Show 5 yrs of HS on transcript or no? What's best?

[nancyb]

I'm sure this has been asked a thousand times before, but I'm having no luck with the search function.  We redshirted my daughter so she could take advantage of dual enrollment options.  She is currently a 5th year senior.  What is the best way to reflect that on her transcript?  Should I list 5 years of high-school or drop her freshman year from the transcript? Thanks in advanced!

[alewife]

Like many others, my kids begin taking high school level classes before the official start of high school.  Rather than having a section for classes taken before high school, my kids' transcripts are grouped by subject, not grade level.  Instead of listing a grade level, I simply state the completion date for each course.  I have gone through the college application process with my three kids and no admissions office has ever had an issue with a transcript organized by subject.

In your situation, I would organize your daughter's transcript by subject with the completion dates.  Good luck.

[Mom22ns]

I did the opposite. I arranged by year and had a section for courses taken before high school. I didn't list grades for those courses or include them in the GPA calculation. I would do the same for your dd.

That said, I think the main thing that the two answers you've gotten so far demonstrates is that it is up to you and however you want to handle it will be fine.

I remember someone posting that they had to provide a transcript by year to a college - they wouldn't accept one by subject, but I can only remember one person ever saying that. It is definitely the exception not the rule. Most colleges will take what you give them. Since your dd is 13, I would track the information for the transcript, but don't worry too much about your formatting yet. You'll find some examples along the way and you'll find one that works for you.

[RootAnn]

7 hours ago, nancyb said:

She is currently a 5th year senior. 

Looks like Nancyb hasn't updated her .sig in several years...

5 hours ago, Mom22ns said:

Since your dd is 13, I would track the information for the transcript, but don't worry too much about your formatting yet. You'll find some examples along the way and you'll find one that works for you.

I agree that both of the above options are valid and you should pick the one you are most comfortable with once you take a look at some samples. (Transcripts by year & ones that show "courses taken before 9th grade" are both available online.) My oldest is a big young for her grade and we've always considered adding a fifth year. If so, I would have dropped most of 9th grade classes off the transcript & only kept the science & foreign languages. My dd#1 is a rising senior; ultimately, I ended up removing the "classes before 9th grade" section from her transcript. Neither grade was included in the GPA & neither of the classes (math & one foreign language) needed to be on there since higher levels were shown. So, really, you can do whatever looks the best to you.

[Kareni]

Will your child be using the Common App?  When my daughter applied (admittedly now some years ago), she was restricted to entering only four years worth of classes on the Common App.

Regards,
Kareni

[GoodGrief]

This will depend a bit on the school in question. Some schools only want information on the last four years.

Personally, I would probably treat the first ninth grade year as a second eighth grade year and only report coursework that would be significant to the colleges (certain math courses, perhaps foreign language.)

[J-rap]

We organized our transcripts into four years.  Even if we took some classes earlier or later, if it counted as a general 9th grade math, for example, then we listed it under 9th grade.  It just seems like 4 years is a lot easier for colleges to know how to deal with.

 

 

[nancyb]

Thank you all so much for your feedback!  Yes, I need to update my profile.  ?  You all have given me much to think about.  I had not even thought about the common app!

[Bootsie]

Has she participated in any particular programs that required students to be in a particular year in high school?  For example, did she participate in a summer camp for rising seniors in the summer before her 4th year of high school?  Did she take the SAT during her 4th year and put that she was a senior?  
How I addressed the issues would depend some on being consistent with how she has represented herself in other activities. 

[katilac]

I would lean towards just putting the last four years, in the interest of a clean, straightforward transcript that fits on one page (I had to fiddle and fiddle to get mine both looking good and fitting on one page). If she has Algebra 2 and French 2 on the transcript, there's really no need to list Algebra 1 and French 1. Nobody ever asked if my kids actually had French 1 before taking French 2, y'know?  

And GG1 is correct that some schools do specify the last four years only. I know some people create different transcripts for different schools, but creating one was annoying enough for me. Plus I'd almost certainly wind up sending at least one school the 'wrong' transcript, or I'd send Transcript A with the application and Transcript B mid-year. I don't need that kind of stress in my life, lol.