Homeschool & Unaccredited School Credit Transfer

Northgate Academy enrolls students who have been homeschooled anywhere in the world, as well as students coming from an unaccredited school, private school, online school, tutorial program, learning center, or similar non-accredited program. Whether your student is moving into one of our self-paced diploma programs or only needs access to our curriculum, there is an option that fits.

For questions about the homeschool credit transfer process, write to our Homeschool Coordinator at hmstransfer@northgateacademy.com.

Important: the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway is not a placement test. It is a credit-by-examination program through which eligible homeschool students demonstrate mastery of coursework they have already completed and earn up to 15 high school transfer credits toward a Northgate Academy diploma.

Because credit is earned by examination, a transcript on its own does not produce credit. The transcript establishes what a student is eligible to test out of; the exam awards the credit.

Students Transferring from an Unaccredited School

Northgate Academy also enrolls students coming from an unaccredited private school, online school, learning center, tutorial program, or any other program not accredited by a recognized accrediting agency.

Coursework from a non-accredited program cannot be accepted through a traditional transcript evaluation. Those students instead use the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway, on the same eligibility terms as homeschool students.

The process matches the homeschool process:

• Submit official academic records or transcripts from the unaccredited program.
• Enroll in the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway during initial enrollment.
• Test out of completed high school courses that appear on those official records.
• Finish every selected test-out exam within 21 days (3 weeks) of joining the pathway.

Credits earned this way are recorded as “Passed without Grade” and are left out of the student’s cumulative grade point average (GPA).

If you are not sure whether a previous school is accredited, or whether this pathway applies, write to our Homeschool Coordinator at hmstransfer@northgateacademy.com before enrolling. We will look at your student’s background and help you identify the right enrollment pathway.

Students Entering Grades 6–9 (No High School Credits)

Students entering grades 6–9 who have not completed any high school-level coursework do not need to submit homeschool records or transcripts.

They are enrolled straight into their grade-level core and elective courses.

If a schedule needs adjusting after enrollment, students or parents should contact their assigned Success Coach by email or through the Help Desk.

Students Entering Grade 9 With High School Credits

Some students arrive in grade 9 having already completed high school-level coursework at home, such as Algebra I or a world language.

To receive high school credit for that work, a student must:

• Submit an official homeschool transcript during enrollment.
• Enroll in the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway.

Students Entering Grades 10–12

Students entering grades 10–12 who want credit for homeschool coursework must:

• Submit an official homeschool transcript listing courses completed, grades earned, and credits awarded.
• Enroll in the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway during the enrollment process.

Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway

The Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway is an optional add-on that lets homeschool students earn high school credit by demonstrating mastery of work they completed at home.

Program Fee: $500 (This is a non-refundable fee.)

The pathway has to be added during the initial enrollment process. It cannot be added afterward for coursework completed before enrollment.

A student may earn up to 15 high school credits through it.

Eligibility Requirements

To qualify for homeschool credit transfer testing:

• A student must submit an official homeschool transcript showing courses completed, grades earned, and credits awarded.
• A student may only test out of courses marked completed on that transcript.
• Partially completed homeschool courses are not eligible for testing.
• Semester-only homeschool coursework is not eligible for test-out.

For example, a student who completed the first semester of Algebra I at home and the second semester at an accredited school cannot receive credit for the homeschool semester through this pathway. That student would complete the appropriate coursework with Northgate Academy to satisfy graduation requirements.

• A course that is not on the homeschool transcript earns no credit, even if the student passes the test-out exam.

Available Test-Out Courses

A student may test out of up to 15 courses, drawn from the following:

English

• English 9
• English 10
• English 11
• English 12
• Public Speaking

Mathematics

• Algebra I
• Geometry
• Algebra II
• Pre-Calculus
• Math Models & Applications

Science

• Physical Science
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Physics

Social Studies

• World Geography
• World History
• U.S. History
• Government
• Economics

Electives

• Health & Fitness
• Media Arts
• Spanish I
• Spanish II
• French I
• French II
• American Sign Language (ASL) I
• American Sign Language (ASL) II

How the Process Works

1. Enroll in an eligible Northgate Academy diploma program.
2. Add the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway during enrollment.
3. Upload an official homeschool transcript to your account under files and documents, where the Homeschool Coordinator will evaluate it.
4. Choose the homeschool courses you want to test out of.
5. Finish every selected test-out exam within 21 days (3 weeks) of joining the pathway.
6. Once testing is finished, the Homeschool Coordinator reviews the results and records the credits earned.
7. The student’s Success Coach is notified to update the schedule. Allow up to two business days for changes to appear on the LMS dashboard.

Important Information About Test-Out Exams

The Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway is not a placement test.

It is a single opportunity, taken at enrollment, to demonstrate mastery of completed homeschool coursework and earn high school credit.

On each selected exam a student gets:

• Two attempts.
• Open-book and open-note conditions.
• The higher of the two scores recorded.

A score of 70% or higher earns the credit.

Credit Awarding

A student who passes a test-out exam receives:

• High school credit for the course.
• A transcript notation of “Passed without Grade.”

Because no letter grade is assigned:

• Test-out credits do not affect the student’s cumulative GPA.

Only coursework completed through Northgate Academy, and transfer credits accepted from an accredited institution, count toward GPA.

If a Student Does Not Pass or Chooses Not to Test

No credit is awarded for a course when a student:

• Scores below 70%,
• Does not finish a selected test-out exam within the required timeframe, or
• Chooses not to test out of an eligible homeschool course.

That course, or an approved equivalent, must be completed to satisfy graduation requirements.

A student who declines to test out of an eligible homeschool course during initial enrollment in the pathway may not come back later to test out of it.

Completion Deadline

All homeschool credit transfer testing must be finished within 21 days (3 weeks) of enrollment into the Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway.

Testing not completed in that window is forfeited and cannot be taken later.

One-Time Homeschool Credit Transfer Opportunity

The Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway is available only at the point a student enrolls at Northgate Academy.

Homeschool coursework completed before that enrollment has to be evaluated during that enrollment period. A student may not return later to request credit for the same period of homeschooling.

If a student withdraws from Northgate Academy, completes further grade-level coursework at home, and then re-enrolls, they may complete a new Homeschool Credit Transfer Pathway for that newly completed work.

Example

A student:

• Completes Grade 9 through homeschool.
• Enrolls at Northgate Academy for Grade 10 and transfers those Grade 9 homeschool credits.
• Withdraws after Grade 10.
• Completes Grade 11 through homeschool.
• Re-enrolls at Northgate Academy for Grade 12.

In that case the student completes the pathway a second time, evaluating only the newly completed Grade 11 coursework.

Curriculum Use Only

Families who want to use Northgate Academy curriculum while graduating through their own homeschool program must complete a Curriculum Use Agreement.

• Curriculum Use Agreement (Northgate Academy)

Adult Students

Homeschool credits are not accepted into the Adult High School Diploma program.

Adult students who were previously homeschooled complete all graduation requirements through Northgate Academy.