admissions Director commented that my daughter was “one of only four” in her class, meaning, I thought, that this number was lower than usual. I know another young woman from my neighborhood who also home schooled and is the class of 2013.
To me, if there is an advantage to home schooling in the application process it is the opportunity to devote time to one pursuit- with you rowing. In my daughter’s case it was ballet (admitted to and attended the School of American Ballet), in the case of the other neighborhood gal it was the saber (won national tournaments). She is now kicking butt on the Princeton fencing team.
Both used unusual educational frameworks. Most people would describe my daughter as unschooled. She took no courses at home or anywhere else, and never had assignments or grades. The other young woman was tutored somewhat as they do at Oxford. Her parents hired PhD students from the University of Chicago to tutor her, alone or with one or two others, for one hour a week, usually for $15 to $20 a shot. One hour of tutoring, several hours a week of reading or doing problem sets. Both methods seem to have been okay by Princeton.<br>
My daughter’s first year roommate was a recruited rower and frankly it was easy to tell she wasn’t an “academic” admit. I’m not sure how the saber champ is doing, but she commented to me that Princeton was “hard”. My daughter is toward the top of her Princeton class and works at it, but with quite an active social life. She amazes me.
Most people will advise home schoolers to take outside courses, take APs, etc., to demonstrate the ability to do college work. To me that is just going to put you in the pool with everybody else and isn’t any fun either. I’ve got a minority opinion on this.
Best of luck to you!</p>