A homeschool transcript is the academic record of grades 9-12. It gets used for college admissions, scholarship applications, ESA reporting in some states, and as proof of high school completion for jobs and the military. Most families realize they need one in the spring of 11th grade and panic. You don't need to panic. Here's every step.
Step 1: List your subjects by school year
Start with the year, not the subject. For each year from 9th-12th grade, list every academic course your student took: the subject name (Algebra I, American Literature, U.S. History), the curriculum you used (Saxon, Sonlight, etc.), the final grade, and the credit hours.
The standard credit is 1.0 credit per year-long course— typically 120-180 hours of work, or one Carnegie unit. Half-year electives are 0.5 credits. PE, art, and music typically count as 0.5 each. Aim for 24-28 total credits over four years; most state diploma equivalents require 22+.
Step 2: Convert grades to a 4.0 scale
Even if you tracked grades as percentages, the transcript should translate to the 4.0 scale colleges expect:
- A+ / A (93-100%) = 4.0
- A- (90-92%) = 3.7
- B+ (87-89%) = 3.3, B (83-86%) = 3.0, B- (80-82%) = 2.7
- C+ (77-79%) = 2.3, C (73-76%) = 2.0, C- (70-72%) = 1.7
- D range (60-69%) = 0.7-1.3
- F (below 60%) = 0.0
Cumulative GPA = (sum of grade points × credits) ÷ (sum of credits). Our GPA calculator does this automatically, including the weighted version below.
Step 3: Mark weighted courses
Honors, AP, dual-enrollment, and IB courses earn a +1.0 bump on weighted GPA. If your student took AP Biology and got a B, the unweighted is 3.0 but the weighted is 4.0. Most colleges look at both — show both on your transcript.
Don't over-weight. Calling regular Geometry “Honors Geometry” because it was hard for your kid is a tell, and admissions officers can spot it. Reserve weighted credit for courses with college-level content, a third-party assessment, or a curriculum publisher who calls them honors.
Step 4: Add the issuer block
The header of the transcript should identify the issuing school (your homeschool name, like “Whitley Family Academy” or just your family name), supervising parent, address, and contact info. This is what makes the document look institutional rather than informal.
Step 5: Sign and date it
A homeschool transcript's authority comes from the supervising parent's signature. Sign, date, and — if you want — get it notarized for high-stakes submissions like scholarship applications or out-of-state college transfers.
Step 6: Generate the PDF
Once it's all entered in our builder, hit “Download watermarked preview” to see exactly what the final PDF looks like. The clean version (no watermark) is $19 one-time, or included with our Transcript Pro and Family plans.