Get a Head Start on a Healthcare Career While Earning Your Accredited High School Diploma

The Healthcare Elective Pathway is an elective option within the Penn Foster High School Diploma Program. The main difference is in your elective coursework. If you choose the Healthcare Elective Pathway, you’ll take two electives that focus on foundational healthcare concepts, from HIPAA to medical terminology. For your other three electives, you can choose whichever classes interest you most. If you are transferring credits from a previous high school, not all elective credits may transfer since you must complete the two healthcare electives to earn your diploma.

If you choose the standard Penn Foster High School Diploma Program, you don’t have any preset electives; you’ll choose all five electives yourself.

You can! We want you to be able to pick up where you left off, so we’ll take a look at your official school transcript and see which classes work. Credits for healthcare electives won’t necessarily transfer in, but you may have credits transfer for the three additional electives you need to take. Visit our high school credit transfer page for more details.

Yes, there's help available! Even though Penn Foster is meant to allow you to learn on your terms, you’re not alone. You can get help in a few different ways. If you’re independent and think you can figure it out on your own, you can start by checking out our Learning Resource Center 24/7. But if you want support from a human, your teachers are here to help! You can access academic support by submitting a case through your Learner Center when you’re enrolled or by making an appointment to speak with an instructor one on one.

When you successfully complete all the academic and financial requirements of the program, you’ll receive an official copy of your transcripts, your diploma (both a physical and digital copy), and a certificate of completion showing you finished your healthcare coursework. Your diploma, transcripts, and certificate will be mailed to the address on file, so make sure it’s up to date.

The High School Diploma with Healthcare Elective Pathway is designed to help you get a head start on learning essential healthcare knowledge and skills while you finish high school. Once you successfully graduate, you can take the next steps toward training for a healthcare career. As a Penn Foster High School graduate, your healthcare classes may transfer into Penn Foster College’s Medical Billing and Coding, Medical Assistant, or the Medical Administrative Assistant Career Diploma programs. Each class that transfers can save you time and money on your studies!

Yes, though it’s important to note that all colleges have different admissions requirements, so admission isn’t guaranteed . Before enrolling, it’s important to check with colleges and universities you may be interested in to see if they accept Penn Foster.

You can check out the schools Penn Foster High School alumni have been accepted to in the past. These results are self-reported from our graduates, so it’s not a guarantee that you will be accepted to the same schools.

To enroll in the program, you need to be at least 13 years old and have completed the 8th grade. There’s no minimum or maximum age for taking the healthcare electives, but some healthcare training programs may have minimum age requirements for enrolling or completing any externship components.