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Credit Earning Pathways

Hanover High School Courses
Credit is awarded for successful completion of any course listed in the Hanover High School Program of Studies.

For additional information about additional learning opportunities see our Extended Learning and Student Supports pages.

Academic Credit – Minimum Accumulation
To be on schedule to graduate in 4 years, the number of credits required when entering each grade are:

  • Grade 10 a minimum of 5 credits
  • Grade 11 a minimum of 10 credits
  • Grade 12 a minimum of 15 credits

Course Load
The required workload for a full-time student is five courses.

1. A reduced program (fewer than five courses) must be approved by the Principal. To remain a student at Hanover High School, students must carry an approved course load, attend classes, and meet academic work obligations.
2. A Hartford Career & Technology Center course counts as the equivalent of three courses. Hartford courses count as 3 credits per year.
3. Dartmouth courses such as lab sciences and foreign language are tallied as two courses. Other Dartmouth courses generally count as one. A Dartmouth course counts as 1/2 credit per Dartmouth term.
4. A student who drops to less than four courses because of neglecting attendance and/or work responsibilities may be asked to drop out of school for the remainder of the semester.
 

Drop/Add
During the registration process, Hanover High School students should carefully consider their course registration selections. Course drop-adds are possible. Students are not encouraged to change courses, however, except when a course is judged inappropriate in terms of achievement level or skills needed. To help control both the quantity and legitimacy of drop-adds the following policy is strictly followed:

  • All drop requests are handled through a counselor.
  • Student-initiated adds must be undertaken within the first five days of a semester. A course added after this period needs the approval of the counselor and the department coordinator.
  • All changes of course level must be approved by the department coordinator.

  • In the first semester, student-initiated drops may occur during the first four weeks of a course without consequences to a student’s record.

    • Note #1: In the second semester, student-initiated drops may occur during the first four weeks of a course without consequences to a student's record for semester-long courses only. 

    • Note #2: Students may not drop the second semester of a full-year course without penalty as described in "withdrawing" in item 5. 
       

  • Any course dropped after the fourth week of the first semester will result in a WF (Withdrew Failing) in the student’s record and will be factored in the student’s GPA at a ½ credit, unless the drop is initiated by a teacher or counselor; in this case the record will indicate W (Withdrawn without penalty) and is not factored into the G.P.A. This rule also applies to semester long courses that begin the second semester.


Regarding any full-year course (see Program of Studies) that is dropped for the second semester. The student wilL receive the assigned grade and ½ credit for the first semester of the full-year course. The student will receive a “WF” for the second semester, which will be factored in the student’s GPA as a “0,” at a 1/2 credit.

A teacher or counselor may initiate a course drop only if they convinced that the student has been mistakenly enrolled in the wrong course and should be allowed to withdraw without penalty. Both the teacher and the counselor must agree about the appropriateness of dropping a course without penalty. Teacher or counselor initiated drops will not be allowed after the 10th week of a course. In cases of extended illness or special circumstances, the above limits may not apply. Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis by the school administration.

Any course dropped by default (meaning that no drop-add procedure was used and the student simply stopped attending) will result in the student’s record showing a WF for the duration of the course that was neglected.

Independent Study Standards

Independent Study/Alternative Credit Earning (IS/ACE) includes all Independent Study courses listed on a student's schedule plus any courses titles offered through the Personalized Learning Program Department (Work Study, Volunteer Service, Mentor, etc.) that require individual arrangements.

 
Formative
  • The maximum duration of any IS/ACE is one semester without the arrangement being redrawn.
  • All IS/ACE plans will be written.
  • A maximum of five school days is allowed for the formation of the basic plan. For any IS/ACE listed on a student’s schedule at the beginning of a semester, the clock starts ticking on the semester’s first day with two possible exceptions:
    • A pre-arrangement has been made with the teacher that is satisfactory to the teacher.
    • The student has a school-approved excused absence, whereupon the deadline will be extended by a number of days equal to the absence.
  • If a student fails to complete a satisfactory arrangement by the five-day limit, this fact will be reported by the teacher immediately to the student’s counselor who will consider the course listing dropped from that student’s program.
  • The IS/ACE formative stage is considered complete when all the substantive criteria are recorded in writing, and both the teacher and student have signed and dated the written plan.
  • If an IS/ACE proposal for credit needs to be approved by an academic department, the completed proposal must be acted upon within a stated number of school days of being submitted to that department. If no limit is stated, the proposal must be acted upon within five school days.
Substantive
All written IS/ACE plans must contain the following features:
  • A clear statement of the learning objective(s). *
  • A scheduled meeting time between teacher and student at no greater interval than one week. *
  • A clear statement of expected behaviors by the student and the procedures to be followed if the IS/ACE is not complied with, including cause for the IS/ACE to be terminated.
  • A clear statement of all required activities and their deadlines. *
  • A list of available resources and their locations.*
  • A clear statement of how the learning will be demonstrated. *
  • A clear statement of how the learning will be evaluated and what criteria will be employed to determine the final grade.
  • Designation of at least three interim evaluation checkpoints during the course of the work.
* These items may be revised during the course of the IS/ACE if agreed to by both the teacher and the student. All revisions must be written, dated, and initialed as amendments to the initial agreement. No revision will contradict the standards listed above.

