Homeschool benefits: Austin Community College
Austin Community College covers three consecutive years of credit tuition and general fees for qualifying homeschool graduates, or five years for an ACC bachelor's degree. Your student must live in the ACC service area and complete homeschool between spring 2024 and August 2028; out-of-district fees still apply.
Who qualifies
Completes homeschool in the service area
Your student must successfully finish a homeschool program in the Austin Community College (ACC) service area between spring 2024 and August 2028.
Lives in the service area
ACC checks your address and graduation date. Living in the service area outside the voting district qualifies your student for free tuition but leaves an out-of-district fee.
Meets college placement requirements
New students take the Texas Success Initiative assessment before registration unless exempt or already complete. Full-time enrollment is not required.
What it is worth
ACC's Free Tuition pilot table lists $0 for qualifying in-district students and a $201 per-credit out-of-district fee.
- 3 credit hours
- $0 / $603
- 6 credit hours
- $0 / $1,206
- 9 credit hours
- $0 / $1,809
- 12 credit hours
- $0 / $2,412
- 15 credit hours
- $0 / $3,015
These figures exclude additional course fees and other attendance costs.
From applying to keeping it
- Before registration
Apply to ACC
Submit the college application and complete required placement steps.
- After admission
Register for classes
ACC automatically removes qualifying tuition after registration; there is no extra Free Tuition application.
- First fall after completion
Begin the benefit
The exemption starts in the first fall semester following homeschool completion.
- When you review your bill
Pay remaining costs
Your account still shows out-of-district charges and other costs that the benefit does not cover.
What it pays for
Covered
- Credit tuition
- General fees
Not covered
- Out-of-district fees
- Lab fees
- Classroom supplies
- Textbooks
Good to know
Completing homeschool in the service area qualifies
Completing a homeschool program in the service area within the spring 2024 to August 2028 window is an explicit eligibility route. ACC also requires your student to live in its service area.
Outside the voting district, ACC costs $201 per credit hour
A qualifying student outside the voting district owes $201 per credit hour, plus any excluded course or attendance costs.
Who to contact
The recruitment team helps you with admission and Free Tuition eligibility.
Homeschool rules and statewide help in Texas
You do not have to file a homeschool notice to the state.
Texas sets these rules:
- Subjects: Instruction in Texas must include reading, spelling, grammar, math, and good citizenship.
- Testing: No routine annual homeschool standardized test is required. UIL participation and public-school transfer can have separate testing requirements.
- Records: Texas does not require homeschool records, but keeping them is recommended.
- Teachers: Texas does not require homeschool parents to hold a teaching certificate.
Texas also has an education savings account that home-educated students can use.
- The Texas Education Freedom Account (TEFA) awards $2,000 a year to selected home-education students for approved expenses. Applications for 2026-27 closed March 31, 2026; families who missed that cycle can join the 2027-28 interest list.
Read the Texas homeschooling guide See statewide programs in Texas
Questions parents ask
- Must my student attend full time?
- No. ACC allows eligible students to use the program with a part-time course load.
- Do we have to repay the tuition if my student leaves?
- No. ACC does not require repayment of the Free Tuition benefit, even if your student does not finish a program. Separate financial aid can have repayment rules for withdrawals or failing grades.
- Can other financial aid help with books?
- Yes. ACC says financial aid and scholarships can be added to help with textbooks, fees and other college or living costs.
Turn support into your child’s next lesson
College classes can cover part of high school. We teach the subjects your child needs alongside them, starting at the right level in each subject.
$149/month per child after the trial.
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