Can You Issue a Diploma?

Di·plo´·ma: noun.

"What does a homeschool diploma mean?"

The diploma is a convenient, physical representation of the fact that the work your student has done meets your standards for graduation. If you were asked to PROVE that fact, you would show the records you have kept of their work, in other words, their transcript. We recommend that you prepare a transcript for your student, regardless of whether you feel that they may need it. It is the kind of thing that is very difficult to do down the road a few years, and the transcript is the "meat" that "backs up" the diploma you issue.

"What is accreditation and to whom does it matter?"

It is true that your home school -- and therefore your diploma -- is not accredited.   What is accreditation? Accrediting agencies  -- and there are many different ones -- set minimum standards that schools must uphold to receive and maintain accreditation. This allows them to guarantee that a credit issued by one school in the group will be equivalent to and accepted by other schools in the same group. The process of accreditation takes years to complete. It surprised me to learn from Inge Cannon of Education Plus  that many public high schools are not accredited.  The fact that  your homeschool does not have accreditation is not a negative thing.  The standards you have set for educating your child are not the same as those of any other school, and you have no reason to try to prove that they are.

"Will the diploma I issue be accepted anywhere?"

Job applications usually have a box to check if the applicant has a high school diploma, and a line on which to write the name of the school. If your student has done the work, there is no reason that they should not be able to say "YES," and if you have supervised their education, you would be doing them a disservice if you did NOT issue them a diploma. Of course, there is no guarantee that their diploma will be accepted by everyone -- no doubt you understood that when you made the decision to home school through the high school years. There are still situations where someone will say "Not good enough!" Be sure that you know that laws of your state and understand your legal position in such a situation. It may help to be able to point to a similar situation elsewhere where a homeschool diploma was "good enough," or you may decide to offer to provide a copy of the transcript, or submit to a test that they may require.

For college-bound students, a home school diploma is usually not an issue, because the student's transcripts and test scores tell admissions officers a great deal about the quality of their education. In fact, the presence of a correspondence school diploma in the case of a home schooled student may actually be a detractor if it is viewed as the sum total of the student's education.  Transcripts, portfolios, student essays, and recommendations which demonstrate qualities such as creativity, leadership, initiative or other unique, homeschool-strengthened traits prove the worth of the homeschool diploma, especially if test scores back up the student's abilities in "measurable" academic areas.

For more information:

1. Cafi Cohen, author of several excellent books about homeschooling teen, has a good article at the Home Education Magazine web site. It is called  

How Do We Know When We're Done?

2. Be sure to read this very thoughtful article by Barb Shelton, which is excerpted from her book, Senior High: A Home-Designed Form+U+la. The article is at her web site, The Homeschool Oasis:

The Diploma Quest(ion)

3. David and Laurie Callihan are the authors of an excellent book titled The Guidance Manual for the Christian Home School. This is an article from the Homeschool page at Crosswalk.com.

High School: The Basics

4. Susan and Larry Kaseman look at the larger picture of "credentials," both formal and informal in this helpful article from Home Education Magazine:

Credentials for Home Schools; Problem or Opportunity?

"Should I have my student take the GED exam?"

See our transcript information page with for help for your student's transcript.