Private Penn Foster Online High School is a for-profit high school for remote learning and is located in the United States. It was established as the International Correspondence Schools in 1890. (ICS).
With over 60,000 students enrolled in all 50 states, Penn Foster High School is essentially the biggest high school in the country. It appears that programs are self-paced. Both nationally and regionally accredit the school. The organization’s main office is in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
It offers a high school diploma program as well as a number of high school direction of attention programs, such as an early college program for students looking to begin their college education and vocational concentrations in information technology, electrical, plumbing, carpentry, and health care.
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History of Penn Foster High School
Thomas J. Foster, a newspaper editor, founded the International Correspondence Schools in 1890 to provide coal miners with the education they required to advance in their fields of work and improve worker safety. The success of the institution “depends on trying to understand the industry and its potential pupils,” according to an ICS history. It was inspired by the well-known Horatio Alger writings, and people tried to rise above their circumstances by picking themselves up by the bootstraps and moving up the social and economic ladder. State universities, such Penn State College, began to compete with ICS in the 1890s. Additionally, public education expanded globally by the 1920s. ICS lost pupils when correspondence schools lost their appeal.
Following several name changes in the 1990s, Penn Foster High School, Penn Foster Career School, and Penn Foster College took the place of ICS in 2006. The school was acquired by the Wicks Group, a private equity company, from Thomson Corporation in 2007. They then sold Penn Foster to test preparation and educational assistance organization The Princeton Review in the year 2009.
The Princeton Review’s operations and brand were bought in 2012 for $33 million by private equity firm Charlesbank Capital Partners. The biological business was given the new name Education Holdings 1, Inc. Education Holdings 1 declared bankruptcy in 2013 and exited two months later. And in 2014, Martin Nesbitt’s Vistria Group acquired Penn Foster. In 2018, Bain Capital acquired Penn Foster from Vistria Group.
What You Need to Know About Penn Foster High School
Open enrollment is available at the university, and as it is an online school, students are not required to work one-on-one with qualified instructors. Instead, kids must finish lessons in a fashion akin to a pleasant conversation school. Students must complete five elective courses in addition to the required core curriculum in order to graduate from high school. These elective courses can be used by students to focus on certain industries, such as information technology, building technology, or health care, or they can take authorized college-level courses. Students and recent graduates can use Penn Foster’s Career Services, which offers assistance with writing resumes and cover letters, job search advice, and interview preparation.
Penn Foster High School has over 13,000 students and 11.5 FTE (full-time equivalent) instructors, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
There are many clubs and social groups at the school. They have a photography club, a friends of hope club, a 20s club, a DIY club, a cooking club, a night owls club, a stand strong club, a science club, a quote club, a words of faith club, a club for Penn Foster pets, and a writers and poetry club.
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Admission Requirements of Penn Foster High School
Students must have finished the eighth grade in order to enroll in Penn Foster High School. A High School Diploma is required for enrollment in some of the institution’s online certificate programs and career diploma programs. To enroll in a Bachelor’s degree, Associate degree, or undergraduate certificate at Penn Foster College, students are required to have a High School Diploma or GED Equivalency Certificate.
A High School Diploma is also required for enrollment in several of the institution’s career diploma programs. Students enrolled in the Penn Foster program are required to have email accounts, high-speed Internet access, a Microsoft Windows-based computer running Windows 10 or later, or an Apple Mac computer running macOS or later. These technological specifications are subject to limitations, nevertheless.

Penn Foster High School Tuition and Payment Options
1. Full payment
Another method to save with Penn Foster is to pay in full. You could save up to 25% if you choose the “pay-in-full” option. The whole cost of tuition, which may include course materials, books, and the devoted faculty support of the institution, is actually covered by this one-time payment.
2. Payment Programs
Regardless of whether you wish to pay your tuition in full upfront or—better yet—by check or money order, you can set up an automatic payment schedule. Penn Foster collaborates with you to develop a workable approach. Whatever it is that you pick or decide, Penn Foster teaching members will provide you with a variety of educational resources as part of your tuition. High school grads often make about $8,000 or more year, which is even more than nongraduates. Earning a high school diploma is quite doable with payment plans that start at less than $2 a day and the option to start for just $1.
