nancy_wa Posted January 27, 2018 Share Posted January 27, 2018 I know there are several transcript tools out there, but is there anyone that offers a comprehensive service? I engage them now, before my kids are at the high school level, pay a fee, and then, as we go, I turn over all the course descriptions, tests, grades, writing samples etc. and the service keeps all the information in an organized, comprehensive way, and then when we get to college admissions, they give me a beautiful transcript that accurately captures all the work we have done. I know that I could do it myself, but my husband I both work full-time and organization isn't my strength. I would much rather pay someone to take on this task, provided that they have a track-record of producing excellent transcripts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 27, 2018 Share Posted January 27, 2018 Just a heads up: the transcript is one single page, having course titles and final grade. It does not contain any tests, writing samples etc. Course descriptions can be a separate document. Again, that would not contain any tests or writing samples. It's the collecting of the records that is the work, something you need to do anyway, and it's the assigning of grades, which is also something you as the homeschooling parent will need to do. Putting the actual transcript together will take you an hour if you have done all this prep work which you will need to do even if you turn everything over to another party - they are not going to do the grading, grade assigning, or collecting of records. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daijobu Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I'm updating my dd's transcript now, and this is a tricky one to outsource. I'm combing websites looking for course descriptions, tracking down textbooks, etc. The good news if you need some scaffolding is this job is largely episodic. I recommend scheduling time 3 times a year to update your transcript. (Make this an appointment in your calendar.) Beginning of school year: document courses your student is signed up for, course description, teacher name and qualifications (PhD?), and textbook. You don't need to make this beautiful, I just do a quick copy/paste when possible. You can save the fine comb editing for right before you need to submit your transcript. End of 1st semester/start of 2nd: check the courses for accuracy (were there any adds or drops?), record grades, record 2nd semester course info as you did at start of 1st semester. End of school year: record grades for 2nd semester. Jot down tentative course list for next year. A bit more difficult to be organized about: Get in the habit of recording test scores and awards as you receive them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daijobu Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 I use MyHomeschoolTranscripts.com for recording this data. I used it for school and summer camp applications with good results. But for college apps, I plan to use a spreadsheet to do a better job of highlighting my daughter's accomplishments, though I'm still using MHT for recording information. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RootAnn Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Kolbe used to have something like this, but I think you have to be enrolled in some part of their diploma program to get this service now, i.e., mostly using their classes & such. There might be an independent consultant (like a resume writer type job, but for transcripts) that would put it all together for you. I think Lee Binz helps people put their transcripts together, among other things. I don't think you'd necessarily want her Gold Care club because that comes with weekly telephone convos! But, I think she mostly just offers training on how to do it. (And honestly, it doesn't require that much work to put together a transcript. Now, course descriptions take more time if you want to make them *great*, but even those aren't too bad if you don't leave them for the last minute.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisabees Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 Agree with all of the above. Tests and writing samples wouldn't be part of a transcript service (actually, I don't even know what that is; I have made plenty of transcripts for families, but as part of a larger service). A transcript is a single page document with grades, credits, and grading key. Maybe test scores if desired. As mentioned, course descriptions can be a lot of work, especially if you leave it to the last minute. They can be anywhere from 5-30 pages. Definitely hold on to a few writing samples and lab reports, though. Some colleges want to see a sample or two from homeschoolers. As the others suggested, record your documents, write your course descriptions, including books and materials used. You'll be glad you did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PinkyandtheBrains. Posted January 30, 2018 Share Posted January 30, 2018 (edited) I work for a company who does, Simplify. I hesitate to respond because I don’t want to break any board rules. But yes, such services exist. The info is in my signature. ETA All the consultants happen to also be boardies. Edited January 30, 2018 by PinkyandtheBrains. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancy_wa Posted January 31, 2018 Author Share Posted January 31, 2018 Thanks all. So, let me ask this. My plan is to homeschool grammar, literature, writing, history, Latin and Greek, sometimes relying on Well Trained Mind Academy and Lukeion for online classes. Then we will do math, science, band, gym at the local high school. So, when I put together the transcript, would it be a one page summary of all of this that just has the course title and the grades, with the official transcript from the online providers (and the course descriptions from those classes), my own course descriptions and the local high school transcript attached. Does the sound right? Then I put all those grades together to figure out the GPA? My biggest worry is that I will have information coming from multiple sources, and I want to make sure that it look cohesive in the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted January 31, 2018 Share Posted January 31, 2018 I know that people do this in order to have an accredited transcript. But if you are not looking for accreditation, I don’t see what the benefit is. You are basically putting everything together and sending it to someone else to format? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanetC Posted January 31, 2018 Share Posted January 31, 2018 It sounds like you are a bit a of a pack-rat in the amount of stuff your want to keep. I just put my stuff in binders with the kids name and grade level on the spine. But if I had to do it over again, I'd have gotten my ScanSnap a lot earlier and just kept it all electronically. The transcript is just a list of classes and grades - I did mine in word. The course descriptions are the pain to write, an di don't know if any transcript service that would write them, so you're stuck with that anyway. May as well just start a word doc for that and keep it as you go. I really like the book Setting The Recrods Straight by Lee Binz as a book of examples to show how you might document your child's homeschool experience. Some of her examples are overkill (remember it's a transcript and course description, not a gradebook and short-and-sweet is fine). But, if you do follow the really detailed ones, you'll have more than enough information to send to colleges when it is time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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