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If you don't have a traditional high school diploma, you can still earn an equivalent credential by getting your GED. But what is a GED? What does GED stand for? Basically, a GED is a credential that can substitute for a high school diploma. Since most employers (and all colleges) will require you to have graduated from high school, it's usually a good idea to get a GED if you don't complete high school. Doing so helps to ensure that you'll have access to more opportunities later in life.

In this article, I'll go through the GED meaning, the advantages this credential can give you, and how to get your GED.

Many students get very hung up on GPA in high school - is it high enough? Will it pass muster in college admissions? What does your GPA even mean?

In this article, I’ll go through what GPA is, what GPA means, and how it can help or hurt you in the college admissions process.

Electives are some of the coolest classes you can take in high school. They can cover almost any topic, from pottery to poetry to Portuguese, but just like any other course you take in high school, colleges will be looking at your electives to see which classes you chose and the grades you got in them.

So which high school electives should you take, exactly?

In this guide we'll cover how to choose electives that you both enjoy and can use as a way to strengthen your college applications.

High school honors can mean a lot of different things. Sometimes it refers to honors courses in your school. Other times it refers to specific honors societies that you can join, like the National Honor Society.

Most high schools offer classes at three different levels: standard, honors, and AP. Standard will set you up with the basics, and AP is clearly connected to the AP exam—but what exactly does it mean when a class is honors level? And are honors classes connected to the various academic honors societies?

If you are having trouble figuring out which is the right fit for you, or deciding which one would do more for your college application, or trying to make sense of the many honors organizations out there, read on for our explanation.

If your high school has AP classes, you probably know a bit about which ones are offered and what they're like. AP classes are designed to be the equivalent of introductory-level college courses.

However, you may also have the opportunity to take a real college class at your local community college as a high school student. Which option should you choose?

Both community college classes and APs can be valuable additions to your transcript, but you might decide that one or the other is a better fit depending on your needs. I'll go through the advantages of each and give you the information you need to decide between them.

How exactly do you take a document that's as complicated as your transcript and shrink it all down to a single number? If you're wondering how to use the final grades you've gotten in high school to determine your GPA, then you've come to the right place. This article will show you how to make this calculation, step by step. But first, what exactly is a GPA?

Which science classes are you required to take in high school, and what will you learn in them? Which science subjects will colleges expect you to have studied, and how can you impress them by exceeding these expectations?

Read this guide to learn about the standard science curriculum, what kinds of AP and IB science courses there are, college expectations, and how you can exceed colleges' expectations and use your high school science classes to ultimately strengthen your transcript.

GPA is a measurement of your academic success in high school that colleges will consider very strongly in the admissions process. But what is a GPA scale?

Different high schools may use different GPA scales, and it's important to know how these scales work so that you get a better idea of where you stand. In this article, I'll tell you what a GPA scale is and the types of scales you might see used at your high school.

On the 4.0 scale, an unweighted 4.0 GPA means perfection. You need straight As in every class—not even one A- is allowed. In college applications, this carries a lot of weight. You're essentially telling the college, "High school classes are a cinch. I've taken a tough course load, and I'm more than prepared for what college has to throw at me."

In high school, I got a 4.0 GPA with a course load featuring 10 AP courses. I got straight As and 12 A+'s. This strong course load, along with a strong application, got me into Harvard and every college I applied to.

While it's flattering to say, "Well, Allen's just a smart guy," in reality I relied a lot more on high-level strategy and effective academic habits. These were the same strategies I applied to my undergraduate work at Harvard and that led me to graduate summa cum laude with a 3.95 GPA. This is the guide I wish I had my freshman year of high school.

Because final class grades in high school are usually given as either letters (A-, B+, etc.) or percents (87, 92, etc.), you might be a little stuck on how to convert these marks into the decimals that are used to calculate your GPA. No worries—this article is here to help! Keep reading to see how to translate all your grades into GPA-ready numbers.

Are you thinking about high school electives and wondering what your options are? Unlike required courses, electives are classes you choose based on your interests. Most high schools offer electives that cover a wide variety of topics, so you're sure to find some that interest you!

This list was created by compiling the elective options from numerous high schools across the country. A variety of schools were used including public, private, large and small schools in order to create a complete list of high school electives.

Are you a high school student who's thinking about graduating early? Maybe you have an exciting internship offer, want to start college early, or are interested in jumping right into the workforce.

The good news is that graduating high school early is often not as challenging as many people might think it is. This guide will give you all the tips and information you need to know about how to graduate from high school early in an easy and hassle-free way. It will also help you decide whether graduating early is ultimately the right decision for you.

Are you a high school student with dreams of studying pre-med in college and becoming a doctor? Maybe you've heard how difficult it can be to get into med school and are trying to plan ahead in order to raise your chances of acceptance? Well, you've come to the right place!

This guide will go over everything you can do in high school to make yourself more prepared to begin a pre-med program in college. I'll go over the classes you should be taking, the extracurriculars you should be participating in, and what you need to be thinking about as a high school student.

Are you wondering which classes to take in high school? Do you want to find out what courses may be offered for each subject?

We've compiled a complete list of high school classes for you to see all the possible course options high school students may have. We'll cover everything from science and math to electives and the humanities.

Are you transferring high schools or will be transferring soon? Are you wondering how this will affect your high school transcripts, when you'll graduate, and how schools view your college applications? Then this guide is for you!

Read on to learn how to transfer high schools, what it means for your future, and the steps you can take in order to make this process as smooth and easy as possible.