Member Question: Should we graduate high school earlier than usual?

A Texas parent asks: “Hello. I am new here and to full homeschool in general… In a nut shell, my daughter is THRIVING in her online high school curriculum… We want to allow her full homeschool to give her control over her pace as she would like to graduate earlier and have control over her personal schedule. She is very disciplined and we know it’s the right move for her.”

This is a popular question, and while it was asked inside our Texas HS4CC Facebook group, it applies to all of our families in all of our states, so I wanted to take a moment to share the answer with everyone.

WHEN your teen graduates high school matters in how their college credit is handled by future target colleges.

College credit earned AFTER high school is treated differently than college credit earned DURING high school. Everything earned DURING high school is exempt from being “counted” as transfer credit by her target college. This means that it is possible to graduate high school with BOAT LOADS of college credit (even an associate degree) and still apply to college as a first time freshman admission as well as FAFSA financial aid.

This strategy is used by parents whose teens might be eligible for added perks reserved for freshman (priority admissions, housing, scholarships, clubs, etc.)

If that sounds like something you might pursue, it is to your advantage NOT to graduate her from high school “early” and instead just do a normal 4 years but bring college credit into your homeschool and allow her to work on her diploma while accumulating lots of college credit. Hope that helps!

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If you’re not already in your state’s Homeschooling for College Credit Facebook support group, you’re missing access to great local resources that could help your success.