It is helpful for students to have some sort of cohesive transcript that articulates the courses the student has taken, who taught the courses, and grades received. Typically these are organized either by subject matter or year taken. Sometimes families also include some type of reading list or shortened syllabus that outlines the philosophy of the homeschooling program and what is studied in the courses. Most competitive applicants to highly selective colleges have some coursework that is taken outside the home and independently graded, either in a homeschooling collective, online, through a local college, etc.

Students typically need to submit recommendations from a high school counselor as well as 1-2 teachers. In many cases a parent will submit a recommendation that is more of an outline of the schooling philosophy and approach in lieu of a counselor recommendation. It is very helpful if additional recommendations come from someone outside of the home who knows the student, such as an outside teacher or tutor, volunteer mentor, etc.

We encourage homeschooling families to recognize that the optional process is open to all, but the SAT or ACT can be very helpful external verification of their readiness for college. AP tests are a more flexible concept; since these are really meant more as a capstone for students who have taken an AP curriculum course, unless your student is taking an AP designated course, these are at your discretion. ​​​​​​​ ​​​​​​​

Students need to have some pathway to an accredited high school graduation or equivalency to be able to attend WashU. Your student should be on track to obtain some kind of independently verified high school diploma or, in rare circumstances, take and pass the GED exam to be eligible to attend WashU and most other universities. This does not need to happen before they apply, but they should apply in the academic year they expect to receive their diploma and be on track to receive it before they matriculate to college.