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Does Homeschooling Prepare You for College?

by Cheri Stutzman | Jun 20, 2019 | 3 min read

You and your high school senior have worked hard through high school. They know how to solve a quadratic equation and that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. They can do research and create a logical argument for a paper. But still you wonder: is that enough?

For a lot of homeschool parents and soon-to-be-graduates, a big question on their minds is whether they are going to be prepared for college.

My parents had the same question. But we discovered that homeschooling taught valuable lessons that pushed me to do well in college.

Homeschooling Taught Me Responsibility and Discipline

My mom is rather proud of the fact that by the time her children were in middle school they were self-learners, taking themselves through challenging high school classes without relying on a teacher’s instruction. For us as students, that meant a lot of initiative and responsibility on our part to finish our daily work without the instruction of a teacher or a parent. Homeschooling taught me that keeping up with my work and making sure I stayed on track was my responsibility, not the responsibility of my teachers.

When I got into college, I was thrown into a whirlwind of syllabi, deadlines, and long lists of assignments that needed to be done by the end of the week. But having the experience of getting work done on my own, without waiting for a professor’s instruction, helped me conquer even the toughest classes and the busiest weeks.

Homeschooling Taught Me to Love Learning

As a homeschooler, the world was my classroom, and that developed in me a love for learning. I wasn’t stuck in a classroom listening to a teacher, rather I had the opportunity to learn what I wanted the way I wanted. I started to love learning not just the subjects I enjoyed, but other subjects as well.

That love for learning served me well in college. It made me want to learn the most I could in each class and not shy away from a challenging course just because it wasn’t part of my major or a topic that interested me.

Homeschooling Taught Me How To Write

Most college classes include some form of writing, whether that’s writing a speech for your speech class or writing up a lab for a biology class. Even if your teen is thinking of studying engineering, biology, art, or any other major based on tests or projects rather than papers,

they are going to have to write. Making sure your senior knows how to put together a proper sentence and craft a well-written paper will help them go far in college and beyond.

This is something my mom worked on endlessly with me. She made sure I knew how to write an effective hook to draw readers in, how to switch up my sentence openers, and how to write in active voice. Because of her diligence, I entered college prepared for the mass of papers that was thrown my way.

 Homeschooling Prepared Me Socially

One of the biggest stereotypes people have about homeschoolers is that they are socially awkward. There have been countless times when I told someone I was homeschooled and they gave me an incredulous look that said, “Really? I would’ve never guessed!”

Homeschooling teaches you to interact with all kinds of people. You learn to get to know people who might be a little different than you, or have different beliefs. You learn how to talk to, and communicate with, adults who have been teaching you on a one-on-one basis your entire life.

Going into college able to interact with people from all walks of life allows your teen to communicate well with the people around them. They’re not as intimidated by their professors and know how to make friends with that quiet, shy girl who lives down the hall. And while there are going to be things they will have to learn and adjust to–I certainly had to–they will, most likely, enter into college with the social skills needed to make friends and communicate well.

So, did homeschooling prepare me well for college? Yes, yes, and yes! It taught me important lessons that helped me overcome even the hardest tasks and problems I faced.

For the parent who is wondering if all the hard work they and their teenager put into school was enough…take a deep breath.

It was.

Cheri Stutzman
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