Footprints plus Maths is the hassle-free way to achieve the AHSD!*
The Footprints and Voetspore curricula make earning an American High School Diploma, as a recognised foreign grade 12 credential, as easy as 1-2-3.
*Just add Maths and one Science credit!
American High School Diploma for Homeschoolers in SA
The American High School Diploma (AHSD) is exactly what its name says, a school leaving qualification issued by North American schools, that enables home educators (and others) to prove that they have completed their high school education and are ready for further study, work or other career paths.
In South Africa, an American high school diploma is recognised as being comparable to an NQF level 4 qualification, which is the same level as the National Senior Certificate (matric), the GED or a Cambridge matric qualification. NQF refers to the National Qualifications Framework on which all local qualifications are ranked.
When a student has completed four years of high school level education and fulfilled the requirements to achieve their AHSD, he or she will receive a transcript (report card) with test scores and an official high school diploma. The minimum age to enrol for the AHSD is age 13 or for Grades 9-12.
AHSD is Recognised in South Africa
To achieve an AHSD in South Africa that will be recognised by the local regulatory bodies, such as Universities South Africa (USAf), a student must be enrolled in a registered American school and achieve prescribed scores. (More on that follows.)
Students with an AHSD may study further and enrol in Higher Certificate (NQF 5) and Diploma courses at universities, tertiary colleges and vocational schools in South Africa. They may need to first apply to SAQA (the South African Qualifications Authority) for a Certificate of Evaluation. This is standard practice with most foreign credentials. Always check the admission requirements for the college or university of your choice.
University Exemption for Admission to Degree Courses with AHSD
To be eligible to apply for conditional exemption from the SA Matriculation Board, run by USAf, so that they may apply for admission to Degree courses at SA universities, AHSD candidates must meet specified criteria:
1. The AHSD must be issued by a registered school in the USA
2. The student must achieve a minimum Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.5 (out of 4) i.e. scores of 87% or higher
3. The student must pass the SAT test with a minimum score of 1130 (out of 1600) OR a student may take two Advanced Placement (AP) tests.
AP Tests are tests in specific subjects, e.g. Chemistry, Physics or History etc. and achieve a grade 3-5 pass. (The AP tests are scored out of 5.)
AP Tests can only be written in Cape Town in South Africa, whereas the SAT is offered in multiple cities around the country. Families must research the admission policies of the university of choice plus the faculty-specific minimum requirements for admission to the degree of choice. Required minimum SAT scores differ for various degree programs, like engineering, medicine, and veterinary science. These degree programs require a higher SAT score than others.
Previous American high school graduates in South Africa have been accepted locally at the University of Pretoria, University of Stellenbosch, University of North-West, VEGA, Eduvos, STADIO, Red & Yellow, Da Vinci Business School, Open Window, IMM Graduate School of Marketing, Akademia, and Sol-Tech, to name a few. Various universities and colleges in the USA, Thailand, and Spain have accepted students internationally.
A Registered American School – Home Life Academy in partnership with Diversio Academy
Home Life Academy, in Jackson, Tennessee is a registered school (to meet requirement #1 listed above) which is an excellent pick as it offers home educators maximum freedom of choice in terms of curricula. Diversio Academy in South Africa works in partnership with Home Life Academy to give local homeschoolers enrolled at Home Life Academy the administrative support that they need.
While there are other American schools offering AHSD, most of them are expensive and require students to enrol in the specific (online) courses that they offer for a fee. In contrast, with Home Life Academy, you are free to pick and choose the curriculum products that you prefer for your children to meet the prescribed credit requirements.
Home Life Academy requires students to achieve 22 high school level credits over four years of high school education for their AHSD.
What is a Credit?
Credits are used to determine whether a student has met academic requirements and one credit usually requires 150 hours of study in a given subject (roughly 5 hours of study per day for 30 weeks). The average school year in South Africa consists of 40 weeks. However, you do not have to log the hours that your children study. Many high school courses have already been evaluated and are designed to equal one credit each.
Recommended Course For SA Home Educators Over 4 Years
Students must achieve the following to earn the AHSD from Home Life Academy.
| SUBJECT | NO. of CREDITS | EXAMPLES OF COURSES |
| English | 4 credits (one per year) | High school level English (For foreign national families, we allow students to take English as a Second Language (ESL) courses to fulfill the English requirements.) (Afrikaans as first or second language is an Elective) |
| Maths | 4 credits (one per year) | Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, Calculus, Maths Literacy, Business Maths, Accounting or any other maths course |
| Social Studies | 3 credits | Footprints The Early Years/Voetspore – Die Vroeë Jare, Footprints – The Last Century/Voetspore – Die Laaste Eeu, US History, Christian Worldview, Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, Philosophy, Theology, Civics, Contemporary Issues or other social studies courses |
| Science | 3 credits | Footprints Nature Quest/Natuurskattejag 1 & 2, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Integrated Science or other science courses |
| Physical Education | 1 credit | 150 hours of any physical activity or sport, eg. hiking, walking, swimming, tennis, dance etc. (over 4 years) |
| Personal Finance | ½ credit | Footprints Personal Finance |
| Health | ½ credit | Footprints Health and Nutrition Course |
| Electives | 6 credits | Afrikaans, Music Appreciation, Art Appreciation, Second or Foreign Language courses or other subjects |
| TOTAL (minimum required for graduation) | 22 credits |
Home Life Academy empowers you, the parent, to customise each child’s education to suit each child’s goals. As stated previously, the great advantage of using their service is that you are free to choose the curriculum products you wish your family to enjoy. No external exams are required to achieve the AHSD but you do need to assess your children’s work and assign scores. These must be submitted so that your child’s Grade Point Average(GPA) can be calculated.