Is Penn Foster High School Free?
If the high school program were free like it is other school districts, you might be wondering. Sorry to deflate your illusion. Penn Foster High School is a private institution; attendance is not free. As a result, they receive funding from students’ tuition payments, as opposed to public schools, which receive funding from locals’ taxes.
How fast can I complete the high school program?
The amount of time it takes a student to finish a course depends on how many hours per week they can spend studying.
With normal study habits, a student who enters Penn Foster High School without any transfer credits can complete the course work in about nine months.
Do employers take Penn Foster degrees?
No assurances are made by Penn Foster. You’re on your own after your studies are through. Nationally certified schools don’t generally concern corporations.
Your best strategy is to decide what profession you want to work in before searching for the necessary certifications, either through a nearby institution or through proctored exams.
What Happens if I Fail an Exam at Penn Foster?
You might be worried about the consequences of failing a test if you’re considering enrolling in a Penn Foster program or are already doing so.
With the flexibility of a self-paced, online education, you can take the time you need to study and understand the material, but things happen. If you fail the first time, follow these steps to progress:
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For High School, Career School and College
1. Multiple Choice Exams
A multiple-choice test can be taken again if you don’t get an A on it the first time. If you believe you can perform better or if you need a passing grade, you can review your notes and study materials and try again.
Your options for retaking the test, however, are time-limited! You may repeat the exam within 30 days following your initial attempt. Each exam can only be taken again once. Additionally, at Penn Foster, a higher grade is the one that appears on your transcript.
2. High School, Career School, Projects and College Written Assignments
Some of your courses will require you to submit writing assignments or projects through your Student Portal. If your contribution does not follow the criteria, they will return it without grading and with teacher feedback.
3. College Proctored Exams
Proctored tests are final exams that students must take at the end of a semester or at the completion of a course in a college degree program.
The regulations for retakes on failed proctor exams vary, so if you’re scared you won’t pass, check-in with your instructor using your Student Portal’s Help Center. Therefore, with the information above, you can recover from an exam you failed. Besides that, the help of their flexible, online courses and committed instructors and teaching assistants will come in handy.
FAQS on Penn Foster Online High School
Is Penn Foster a legitimate high school?
Penn Foster is legitimate – it's regionally and nationally accredited, and licensed – you shouldn't have any issues when you use your diploma on your job applications!
Is Penn Foster a good online school?
Penn Foster High School is also nationally accredited through the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC). DEAC is a national board that evaluates and accredits distance and online education providers. Like regional accreditation, schools must meet the commission's standards to be given recognition.
Is Penn Foster High School free?
Penn Foster High School is a private school and funded through tuition paid by the students, unlike public schools that are funded from taxes paid by residents of that community.
How long is a course at Penn Foster?
With Penn Foster College, you set your own pace... complete your studies as quickly or as slowly as you like. You can take up to 12 months to finish each semester of a Degree Program.
Conclusion
In contrast to public schools, which are undoubtedly supported by local taxpayers’ taxes, Penn Foster High School is a private institution that is funded by the tuition paid by its students.
If textbooks are part of your program, you will receive them as you need them for the duration of the course. In essence, they are now shipped so that you get them when you are prepared to start the lesson for which you need them. Through the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC), Cognia, and the Commission on Secondary Schools of the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, they granted regional and national accreditation to Penn Foster’s online High School (CSS-MSA).
The reality is that a high school diploma’s acceptance varies by college or university. Therefore, no level of certification can guarantee that a high school credential will be accepted by any employer or earning institution. In actuality, you can contact instructors by phone, email, or chat! The qualified and experienced professors at Penn Foster are ready to help you if you are having difficulties with your class or project.
Over 43,000 graduates from throughout the country receive their high school degrees from home on their terms each year, thanks in part to Penn Foster.
To sum up, you are absolutely free to take your first step towards the future and that illustrious job you desire now that you are aware that Penn Foster High School offers an online curriculum that is accredited rather than others.
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