This article is adapted from Davidson Institute’s student version of “Early College – Considering the Options: A Guidebook for Investigating Early College Entrance”, part of our collection of free guidebooks for gifted and 2e families. For a deeper dive into supporting your gifted or twice-exceptional child, we encourage you to explore the full guide.
Early college entrance requires as much, if not more, step-by-step preparation as traditional college entrance. Following are some special steps you may want to take if you are considering this option for advanced education.
In general:
- As you advance in your studies, draft an educational plan that incorporates short and long-term goals. Initially, these goals may be more general and flexible than those that develop over the next few years.
- Work with parents and instructors to get a clear picture of your academic strengths and challenges. In what areas do you excel? In what areas might you need some additional support?
- As you proceed through your secondary studies, keep careful records of what you have accomplished. This is particularly important if you are pursuing homeschooling, secondary program courses online, and/or independent studies. Be sure that you include these records as part of your early college entrance application.
- During your seventh grade year, or the equivalent, enroll in the talent search for your region. This requires application by October or November and taking the SAT or ACT in January. This will give you excellent feedback about your intellectual readiness to attack college-level work.
- If your region allows enrollment for a talent search at the eighth grade level, or the equivalent, you may wish to repeat your participation.
Two years before you plan to enter college as a full-time student:
- Begin working through the Early College Entrance Guidebook
- In October, take the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (also know as the Preliminary SAT/PSAT) to try to qualify for a National Merit Scholarship. If you qualify as a semi-finalist, you will take the SAT the following fall. You can take the PSAT again the following year unless you are a high-school senior. If you qualify as a National Merit semi-finalist during your senior year, you will take the SAT as a college freshman and may lose a year of eligibility.
- Begin intensive study of the possible colleges you are considering, following the guidelines we have described.
- Arrange to visit campuses this year and find out whether you might be considered. If so, find out what specific arrangements might be required if you have not graduated from high school.
- Chart your courses so that you will be able to complete as many of the requirements for the colleges of your choice as possible. For example, you should include math through the beginning year of calculus, at least two laboratory sciences, several years of foreign language study, and as much English and history as possible.
- If you have taken any AP or IB classes, take the associated exams in May.
- Develop a financial plan. Consider all potential options and begin investigating them. Keep detailed information on your findings in a central location so that you can compare and contrast options as needed.
During the summer before your last pre-college year:
Accumulate and organize college applications by due dates. Also, you may want to devise a system to prioritize applications based on your interest and goodness of fit.
Become familiar with the information required in the applications. Start thinking about how you can best answer any essay or personal information questions. Collect any additional information needed, such as transcripts, community service hours, etc.
- Arrange to take a college class at an institution near you, or enroll if possible in a summer program on a college campus, preferably one of the colleges you are considering (even if it is a pre-college class)
- Spend the summer engaged in a distinctive job or project that will not only help you mature but also help to highlight your special interests and personal qualifications.
During the fall of your last pre-college year:
- Take the SAT or ACT as required by the college(s) you are considering, as well as any subject-matter achievement tests required.
- Start the application process early. Begin the first drafts of the required essays in October or earlier, so that you will have plenty of time to revise them.
- If any of your applications require references, contact the people you have in mind early in the process so that they have time to write an excellent and thoughtful reference for you.
- Prepare information required of other applicants, along with whatever else the admissions office has asked you to provide to substantiate your special requests.
- If you are missing any of the required courses or qualifications for admission, submit your application well before the deadline so that it may be reviewed by any special committees that consider exceptions.
- Consider some form of dual enrollment during this year – taking one course at a time at the college level, for example, in addition to your secondary-level studies.
- Again, in May, take AP or IB exams associated with the courses you have taken.
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