I think the main issue is people, especially students interchange transcript and diploma. Diploma seems to be the generic term signifying “education” as in “be sure you get your diploma!” (translate as don’t drop out, stay in school…)

But, personally, even though people rarely ask to see a diploma as “proof of education” I still do not think it is a waste. It is part of a ceremony, celebrating a life achievement. It is a nice thing to have, whether issued by the state through public school, or through an accredited umbrella school, or hand made at home by parents.

My parents are big history buffs, and I gotta tell ya, I love looking at my grandparents and even great grandparents school papers, including diplomas and report cards. I have all of my report cards, pics, papers I wrote, and yes, my diploma in a scrapbook for my kids and grandkids to look at one day.

So, while they are not functional, diplomas are a celebration and in that they have value.

Great question!

I’ve worked in a few big companies and not only was I never asked for my high school diploma, I was never asked for my COLLEGE diploma OR my transcripts. Guess I didn’t arouse any suspicions, huh?

Makes you wonder if you could talk a good game how long you could get away with it? Did anyone see that movie with Leonardo DiCaprio where he pretended to be all kinds of things, including a doctor and an airline pilot? (based on a true story “Catch Me If You Can”) Not so hard to imagine, now is it?!

I think high school diplomas mean very little to the public today.

It doesn’t concern me at all. My oldest child is starting High School in 3 weeks and we will homeschool all four years of it. She might take an individual class at the Public school, but then again she might not. Either way she won’t have a diploma from the Public School.

I dropped out of High School and then returned to get my diploma as an adult… my life hasn’t changed one bit for that piece of paper. I did get dual credits when I went back, and it is the college credits I obtained while earning my diploma that enabled me to legally homeschool my kids, so even for me, it was college, not high school that ended up mattering.

I searched around on the web to check out college admissions policies, I have yet to find one that will not take a homeschool student with a parent designed transcript. I didn’t just check out small private schools either, I checked out major Universities. Now some people might read over their admissions policies and think at first that they won’t take homeschoolers because if you just look at Freshman admissions it will usually say something about a diploma. However, if you use the little search window that most college websites have, and you type in “homeschool”, you will find that they have specific policies for homeschoolers, foreign students, and other non-traditionally educated students.

Ironically, more trade schools require the diploma than Universities.

But at any rate, my diploma sits in a box….somewhere…..in my basement I think. I have never been asked ot show it for any job, and no employer has even called my old school to see if it exists. I displayed the diploma for a while, I photocopied it and sent a copy to my Dad for him to see it, then I put it in the box next to my husband’s diploma and we haven’t taken it out yet.

Besides, my daughter will have that “slice of dead tree”, it will be fancy with the embossed gold seal bearing our school name, “Path of Life Christian Academy”. She will probably frame it and display proudly until some day as an adult she decides she’d rather hang a picture on her wall and she puts it in a box to rot, uh I mean puts it in a box for safekeeping. 🙂

Nope, never been asked. Even to get into university–they didn’t care about the diploma, just wanted my transcript.

It’s becoming more and more common around here for homeschooled kids to NOT get official diplomas but just do what they need for college admission requirements (which is NEVER a high school diploma). People don’t realize that you don’t need the diploma so they worry about what will happen without it. Also, it was a status symbol for so long because so many from generations ago DIDN’T have high school education/diplomas; the idea of it being something meaningful has stuck.

I’ve used my high school *transcript* (public) once. That was when I moved to a new state and had to get a new driver’s license. I didn’t realize my copy of my birth certificate wasn’t certified. I ordered one, but it would take 8 weeks, and I had to have a new license within 30 days. One of the items they accepted was a high school (but not college – goofy!) transcript as proof of age. So I called my high school (graduated 20 years ago) and they sent it for $2. It was a handwritten document, but had the school seal. I still think my college transcript would have been better (I had a certified copy), but my state is wierd about some things.

I’ve only had to show my college (B.S. degree) diploma and transcript once – to sign up to be a certified ITBS test administrator through BJUP. I graduated college 16 years ago.

Yeah, the “what do you do for a diploma” question is almost becoming as absurd as the “S” question. 🙂

Actuall no

But TODAY they do background checks and when you sign an employment application they can pay for and obtain your transcripts from your last school that you list on the form.

These days it’s not quite as easy as it used to be.

These days if you “claim to be a Doctor” most places want to have your original or a copy of your License from the state.

They assume the State checked you out.

Many small companies, however, don’t check that Diploma from some University in Minnesota to see if it’s real or if you made it on your computer.

The hope is that you are never required to produce a diploma because that means you are applying for a pretty crummy job.

Indiana provides a wallet diploma now and some of my friends have been asked to show theirs…

I have never been asked for my undergrad or graduate diplomas, but transcripts have been requested to prove my education. The pieces of paper have meant tens of 1000’s to me and my family…

My friend’s daughter, who is a public school graduate without an education, has been asked her grade point average several times on applications. She always puts 3.0. Nobody has ever questioned it until after she has worked there for a few days and they realize she can’t read, write or do basic math.

She, however, has a very active social life.

I graduated from public school. I am 54 years old and no one has ever asked to see my diploma nor asked me for my grade point average.

When I went to college, I submitted my TRANSCRIPT, not a diploma. When i got a job after college, they asked if I had one, but never wanted to see it. Same for my husband, and he went military after college. It’s been fifteen years, and just last week we found them in storage for the first time since we moved. Amazing, isn’t it? High school diplomas are a waste of tree…save your paper for transcripts.

I think in the digital age the fact you completed high school appears on your background check if your employer runs one. Maybe 50 years ago, before I was born, people showed their diplomas. In the future, more and more hiring decisions will be made by machines and people who don’t have this virtual checkbox marked on their identity passport will be relegated to the garbage bin and never considered for employment by a living person.