Transcripts: year or subject? letter or number grade?

[Kim in SouthGa]

I have looked at tons of samples, and I can't figure out if there is a preference among colleges as to whether classes are listed by year or subject. Also, should I put letter or number grade or both? I have seen it both ways, so I'm not sure.

Thanks

[Storm Bay]

Have you checked out the information each college has for homeschooled applicants? They may make it more clear. However, it varies from college to college. There are homeschoolers who have done it both ways. The only reasons I can see for doing it by course rather than by year are a. if your dc is doing high school level courses prior to that & you need the credits or b. your dc is going to go to college at a young age.

 

What I suggest is finding a way to track it so that you can make transcripts either way depending on what colleges want. Definitely record your course descriptions & what you use as colleges will want some or both of those. I have to say that since dd's ps took enough of her homeschooled freshman courses & put them on her ps transcript to give her enough credits toward graduation, I haven't sent in her homeschool transcript, although I probably should have since her GPA reflects my grades. However, I did record that information at the time, since we were planning for her to homeschool all the way through (which would have been the best academically, but was wreaking havoc for our family & for our relationship).

[Lori D.]

BEST if you can talk to the admissions officer at each college your student wants to apply to and tailor a transcript especially for each the way they would like to see it.

 

 

I can't figure out if there is a preference among colleges as to whether classes are listed by year or subject.

 

 

JMO! But, unless the college requests "by year", *I* would list by subject because that is the fastest/easiest way for admissions officers to see how many credits were earned in each subject area, which is one of the big things they are looking for re: subjects.

 

Otherwise, they have to take the extra time to hunt through each year and figure out how many credits/partial credits count towards each separate subject area. So, my thought is: make as easy as possible for the "gatekeeper" of the school your student wants to attend to open that gate and let your student in! ;)

 

 

Also, should I put letter or number grade or both?

 

Again, bottom line, make it as simple/easy as possible for the admissions officer. As far as letter or number grade, what they are ultimately looking for is a grade for each course and an overall GPA. So make sure you have the final GPA in an easy to find spot, along with the grading scale so they can see grades were scored and how you arrived at the final GPA number.

 

 

You might find this helpful: Lee Binz' free webinar on making transcripts, and samples of transcripts.

 

 

BEST of luck in wearing that administrator hat of homeschooling! ;) Warmest regards, Lori D.

Edited October 27, 2012 by Lori D.

[Lori D.]

\The only reasons I can see for doing it by course rather than by year are a. if your dc is doing high school level courses prior to that & you need the credits or b. your dc is going to go to college at a young age.

 

 

Other reasons why you would list by subject/courses rather than by year:

 

- did some course work in summer school

 

- spread a credit out over more than one school year (makes for a VERY long and messy transcript listing a lot of partial credits for subjects in order to list by year)

 

- coursework does not show a continuous upward/harder progression (i.e., took a harder level course one year and the *following* year took an easier level course in that subject area)

 

- did courses out of order (i.e., may have to go back and jump a hoop" of a introductory level *required* course, though working at a higher level)

 

- took more than 4 years to complete 4 years worth of high school credits for graduation (i.e., LDs, disability, learns at a slower pace, illness, etc.)

 

- had a gap in the educational process in the high school years (i.e., did not school for a while during the 4 years of high school due to illness, injury, life situation, bad choice, move, etc.)

 

 

[Just call me the queen of exceptions. :tongue_smilie:]

[Kareni]

I think that the most important aspect of your child's transcript is that it be clear and easy to decipher. That said, I chose to organize my daughter's transcript by year and subject. The different subject areas (English, Mathematics, etc.) ran down the left hand side of the transcript while the different school years (9, 10, etc.) ran along the top. I also elected to use letter grades and included a key with the numerical equivalents (i.e., A = 90 - 100%).

 

I'd be happy to send you a copy of the transcript if you send me a personal message with your email address.

 

When my daughter applied to colleges, the Common Application required that classes be listed for each of the four high school years.

 

Regards,

Kareni

Edited October 27, 2012 by Kareni

[ereks mom]

I did letter grades and listed courses by subject rather than by year when I did ER's transcript. The colleges where he applied accepted it with no problem. I am doing EK's transcript the same way, but I will check with the individual colleges to see if they require something different.

[Mom22ns]

I do transcripts by year and letter grade. This is the way every ps transcript I've ever looked at appears. I prefer to do the same.

 

That said, if your student has very unbalanced years or a really strong emphasis in a particular area of study, a transcript by subject could hide a light year or show off the emphasis. Lori's list of reasons to arrange by subject are all legit in my mind, although they don't necessarily require a subject based transcript.

 

As long as the admissions department at the college you are preparing the transcript for is ok with the format, it is totally up to you to decide what shows off your student's high school years most advantageously.

Edited October 29, 2012 by Momto2Ns