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How Colleges View Online High Schools Compared to Traditional High Schools
Many learners benefit from online high schools. Usually, these students are self-motivated and have good reading comprehension skills because much of the syllabus’s instructional modality is delivered via reading. Growing technology has affected all sectors as well as our education system. Given that today’s young people not only favor technology but are addicted to it, the very concept of online schooling has made learning more enticing and systematic than never before.
Online high schools have now gone typical. Online schooling might soon become the new traditional learning system! After completing online high schools, students have to proceed with their studies in colleges and universities. And this is where learners are at crossroads whether colleges would accept their online high school diplomas.
Joining college is already tough enough; acceptances are usually left to the discretion of admissions officers, who might be looking for reasons to reject an applicant. Some might be hesitant to attend an online high school because of the concern that a college admissions officer may not perceive the school as a “real” school.
Nevertheless, colleges typically do not differentiate between traditional high schools and online high schools. Most admissions requirements are similar irrespective of school credit hours: Credit hours for math, languages, science, and electives. It’s hard even to find mention of online high schools on college admissions pages.
Nevertheless, homeschoolers are mentioned and openly welcomed, even at respected colleges. What actually matters to the admissions department is whether or not the online high school is regionally accredited.
It’s only then that college admissions officers will begin looking at the request itself. They look for a hard high school curriculum, which can be had at an online high school that provides electives not found in traditional high schools, such as life sciences, digital arts, or even Latin.
They will need to see strong grades that trend upward, demonstrating that the learner is a hard worker. In this situation, an online high school may work well for a learner who has struggled in a traditional high school since the student is able to focus on coursework and raise his or her grades. Additionally, they will look at work or out-of-school experiences, something that some online high school learners have because of athletic training schedules, employment, or auditions.
Also, the admissions essay is something that college admissions officers are concerned about. For learners or parents worried that an online high school will be an automatic strike against them, the admission essay is a good place to eliminate those concerns by stressing the challenging curriculum, the discipline acquired from attending an online high school, as well as how it allowed the learner to overcome a challenge or be a stronger member of the society.
As long as the online high school is regionally accredited, that is what will matter to the college admissions officer. What matters more are test scores, grades, as well as other factors that illustrate how the learner will be a good fit at the college.
Are Online High School Bad for Colleges?
For some, online high schools appear almost too good to be true. After all, you get to be at home, do lessons when you want to do them, and you usually have more choices. Thus, there has to be a catch, right?
No, there is no catch. But that does not stop individuals from making up some negative reasons. One common anxiety is that online high school looks terrible when you are applying to college or attempting to look for an employment opportunity. Or it does count but does not look as good as a traditional high school would be.
Does Online High School Have an Impact on College?
Typically, colleges do not differentiate between traditional high schools and online high schools. Though, homeschoolers are mentioned and openly welcomed, even at respected colleges. What actually matters to the admissions department is the accreditation of the online high school.
Next, the question is, why is online high school better? One reason why online education is better than a classroom is that you will not have the pressure of being needed to keep your study at the pace set in the classroom. Online high school also offers you the opportunity to work toward your diploma with personal freedom and comfort, which you would not have with traditional classroom attendance.
Can You Be Admitted to College from Online School?
There is a catch: to be widely accepted; a diploma must come from an online school with accreditation from the proper regional board in the United States. As long as this is covered, colleges should accept diplomas from online learning schools in the similar way they accept diplomas from brick-and-mortar traditional schools. If a student is from an accredited online high school, then he or she will be admitted to college by the admission board.
ARE ONLINE HIGH SCHOOLS ACCREDITED?
Online high schools can be accredited just as traditional high school institutions can be. But that accreditation is not just by the regional body that gets you into college. The regional accrediting bodies are what college admissions boards look at, though national bodies may be used to assess if a school truly qualifies as an online high school or not.
ARE ONLINE HIGH SCHOOLS REGIONALLY ACCREDITED?