Remember, the above list of subjects and credits must be completed over four years, so in one year, a home educated student might study the following and potentially earn 6.75 credits:
- Footprints – The Early Years / Voetspore 1
- Footprints Nature Quest / Natuurskattejag 1
- Footprints Personal Finance (coming soon)
- Maths
Diversio Academy has calculated that over the four years of high school, if students complete four Maths courses plus all our Footprints programmes, they will easily meet the 22 credit requirement. That’s why we say:
Footprints/Voetspore plus Maths is the hassle-free way to achieve the AHSD!*
*Just add one high school science credit, such as one of the Apologia Science courses or any other, to meet the AHSD requirements.
*Afrikaans students must complete an English second language course each year to earn the compulsory English credits, if they use the Afrikaans Voetspore and Natuurskattejag programmes, but they could earn 4 elective credits for Afrikaans too.
Footprints Credits
Diversio Academy has evaluated the Footprints programmes and because they are multi-subject courses, students can potentially achieve multiple credits in the various subjects, as shown below. You can contact Diversio for further guidance or a consultation about your child’s educational plan, before you enrol your child for the AHSD.
Please note that to achieve the maximum number of credits shown below, there are more detailed requirements to ensure your child achieves this credit recognition, while using the various Footprints programmes, once they are enrolled to achieve the AHSD.
| Footprints – The Early Years / Voetspore 1 – Die Vroeë Jare | |
| SUBJECT | CREDITS |
| Early South African History/Geography | 1 |
| English 9/Afrikaans Foreign Language 1 | 1 |
| Music and Art Appreciation | 0.5 |
| Visual Performance/Art | 0.5 |
| Bible Study | 0.5 |
| TOTAL | 3.5 |
| Footprints – The Last Century / Voetspore 2 – Die Laaste Eeu | |
| SUBJECT | CREDITS |
| South African History/Geography | 1 |
| English 10/Afrikaans Foreign Language 2 | 1 |
| Music and Art Appreciation | 0.5 |
| Visual Performance/Art | 0.5 |
| Bible Study | 0.5 |
| TOTAL | 3.5 |
Footprints Nature Quest (2 years) / Natuurskattejag 1 & 2 (oor 2 jaar)
Footprints Nature Quest is one programme consisting of 12 sections. In the Afrikaans version, it is split into two programmes consisting of six sections each, namely Natuurskattejag 1 and Natuurskattejag 2. The content and topics are identical in English and Afrikaans but the stories included in the programmes in each language are different.
| Footprints Nature Quest / Natuurskattejag 1 & Natuurskattejag 2 | ||
| SUBJECT | CREDITS | SUBJECT AREA |
| SA Geography 1 & 2 | 1 (0.5 credit each year) | Social Studies |
| English 11 & 12 or Afrikaans Home Language 3 & 4 | 2 | English/Foreign Language |
| Art | 0.5-2 | Elective |
| Photography | 0.5-2 | Elective |
| Graphic Design | 0.5-2 | Elective |
| Tourism | 0.5-2 | Elective |
| Ecology & Environmental Science | 2 (1 credit per subject after completion of either Footprints Nature Quest or Natuurskattejag 1 & 2) | Science** |
| Physical Education | 0.25-2 | Physical Education |
| TOTAL (potential maximum) | 15 | |
** Since students need a total of 3 credits for Science to achieve the AHSD, you will need to add one other high school science course.
More Credits from Footprints
These are additional (forthcoming) courses from Footprints which will also count as credits towards AHSD.
| SUBJECT | CREDITS* | SUBJECT AREA |
| Personal Finance | 0.5 | Personal Finance |
| Health and Nutrition | 0.5 | Health |
| Civics and Government (South African Parliament and Voting System) | 0.5 | Social Studies |
| Apologetics | 0.5 | Elective: Bible, Religious Studies |
* As these courses are forthcoming, the exact number of credits is still to be confirmed.
Costs
Enrollment with Home Life Academy is $200 per year per family (January 2025). A discount is provided when signing up through Diversio Academy.
For grade 12 students, a senior fee of $110 is required to cover transcripts, diploma, reviews and counseling during the senior year
Diversio Academy offers a range of other optional services for a fee to assist you with course planning and record-keeping. They also offer private consultations and group rates for group enrolments to suit learning centres and co-ops. Please contact Diversio Academy for more information.
To enrol with Home Life Academy a parent must submit the following after consulting with Diversio Academy:
1. A prescribed enrolment form
2. Individual educational plan (IEP) for each student for the year of enrolment
3. Previous (home)school records for all years of high school that a student may have already completed with grades achieved.
4. Proof of payment
For more information about the American High School Diploma, please contact Diversio Academy. Email admin@diversioacademy.com
The video clip below contains more detailed information about the AHSD.