Transcript Template

Create a homeschool high school transcript and diploma easily with these downloadable templates. The Transcript Generator template will make creating a professional-looking transcript easy. Both organizational styles: “Subject-block” and “Grade-level” are included (see PDF samples). Simply enter your student’s courses, credits, and letter grades. The formatting is done for you. Formulas are built right into the program so cumulative credits and GPA are automatically calculated and updated with each entry. Instructions are included for how to list CLEP courses. Keep it updated with a few key strokes at the end of each year and you will always be prepared to present an Official High School Transcript!

* For individual use only. Not available for institutions or those living outside of the United States.

Transcript

IMPORTANT NOTE: Once your payment is complete, be sure to click “Return to Merchant” from the PayPal checkout confirmation page (see example image). Upon clicking that button, you will be redirected to the download page. Place your order from a laptop to save the files.

Features

Requirements: Microsoft Excel 2003 or later. Compatible programs are not supported.

  • Cumulative credits and GPA are automatically calculated and updated with each new entry
  • Copyright license for use with ALL students within your immediate family
  • Two popular transcript styles included: Grade-level and Subject block
  • Simply enter your student’s courses, credits, and letter grades
  • Instruction bubbles make knowing what to enter easy
  • Update with a few key strokes and you are ready present an Official High School Transcript
  • Standard 4.0 scale (weighted grading is not available)
  • Print-ready 8-1/2 x 11  Just add your signature!
  • BONUS: FREE with your purchase of A Parent’s Guide to Credits Before College. A coupon code is included in each book.
  • Cost: $19.95  Diploma template in Microsoft Word included.

* For individual use only. Not available for institutions or those living outside of the United States.

Tips

  1. Creating a high school transcript is an essential part of homeschool record keeping. Think of a transcript as your student’s academic resume: a one-page professional-looking document that records your student’s high school-level work. Your student’s transcript is designed to showcase your student’s best (in some cases, not all) and highest levels of achievement. Create this document with your audience in mind: college admissions counselors and/or scholarship committees.

  2. Start early. It is much easier to add to an on-going record than to try to go back one and create one from memory.

  3. Two standard formats are grade-level and subject-block. Either one is perfectly acceptable. Transcript PDF Sample Both will contain three essential elements: Course Title, Credit, Grade. An exception: If your student is interested in NCAA sports, you will want to use a grade-level format. Review specific requirements on NCAA.org

  4. Consider using Microsoft Excel or some other software program so it can be easily modified. I prefer using Excel because the GPA can be automatically recalculated with each entry. *I have embedded formulas into the Transcript Template to do just this!

  5. High School credits are awarded based on time spent learning the subject. 1 credit = 120-180 hours of study, this is called a “Carnegie Unit”. Point 5 (.5) credits are earned for a semester course, or 60 hours of study. For example, if your student studies math for 1 hour a day, Monday-Friday, for 32 weeks, he has accumulated 160 hours of study, earning 1 credit. You can use a notebook to track these hours, but because his study is daily, it is not require. Keeping a log can be helpful when awarding credit for non-routine studies. For example, perhaps your student is studying Government through participation. Then it would be wise to have your student log his activities and events (a short description) along with the dates and approximate time spent.

  6. Because high school credits are awarded for time spent studying, don’t award additional credits on your transcript if your student passed a CLEP, DSST, or AP exam. All are credit-by-exam options that earn your student college credit (which can be awarded by demonstrating mastery). Instead, include the word “Honors” in front of your course title and an asterisk behind the course title. At the bottom of your transcript, include wording such as: * Honors course – passed CLEP/DSST exam. I award my student an “A” in the subject if he passed the exam. If the exam is NOT passed, the credits earned are the same, but the grade assigned reverts back to whatever grade was assigned for the work completed studying the course material.

  7. Your student may earn high school credit for courses completed prior to 9th grade if it is high school-level. If you are using a transcript organized by grade-level, include these credits in a block above ninth grade. If you are categorizing courses by subject-level, there is often not a separate column that indicates when the student completed the course, so simply document it within the proper subject heading.

  8. Keep the credits earned within a standard total of 22-28.

  9. Award credits as either .5 or 1. Instead of awarding less than .5 credits, consider combining two or more of your student’s studies into one and use a course title that encompasses both activities. For example, instead of awarding .25 credits for piano lessons and .25 credits for being in a community theater, award .5 credits for Performing Arts.

  10. Need help with course titles? Pull up a local public school’s handbook and review their course offerings. It will give you some ideas. Start with a basic course title and customize depending on the level of the course. For example: English could also be: Advanced English, Honors English, AP English, Essentials of English, Introductory English. Grades will then reflect how well your student did in that course.

  11. Weighted grades are number or letter grades that are assigned a numerical advantage when calculating a grade point average, or GPA. In some schools, primarily public high schools, weighted-grade are awarded for higher-level courses, such as honors, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, or college courses taken in high school. For homeschool students who receive a parent-issued transcript, I recommend using a standard 4.0 scale vs. using weighted grades. This helps avoid any appearance of grade inflation. Instead, identify the course with an appropriate Course Title, or use an * or other superscript notation to signify if college credit was earned. Reasoning: After much research on the topic, here is why I recommend this: GPA scales of different high schools can’t be compared directly. Some schools might count honors and AP classes as “high level” for weighted GPAs, and some might only count APs. College’s know this so they commonly rely on unweighted grades, but more so, focus on the coursework (Course Titles) to determine if a student is pushing themselves.

  12. Dual Enrollment courses count for both college and high school credit. A one-semester 3-4 credit college course is equivalent to 1 high school credit. Use the same Course Title as the college, and include a superscript notation at the end. In the footer of the transcript, include the notation: Course taken at (name the institution).

  13. On a rare occasion, a university may not transfer in college credit if the student took the course prior to graduating high school. Keep this in mind when preparing your student’s transcript. If your student took college courses while in high school, document only those credits on his HS transcript that he/she needs to meet the HS requirements you have set.

Diploma

  • Homeschool parents can also issue a diploma at graduation. This is a certificate issued by the educational institution (your homeschool) signifying that the student has completed the required course of study. The transcript details what that course of study included.
  • You can purchase one online, or print one of your own using a template or a design you created. Better yet, download mine! I hope you will enjoy this template. Diploma Example PDF.

I’m so grateful for this easy-to-use resource for making transcripts for my kiddos 🙂 Thank you!  ~ Carrie G

What a great product, THANK YOU!! I just dropped off Julia’s PSEO App to St Kate’s. I feel good! Your transcript gave me more confidence that I am giving her the best chance to be considered!! ~ Parent

I just thought you may want to know that using your transcript template was much easier than the previous one I had used. I got the template done and my daughter applied for the scholarship. This was the company’s first home school applicant. She was awarded a $2,000 scholarship! ~ R Hanson

© 2024 Kristin Lackie.  All Rights Reserved.  A product of Credits Before College LLC