What Is A High School Transcript Why Do You Need One
A high school transcript is a record of all your academic accomplishments in high school. It lists every class you took, when you took them, and the grades you received. Every student who attended high school has a transcript, and if you attended more than one high school, you will have a transcript from each school
You generally need a transcript for three reasons:
#1: To apply to college: Most colleges require an official copy of your high school transcript when you apply.
#2: To graduate or transfer high schools: High schools will look at your transcript in order to make sure you have met all your graduation requirements or to determine which classes you should enroll in if you transferred schools.
#3: To apply for some jobs: When applying for a job, you may be required to submit your high school transcript so the employer can look at your grades or see if you have taken certain courses applicable to the job.
Is It Possible To Graduate High School Early
Yes, it is technically possible to graduate high school early. However, it isnt always under a students control.
If your student is hoping to wrap up their high school education in less than four years, theyll need to meet specific conditions as outlined by the school district. Usually, that means having enough of specific kinds of credits. However, other factors may also play in, such as maintaining a minimum GPA.
For students considering getting a GED instead of a traditional high school diploma, there are other requirements to navigate. Students might need to be of a certain age or not unenrolled in school, for example.
How To Get Your High School Transcript
How you obtain and send your high school transcript varies from school to school and also depends on whether or not you currently attend that school. Below are three situations follow the guidelines of the one that best describes you to learn how to request and receive your high school transcript.
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Do I Need A Transcript To Apply To College
Students who attended college many years ago or who did not get good grades the first time may wonder whether they need a transcript. Some may even prefer to get a fresh start rather than transferring bad grades to a new school.
The truth is that even if your grades arent great, you need a transcript. Even a single transfer credit can help expedite your graduation. Perhaps more importantly, most schools require you to submit all relevant transcripts. It may even be an honor code violation to exclude a school.
Everything You Need To Know About College Transcripts
College transcripts are the closest thing a student has to a permanent record. They detail your academic history, including your grades, the courses you have completed, and whether or not you graduated. They may also list additional information, such as a history of academic probation, honor code violations, or awards for your school performance.
Your transcripts can unlock academic doors. Theyre key to transferring credits from one university to another and are the best way to verify your prior academic performance. Yet many students struggle to get their transcripts and dont know how to ensure that their previous work follows them from one institution to another. If youve found yourself struggling to navigate this process yourself, heres everything you need to know about transcripts before applying to a college degree program.
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Requesting Transcripts From A School In Canada
How Do You Send High School Transcripts To Colleges
Official transcript should be submitted by your counselor. If the counselor submits online, the transcript should be attached to your school forms. Otherwise, transcripts should be sent directly to the schools to which you are applying. Please contact each admissions office for the exact address or procedure.
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How To Get Your High School Transcript Sent To College
Ordering your transcripts for yourself is a little bit different than having them sent to a college. When applying for colleges straight out of high school, your guidance counselor will typically take care of this part, by sending official, sealed transcripts directly to the colleges you’re applying to. If your guidance counselor cannot do this for whatever reason, or if you’re applying to college well after you’re out of high school, then you have to call and request that your transcripts can be sent directly to the college of your choice. This can be done online via Needmytranscript.com and Parchment.com too, or you can request copies of your official transcript to be sent to your home, and send them yourself to the college. Make sure you read the instructions that the college provides in terms of mailing in transcripts, so you’re sure you’re doing it correctly.
Submitting Official High School And College Transcripts Guidelines
To support our applicants and admitted students through the Admissions process, the Office of Admissions provides additional guidance on submitting your transcripts and other documents as part of the admissions process. The most reliable and quickest method to submit your official transcripts is sending documents directly from your school. The University of Houston reserves the right to refuse unacceptable transcripts submitted for admission decisions or current records.
We highly encourage freshman applicants to self-report their transcript information. Please visit your task list in your my.uh.edu self-service portal to self-report your transcript information. You will only report your Math, Science, English, and Social Studies classes.
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Other Ways To Send College Transcripts For Transfer
Students at some colleges may also opt to have college transcripts sent electronically. In fact, in some cases, an electronic transcript is required, such as when transferring from a Washington state community college to the University of Washington. To send an official electronic transcript, students should first ensure that a prior college generates electronic transcripts and that the destination college accepts them. Then, they may need to make note of the correct email address for electronic transcripts, if they are accepted via email. Many universities that allow students to request electronic transcripts do so through third party websites like National Student Clearinghouse, which allows transcripts to be available immediately.
- There are two different kinds of transcripts available: a student transcript, organized by year and term, and a student permanent record, organized by subject. Make sure that you know which one your employer, school, or program requires before you ask for it.
- Many employers and colleges require an official transcript this means that they require a transcript be authenticated and signed and stamped by a NYC Department of Education staff member and sealed in a signed envelope. Make sure to specify with your high school that you want an official transcript if your employer or school requires one.
Contact your high school if you have any questions.
Contact your high school if you have any questions.
How To Request Transcripts Through Parchment
Parchment is an online tool that allows you to request official high school and college transcripts directly from your school if they use Parchments service. You can then have your transcripts sent to colleges, scholarship organizations, and even to yourself!
You can find Parchments official guide to ordering a transcript here. I used Parchment as my main way of sending transcripts because it was fast, free, and easy to use. In addition to colleges, I highly recommend sending your transcript to yourself or asking your counselor for a copy so you can use it for scholarship opportunities. It is also a good idea to keep a copy of your transcript just in case you need to send it directly to colleges.
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Regular Mail Or Other Mail Service Transcript Submissions
Acceptable submissions of transcripts sent by regular mail:
- Official transcripts should be mailed in an institutional-sealed envelope.
