Hi guys! So I’m in 10th grade and I don’t have my ninth grade marks including my regent marks from last year. So my school told me I need to take my regents over and even then I can’t graduate because I don’t have 4 full years of hs grades. So I decide next year in 11th grade I’m going to get my ged and not take the remaining regents . So I guess what I’m asking is will colleges not except me if I don’t have a regents diploma? And do you think me getting a ged is a good idea for me (don’t forget I’ll be 16 next year!!)
What does that mean " I don’t have my ninth grade marks including my regent marks from last year."?
How are you preparing yourself for college?
I don’t think that you would be ready for college at 16 having not finished 4 years of HS.
I assume you are talking about NYS? If not, disregard my advice.
Why don’t you have 9th grade Regents scores? Did you move from OOS and not take them? If that’s the case, it can be explained on your transcript. You could also try to take any tests you missed last year (Algebra, Bio/Living Environment?) over the summer, as your school suggested. Were your scores cancelled for some reason? It sounds like you took the tests because you wrote “I don’t have my ninth grade marks…” So what happened and why aren’t your parents involved in dealing with this?
As for your other questions, they are two-fold. No state other than NY (and most likely only SUNY’s and CUNY’s) is going to care if you have a Regents’ diploma, either regular or advanced. OTOH, your school is also telling you that you may not meet graduation requirements, which is a different thing. Which (or both) is it?
Answer the above and I will try to help you.
I went to 9th grade but then I switched schools and my old school won’t give me my grades (long story that’s not important). So I took the regents from that year I just don’t have my marks. And my new school said I need to get my grades from 9th grade or they won’t let me graduate. My parents are trying to get a pro bono lawyer to bring my old school to court but as of now it’s not really working. I’m trying to answer all the questions you guys are asking I hope I didn’t confuse you more 
Seems to me that a public school is obligated to forward records. Is it possible that it is a private school that won’t send records as long as your family still owes money to the institution? In any event it is hard to believe that something can’t be worked out to get your final grades sent to the new school.
And to answer your question as best I can based on the very limited information you provided, a GED is fine if you are looking to attend a CC but in no way will it make you a competitive candidate for competitive colleges the same way as a rigorous HS education combined with strong extracurricular activities, great recommendations etc. can. In addition, starting college at 16 generally isn’t a great idea (and is not considered to be a positive by most colleges) as there will be a significant age gap between you and the other freshmen. And what about standardized testing (SAT, ACT, SATII)?
I am assuming you are in NYS. I also assume that @happy1 is correct because a public school can’t refuse to send your transcript unless you owe a library fee or something, but that seems like a thing your parents would have dealt with.
Can your parents contact the NYS Education Department and try to get a copy of your Regents’ scores? At least that would alleviate that issue. How many Regents have you taken? I am guessing between one and four (possibly, Algebra I and Geometry, Earth Science and Bio).
Contact a local advocacy group. Maybe an advocate other than an attorney can help you. If your family does owe money to the other school, maybe your parents can enter into a written monthly payment agreement in exchange for getting your info released now. Do you have any siblings in the same situation?
I don’t think a GED is a good idea. HS is a place where kids mature and develop and can be exposed to things that they might not have realized interest them.
Yes it was a private school ( sorry forgot to mention that ) and @happy1 is right about the money situation but at the moment there’s nothing my parents and I can do about that. We tried making deals with the school but they don’t want to do that and my siblings are younger then me so no they are not in that situation. I see why @techmom99 you think I should stay is hs but what if I get to 12th grade and I can’t graduate with the rest of my class I would’ve done it all for nothing. I also consider myself pretty mature for my age. So far I’ve taken the algebra 1, bio and this year my new school is giving the global, earth science, and algebra 1 ( so technically if I take all these regents this year with my class the only one I have to retake is the bio but then there’s still an issue of the rest of my grades from the other subjects). I didn’t think of the sat and all the other test. My mom called the board of education but wasn’t able to get my regent scores.
Not the Board of Education, the NYS Department of Education. It’s the agency that oversees all schools in the state.
So you are not that behind really in regents. Maybe you can work something out with the public school where they will just give you credit for the class if you pass the regents. What are you doing about the classes that you didn’t take regents in for grade 9? English, foreign language, gym, social studies? If you pass the global regents this year, will they give you credit for 9th grade since it’s a two year test? You may not get a number or letter grade, but you will have the credit. Oftentimes, when kids transfer, their former grades don’t count in the new GPA, so that wouldn’t be an issue. Your GC can explain a bit about your situation in your rec letter.
I don’t recommend doing a GED…
If you can’t officially graduate you still would have taken all of the classes in 10, 11, 12 grade, you still could be involved in activities, you can get great recommendations, do well on standardized tests etc. If you need some official proof of HS graduation you could always get a GED, but if you complete HS at least you would also have the coursework and a 3 year transcript to back it up.
I’m guessing (although I don’t know for sure) that you could then apply to colleges in 12th grade and explain your situation.
And perhaps between now and the time you apply to college your family can get help to work out a way to get your transcript to your current HS or you can work out a way to graduate with your HS. Look carefully at your HS graduation requirements and the NY Regents requirements and see if you can complete what you need. See if you can find an advocate, a pro bono lawyer etc. to help you and give you options.
Graduation itself isn’t as important as the learning and growth that will happen in HS over the next few years.
Do you have report cards from your old school? Could you use that to show you took the courses?
@bopper no.
No you don’t need a regents diploma and that’s actually the least of your worries. If your school won’t send transcripts, your only options seem to be:
- Pay the money and get the transcript before you graduate
- Find a school that will accept a self reported grades for credit (probably out of the question because most likely only private schools do this and that seems unaffordable)
- Do an extra year of public high school to finish the requirements or summer school. (probably the easiest option)
- Get a GED, go to community college, and then transfer to a 4 year.
Most schools are more than happy to work with you as long as there’s a payment plan in place.
If you’re lacking other options, get a job to start paying off your tuition bill.
Your family has to pay the tuition bill to get your transcripts released. I don’t see how a lawyer can help that situation unless you’re trying to negotiate a payment plan, and I don’t think you need a lawyer to do that. How much do your parents owe? Can they pay it by the time you’re scheduled to graduate? If not, can you get a summer job to help pay?
If you can’t graduate on time because you don’t have the credits and you can’t afford to pay the tuition off anytime soon, you can take your missing courses at your current high school. (In NYS you can be enrolled in high school until you’re 21.) How many courses are you missing? One option might be to ask to repeat 10th grade and take the 9th grade core courses with whatever electives your school offers. Or maybe you could take a mix of 9th & 11th grade classes. Either way, if you don’t have enough credits to graduate with your current class I think you’ll have to return for an additional year to make up the courses you’re missing.
Another option is to dual enroll at your local cc. One semester of a college course counts as a full year of a high school course. Taking them during the school year might be difficult if it requires you to double up on math and science. Can your parents afford summer courses? If so, you might be able to do a course or two over the summer to catch up.
Contact the NYS Board of Regents and/or NYSED (NYS Education Dept), both in Albany, to see if they’ll release your Regents scores to your current school. Regents are state tests, so I’m not sure the private school is your only source for the grades. If you can’t get them, you’ll have to retake the exams.
If your parents have the flexibility, you could homeschool. You’d have to do 3 years instead of 2 so you have time to make up your missing credits. Or you could do one year to make up the 9th grade courses and reenroll in your current school as a junior (when your current class will be seniors). But you’d have to keep on top of the Regents and make sure you schedule them so you don’t fall behind.