Parents of teens earning college credit often wonder where the credit is “kept” or stored until they need it. This is a great question because when your student is ready, we want to make sure you can quickly and easily access everything they’ve worked so hard to earn!
High School Credit
Before we jump in and address college credit, it’s essential to remember that one of the
benefits of earning college credit in high school is the “double-dipping” that allows them to earn both high school and college credit simultaneously.
Anytime your teen earns college credit of any type, the first order of business is to make sure you’ve recorded high school credit on their high school transcript. This responsibility falls on the parent/homeschool administrator. To do this, make an entry on their official homeschool transcript. If you haven’t started a high school transcript, we have a resource page that can help you get started, but don’t let that stop you from keeping good records. Even if you haven’t started their official homeschool transcript yet, write everything down in a notebook so there aren’t any lost credits later.
College Credit
College Credit issued by a College: College-based dual enrollment, college-based summer school, college-based winter break sessions, college-based minimesters, college-based accelerated terms, some study abroad programs.
Where held: Official College Transcript
What you have to do: Nothing. Happens automatically.
Colleges maintain your student’s credit earned in their transcript database and can produce an official transcript upon request (and usually a small fee.) Your student will have an official college transcript with the college, and that will update every time they take a course with that college.
What else you need to know: It’s not uncommon for students to attend several colleges in their academic career, so even if you don’t earn a grade from a course you’ve dropped, or didn’t finish a degree, enrollment generates a college transcript. Moving forward, you’ll be obligated to retrieve an official transcript or disclose attendance whenever it’s requested (future college, employer, military, etc.) Since most colleges participate in the National Student Clearinghouse (a giant database that collects, reports, and verifies a student’s enrollment) it’s impossible to “hide” prior college enrollment. If you have an outstanding bill with a college, they will most certainly place a “hold” on your account and prevent you from getting your transcripts even decades later. For these reasons, be sure your account balance is $0 when you have finished taking courses and be prepared to give for full disclosure. Finally, even if a college closes down, is destroyed by a natural disaster, your official transcript will be saved – usually by a state education office.
College Level Exam Program (CLEP)
Where held: Official College Board Transcript (aka Score Report)
What you have to do: Nothing. Stored automatically.
When you take a CLEP exam, you can elect to have your score sent directly to the college of your choice, but you don’t have to. The College Board keeps an official transcript for you of every passed exam. Failed exams are not included on your transcript.
What else you need to know: When you need to send this credit to a college, you’ll pay one transcript fee (currently $20) that will include every passed CLEP exam. It is typical for each college to want their own CLEP transcript to evaluate for college credit, regardless of whether or not a previously attended college awarded college credit in the past. Potential colleges do not have access to your CLEP scores unless you send them a score report/transcript.
Advanced Placement Exam (AP)
Where held: Official College Board Transcript (aka Score Report)
What you have to do: Nothing. Stored automatically.
What else you need to know: All AP scores are included on your Official College Board Transcript. Potential colleges do not have access to your AP scores unless you send them a score report/transcript.
DSST/DANTES Exams
Where held: Official Prometric Transcript (aka Score Report)
What you have to do: Nothing. Stored automatically.
What else you need to know: When you take a DSST exam, you can elect to have your score sent directly to the college of your choice, but you don’t have to. Prometric keeps an official transcript for you of every exam. Potential colleges do not have access to your DSST scores unless you send them a score report/transcript.
College Credit evaluated by ACE: ALEKS, Saylor Academy, Sophia, Straighterline, Studycom, TEEX, UExcel Exams, GED Exam for college credit, The Institutes, and many others. ACE Database of Providers
Where held: ACE Transcript and the credit provider
What you have to do: In every instance, when you take a course that is worth ACE college credit, you must add the course to your student’s ACE account. If you don’t add the course to their ACE account, it isn’t “validated” or recorded.
What else you need to know: some colleges have partnerships that allow or require you to send your college credit directly from a credit provider to the college without adding it to ACE. Even if that option exists, it is essential that you ALSO add it to your ACE account. Always, always, always add every ACE course to your ACE account. If a company goes out of business, the only record you have of the credit is on your ACE account.
No matter how many college credit providers you use, you’ll only have 1 ACE account, and it will include every ACE credit earned. Grades, percentages, and failed courses are never included on an ACE transcript. Potential colleges do not have access to your ACE credits unless you send them a score report/transcript.
College Credit evaluated by NCCRS: Coopersmith, Davar, Onlinedegreecom, and many others. NCCRS Database of Providers
Where held: The credit provider
What you need to know: No formal transcript process exists in the NCCRS system. When completing a course evaluated for college credit by NCCRS, it is important to immediately send that college credit to your target college. You’ll do this for every NCCRS credit you earn. If an NCCRS evaluated company goes out of business, unrecorded college credit is lost.
