Admissions

Home-Schooled Students

Lake Forest College is very interested in having home-schoolers apply for admission.  Home-schooled applicants clearly demonstrate their love of learning and potential contributions to the college community.

We value the strength of the academic curriculum and the student's performance, in the context of the learning environment. In this regard, because there is not a traditional transcript for most home-schoolers, please be certain to provide the following information:

• Course descriptions and the names of textbooks used in study.
• Description of how daily study/learning time is spent.    
• List of books read for coursework, as well as for pleasure.
• Descriptions of academic interests and any special projects or field
  trips related to this interest.   
• Standardized test scores (either the ACT/SAT is required and the SAT II tests are recommended)

We don't require home-schoolers to have a certified diploma or a GED, but students must meet our admission course requirements.  They include 4 years of English, 3 years of math (through Algebra 2), 2 years of science (including 1 year of lab science), 3 years of social science and we recommend the study of a foreign language.  We also require a graded paper with our application, but will usually ask home-schoolers to submit a few samples of their writing, including a research paper.  The ACT or SAT should be taken more than once (i.e. at the end of the "junior" year and in the "senior year") as well.

We strongly recommend an interview.  Whether it is on campus with a member of our admission staff, at an off-campus site, or with a local alum, meeting you is very helpful to us.   Having the opportunity to meet you face to face and learn about your educational history and goals, as well as your potential contribution to our community is an important aspect of the admission process.

Home-schoolers are eligible for both academic and talent-based/alumni scholarships.