- Applicants may mail it to us if it remains sealed otherwise, we will consider your submitted transcript as unofficial and you will need to have an official transcript resent.
The University of Houston reserves the right to refuse unacceptable submissions of transcripts:
- If the electronic submission of transcript is not encrypted .
- If the electronic submission of transcript is delivered or forwarded directly from the applicant/student.
- If the electronic submission or hard-copy transcripts have been opened/ accessed first by another party.
- If electronic transcripts have been delivered or forwarded by other institutions/college via email.
- Transcripts sent by regular mail or electronic delivery are opened, resealed, or marked as unofficial.
- If transcripts sent by regular mail are scanned, imaged, or uploaded by the applicant/student.
For freshman applicants using the self-reporting tool, please be sure to submit a final transcript with your graduation date conferred by mail or electronic delivery method, preferably before your New Student Orientation date, if admitted to the university.
If your high school, college, or university cannot send your official transcripts electronically, please ask your school administrator to send your documents by mail in an institutional-sealed envelope to:
How To Send Your High School Transcript To Colleges
A high school transcript is a record of all of your academic accomplishments. It is like a combination of every report card you have received and includes your grades from each high school level course you have completed. This makes your transcript one of the most important factors in the college admissions process. Transcripts can also be required when applying for scholarships.
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Notice To Our Customers
The security of our customers data is of paramount importance to NeedMyTranscript. That is why when NeedMyTranscript recently became aware of a specific vulnerability in the security of some of our files, we fixed that vulnerability within hours, ordered a security scan by our host provider to confirm that no malware was installed, and hired an experienced cybersecurity firm to investigate and assist with security. We have also performed follow-up fixes to enhance the security of your data. Fortunately, to date no malware has been found. We also do not believe that any customer information was accessed by someone intending to commit identity theft, although our investigation continues. We look forward to implementing appropriate recommendations from the cybersecurity firm and continuing to provide efficient service to our customers.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and hope this information is useful to you. We thank you for your business.
Do You Need To Pay To Get Your Transcript
It depends. Sometimes schools will charge you a small fee to cover the cost of creating and distributing your transcript. The amount charged and how it is charged varies by school. Some schools don’t charge fees at all for transcript requests.
Some schools charge a one-time fee, usually paid when you start your freshman year at the high school. This fee is included with other school fees , and paying it once allows you to request unlimited transcripts and send unlimited transcripts to schools or other places forever, without paying.
Some schools provide unofficial copies of your transcript for free, but charge a fee for sending an official version of your transcript. At my high school, you could get an unofficial copy of your transcript for free as well as three official copies, but if you needed more than three official copies sent, then you had to pay $2 each time to cover the cost of shipping.
If you use a third party site to get your transcript, be aware that they charge shipping and handling fees for both official and unofficial copies of your transcript. These fees vary by company but are typically more than your school charges, so it’s best to try and get your transcript through your school first.
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Pros Of Graduating From High School Early
Head to College Faster
The biggest benefit of graduating from high school early is getting to start college faster. If your student is academically inclined or doesnt mesh well with the rest of the high school experience, graduating early lets them move on quickly.
In turn, if heading to college is part of their plan, they may graduate from that more quickly, too. In any case, theyll be starting the next phase of their life faster.
Graduating early may also allow your student to avoid senioritis. However, this isnt universally true.
Time for a Gap Year or Semester
Another one of the reasons to graduate early is that it could create room for a gap year or semester. With that, your student may be able to find ways to help pay for college. They could also volunteer to gain experience or simply take a step back from academic life to refocus and recenter.
Access to Early Graduate Scholarships
There are scholarships that specifically target early high school graduates. By wrapping up high school ahead of schedule, your student may qualify for awards that have far less competition than the average scholarship. Overall, graduating from high school early is rare, so your student may have an easier time landing these kinds of awards.
Does Graduating High School Early Affect College
Graduating high school early can affect college, but usually not in the way that students expect. Its easy to assume that wrapping up high school quickly would boost their college application. In reality, colleges dont view early graduates any differently. In the end, the transcript will look the same as someone who took four years to earn their diploma aside from their being fewer semesters on the list.
However, that doesnt mean there isnt any impact. Instead, its that the potential effects dont necessarily work in your students favor.
For example, if your student finishes high school early, they may have fewer opportunities to earn college credits through AP or similar programs. As a result, they may end up paying more for their education.
Additionally, certain kinds of awards like athletic scholarships may be less available. That drives the price of their education up.
If your student gets overwhelmed trying to fit in extra classes, their performance may suffer. As a result, they could end up with a lower GPA, potentially making it harder to get into their top-choice school.
Whether those points matter ultimately depends on where your student wants to go after high school. For less competitive colleges or trade schools, it may be irrelevant. However, if theyre aiming at a top-tier university, it could make a difference.
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Requesting Your Transcript If Youre Still In High School
Confirm That Transcripts Have Been Received
It is always important to make sure that paperwork is processed to prevent mix-ups down the line, and transcripts are no exception. When transferring colleges, students may want to wait a few days or weeks for sending institutions to process transcript requests. Some colleges may even give students a time frame about when to expect a transcript to be sent. To confirm a transcript has been sent, a student may be able to see the status in the online portal of the school the student requested it from, or the institution may email a confirmation. Alternately, to confirm it has been received, it may be beneficial to check with the office the student requested it be sent it to, such as the Office of Admissions or Undergraduate Admissions. Sometimes, the online portal of the destination school may send a message once a transcript has been received.
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