If you completed high school outside the U.S., follow the steps below to accurately complete your Self-reported Transcript and Academic Record System (STARS) Record.
List Your Secondary Schools
- List each secondary school you attended, typically equivalent to U.S. high school grades 9–12.
- Enter attendance dates starting with grade 9.
- If you attended the school before 9th grade, only include dates for grades 9–12.
- If 9th or 10th grade were completed in middle school, add the school to list the 9th and 10th grade courses. Enter the dates of attendance for 9th and 10th.
Select Your School Year Format
- If your school year runs September–June, select: “My school follows a traditional U.S. academic year.”
- If your school uses a January–December calendar year, select: “My school follows a calendar year schedule.”
Select Education System / Curriculum
- Choose your school’s Education System / Curriculum (e.g., Atestat, CBSE, IB, WASSCE).
- If your school used a different education system each year, you may select the education system for each academic year (and for each course).
Grading Scale and Conversions
- Select a Grade Scale (i.e., Letter Grades, Number Grades, Letter and Number Grades, Decimal Grades, Narrative / Descriptive).
- If you select Number Grades, Decimal Grades, or Letter & Number Grades, complete the Number-to-Letter Grade Scale Conversion when prompted on the Enter Coursework screen. If more than one grade scale is used for an academic year, complete the number to letter grade scale conversion for the scale that reflects how most of your grades were issued for that year. You will be able to select the grade scale for each course as well.
GPA and Class Rank
- Complete the Cumulative GPA and Class Rank fields for each secondary school, if available on your transcript.
- Use the same grading scale your transcript uses (e.g., 4.0 or 100-point scale).
STARS supports numerous class rank formats. Select the one that matches your transcript.
- Enter GPA and rank exactly as shown on your transcript. Do not round, average, or convert.
School Counselor
- Complete the name, email, and phone number for your school counselor, if known.
- This is not a required field. If you do not have any counselor information to record you may leave this section blank.
Enter Coursework and Exams
- Click Enter Coursework to begin entering your courses and grades for grades 9–12.
- Use your original academic reports and transcripts.
- Include results from external exams such as:
- IB, IGCSE, O-Level, AS / A-Level, HKDSE, SPM, CISCE, CBSE
- Follow prompts like:
“Based on the Educational System / Curriculum you have indicated, please enter any External Exams you sat for in place of the In-Class/Internal courses and grades you received for this year.” - Choose the Education System / Curriculum for each academic year.
- Complete the courses / exams taken in (e.g., Equivalent to U.S. High School 9th Grade) for each academic year.
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Complete each of the following field for each course / exam:
- Subject Area
- Course Exam / Content
- Course Exam / Name
- Proficiency Level
- Course Length / External Exam
- Language of Instruction
- Education System / Curriculum for the course
- Grading Scale (if prompted)
- Grade
- Save Course
- If you are in your final year, enter your in-progress 12th grade courses and / or external exams.
Submit and Link
- Once all entries are complete, click Submit.
- Be sure to link your STARS record to each college application.
Helpful Tip
Tip: Use your official transcripts and exam results. Do not estimate or convert grades unless instructed.