The answer to this question is still yes. As long as the online high school has regional accreditation, then that is all colleges care about. There have been some reports of colleges being wary of accepting an online high school diploma, but those schools had unrecognized accreditation.
In addition, while many online high schools are nationally accredited, that is separate and does not mean that it is accepted by every college. The federal government has a list of recognized accrediting bodies for colleges.
CAN ONLINE HIGH SCHOOLS GET YOU INTO COLLEGE?
Many people worry that because they are not going to a traditional brick-and-mortar high school, their diplomas will not be good enough for college. This is false. A diploma from an accredited online high school will get you into any college you want to attend.
The other question that many students wonder about is whether or not they can go to the same college as their friends. This is almost always possible, though it just depends on the college and how they handle online students.
WHAT ABOUT ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE LESSONS?
Online high school diplomas are legitimate because you have completed all the same courses that a traditional high school student would complete. Thus, even if your school only offers online high school courses and not traditional ones, you can still get into college.
ARE ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL GRADES ACCEPTED IN HIGH SCHOOL?
If a student has completed all the courses necessary to graduate in an online high school that is accepted by the colleges he or she wants to attend, then yes his or her online high school grades will be accepted by the previous schools.
Schools still require that transcripts come in from another accredited source, but as long as the transcript is a grade-by-grade listing of classes and final GPA, then they do not need to see any papers.
WHAT ABOUT COLLEGE FOR HOMESCHOOLERS?
Even homeschoolers are able to take advantage of online high schools. Many online high schools will accept a homeschool diploma as an entry into the school, and if they don’t, your transfer credits might just be enough for graduation with no other coursework necessary.
WHAT IS AN ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA WORTH?
An online high school diploma is just as valuable, if not more so than a traditional school diploma. You have completed all the same courses that any student at any other high school would complete. Thus you are able to receive credit towards your degree and continue into college. So it doesn’t matter what type of school you have graduated from, only that you do so with a diploma from an accredited program.
CAN ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES ATTEND COLLEGE?
Many students ask if they can go to college even though their high schools are online. The answer is yes; just because the school is online does not mean it cannot get you into a college degree program. Just make sure your online high school is accredited by the regionally recognized body, and you will be good to go.
SUCCESS STORIES
These success stories are of students who were able to find grants, scholarships or financial aid from their state to help them pay for online high school education. Some used federal grants and others used state-specific programs. The common theme across all these stories is that the students wanted to take online high school courses, but they worried about the cost. However, by researching their options they were able to find some money to help offset the cost of going an online high school.
The grant program that helped most of these students was the Gear-Up Program, which is sponsored through the Department of Education. The purpose of this grant is to help improve college readiness and completion rates for disadvantaged students from low-income families. One key factor in determining whether or not a student qualifies is enrollment in a course at an accredited school. So if you are on a low income, in an underperforming school, and want to take online high school courses, then look into the Gear-Up Program.
IS ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL A GOOD IDEA?
Your best bet for finding out if you should consider online high school is to talk with your guidance counselor. While it may seem like there is a stigma attached to online courses, there really isn’t one. As long as your school is accredited by the right organization for your state (see below), then you will be able to get into college and graduate with the same type of diploma that any other student would receive.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF COMPLETING ONLINE HIGH SCHOOL?
There are numerous benefits to completing an online high school education. The biggest benefit for many students is that they do not have to leave their homes during the day and can still go to school. Some students might love interacting with other people all day, but an online high school has a lot of benefits aside from just staying home. The fact that you can learn at your own pace is a huge benefit that cannot be overlooked. With an online high school, if you’re having trouble with a concept, you can take more time to master it instead of falling behind and losing focus on the rest of the class.
Other benefits include not commuting to school every day, being able to earn college credit for classes, and being able to mix subjects together in order to make a more cohesive class. This last benefit is rarely offered at traditional high schools, but it makes sense when you think about how your real life will be when you are an adult.