At the University of Utah, home-schooled students must meet several criteria for admission, including a transcript that has been certified by the State Board of Education, a composite score of 23 or higher on the ACT and a passing score on the GED of at least 550.

That GED requirement also ensures students are at least 18 years old or that their high school class has graduated, because younger students are not allowed to take the test in Utah, noted Carolyn Dyson, associate director of admissions at the U.

"We've found a good success rate with these standards for home schoolers. A lot of our home-schooled students are bright and do very well here," she said. "But some are just not prepared for the rigor of the classroom, and they're just not ready for it."

Dyson said she'd be hesitant to change those standards and is especially opposed to recently proposed legislation that would have allowed home-schooled students to get a high school diploma if they scored within the top 15 percent of students on the ACT.

The measure, which had no age restrictions, failed during this year's legislative session.

"If they start giving home-schooled students diplomas, we'll challenge it," she said.

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Contributing: Tiffany Erickson and Erin Stewart