Transcripts - post all of your tips here

[swimmermom3]

Please post all of your tips here on creating high school transcripts. Let us know what has been successful and what you would do differently next time. Where there specific resources that you found helpful? How and when do you get started working on them? What do you include? How much detail? Thanks so much for your help.

[Karen in CO]

I had a worksheet that the local high school uses for tracking courses that I kept starting at 9th grade. I also found an Excel spreadsheet that had formulas for computing gpa build into it (sorry, can't find it anymore). It made the computations easier. AND my big tip is to put the student's SSN on the transcript. My ds applied to a few giant universities. His transcript without his SSN was never matched to his SAT scores. I had to resend with the SSN which made it magically match. I made ds's transcript look as much like the ones the local high school issues as I could.

[Brigid in NC]

The word "official" is important to some schools. So we were advised to use "Official High School Transcript" on ours. Also, sign and date the transcript at the bottom. I used the title "Academic Supervisor" following my name--but I don't know that a title is necessary. :)

[bookfiend]

You can have an embossing seal made with your school's name. It adds to that "notorized and official" look.

[swimmermom3]

I had a worksheet that the local high school uses for tracking courses that I kept starting at 9th grade. I also found an Excel spreadsheet that had formulas for computing gpa build into it (sorry, can't find it anymore). It made the computations easier. AND my big tip is to put the student's SSN on the transcript. My ds applied to a few giant universities. His transcript without his SSN was never matched to his SAT scores. I had to resend with the SSN which made it magically match. I made ds's transcript look as much like the ones the local high school issues as I could.

 

Thank you! I don't think I have seen a mention of putting the SS# on the transcript so far and yet it makes perfect sense.

 

The word "official" is important to some schools. So we were advised to use "Official High School Transcript" on ours. Also, sign and date the transcript at the bottom. I used the title "Academic Supervisor" following my name--but I don't know that a title is necessary. :)

 

This makes sense too, but it's the little points like this that tend to make me crazy.

[Jane in NC]

I would stick to a single page transcript and then write a longer course description for additional information.

 

Kareni graciously shared her transcript which I adapted. I think it may have also been her idea to use different fonts for the different types of courses, i.e. one for home classes, another for dual enrollment, a third for virtual. She could create a business as a homeschool consultant--so very helpful!

[Musicmom]

Be sure to include a projected graduation date. Employers and colleges often want to see this. Later, after graduation, you just take off the "projected" indication and adjust the date if necessary.

 

I also included a grading scale, and a section for test scores (SAT, ACT, etc.) You still have to send official score reports to colleges, but it's nice to have them all available at a glance on the transcript.

 

I used Excel to create our transcript. I based it on (and got many ideas from) the transcript that Jean in WI shared in her blog, and one of the samples on the HSLDA website. I didn't have it calculate GPA (I'm not that Excel savvy) but it was handy to have it add up the number of credits, and handy to line everything up in cells the way I wanted and create the boxes and lines to make it look professional.

 

My other tips have already been mentioned, but I'll second them here: fit it all on one page, use the words "Official High School Transcript", include the SSN, and sign and date it at the bottom. For the sign and date section, I included the phrasing, "We do hereby self-certify and affirm that this is the official transcript and record for (Dc's name) in the academic studies of 200x to date." (An idea lifted from the examples I looked at.) Both my husband and I then signed below, on lines with our printed names & "titles" beneath.