Extended Learning Opportunities (ELOs)
ELOs are currently accepted at HHS for credit recovery or courses not offered at HHS. Any attempt to receive credit for courses required for graduation is subject to Counseling Department approval and must meet departmental guidelines. Approval must be received before beginning course work. Hanover High School will not grant credit for activities done without prior approval. Current online or correspondence course providers used by HHS include Keystone, the New Hampshire Virtual Learning Academy, and the University of Missouri. Credit determinations for summer school courses, ski academies, semester programs, local college programs other than Dartmouth College, and correspondence or online courses will be made by the Counseling Department. This will be done in conjunction with the appropriate department coordinator based on review of instructional hours, syllabus content, and accreditation status of the institution. Students must obtain prior approval through the Counseling Department to earn credit for courses not listed in the Hanover High School Program of Studies.

Home Schooling
APPROVED by COI, 12 January 1984
Revised: June 1999
Credit determination for an approved home school education plan will be made by the Counseling Department. This will be done in consultation with the appropriate department coordinator using indicators that include but need not be limited to standardized testing, portfolio content and individual assessment by professionals in the school district.

Ford Sayre Tutorial Program
All HHS Ford Sayre I and II skiers are eligible to participate in the tutorial program. The program is designed to allow skiers to train under optimum conditions. Participants will attend four morning classes at HHS and be tutored in one subject in the evening. All students who plan to participate in the Ford Sayre Tutorial should notify the Counseling Department by May 1. Program guidelines are available in the Counseling Office

 

Dartmouth Courses
Students interested in taking a Dartmouth course should refer to the guidelines below and consult with his/her guidance counselor. Students officially registered to take Dartmouth College courses will earn 1/2 HHS credit for each Dartmouth course completed successfully.

The following guidelines were developed with the Dean's Office at Dartmouth College. The general expectations for applying to take a Dartmouth Course while a student at Hanover High School are as follows:

READ DARTMOUTH COLLEGE'S PROGRAM POLICIES

 

  1. The student’s academic performance must be strong in all areas. Students approved to take Dartmouth courses generally rank in the top quarter of their class.
  2. The student should usually be in their junior or senior year.
  3. The student must have completed successfully (generally at an A-/A level) all course work at Hanover High School in the chosen field.
  4. The student must be a full-time student in the high school. This is defined as carrying the recommended five courses, with the Dartmouth course counting as one or two of them.
  5. During a student’s time at Hanover High School, the student may take a limit of four Dartmouth courses over 2 years but no more than one Dartmouth course per Dartmouth term.
  6. Once a student is enrolled in a Dartmouth course, a) the student is expected to complete the course unless they is forced to drop out for health reasons, and b) the student falls under the grading policies of Dartmouth College for that part of their program. Grades earned at Dartmouth will become part of the permanent record of the student.
  7. No Hanover High School student is to approach a Dartmouth instructor for admittance to a course as part of their high school program before they has made application through the high school’s Guidance Department.
  8. Once started students may continue taking Dartmouth courses as long as they earn grades of “B” or better

Guidelines for taking a Language Course at Dartmouth
Dartmouth College has made its foreign language programs available to Hanover High School students with proven ability for learning languages at an advanced level, upon the recommendation of Hanover High School’s Foreign Language Department. Due to the variety of foreign language courses offered both at Hanover High School and Dartmouth College, the following guidelines govern the availability of Dartmouth Language Courses to Hanover High School students.

1. Students wishing to take a Dartmouth Language Course must be juniors or seniors and have demonstrated outstanding ability (generally an A- average or better) in the study of a foreign language. These courses are not available to younger students because language learning at the middle-school level does not adequately demonstrate the ability to study a language at the college level.

2. Students wishing to enroll in advanced French, German, Latin, or Spanish courses at Dartmouth (levels 1, 2, and 3 are not available to Hanover High School students) must meet the following criteria:

  • They have successfully completed the highest level of the language intended for Advanced Study.
  • They have demonstrated competency to take an advanced level Dartmouth course.

3. Students wishing to enroll in languages not offered at Hanover High must meet at least one of the following criteria:

  • They have successfully completed two years of high school courses in that language (from a previous school).
  • They have demonstrated in that language a level of competency comparable to two years of study at the high school level based on extended residency in a foreign country or heritage learning within the family. Competency will be determined by the HHS Foreign Language Department using placement exams and department interviews.
  • They have successfully completed the highest level of a language offered at Hanover High School. Students with exceptional ability may apply to start a new language at Dartmouth while taking the highest-level course in the first language at HHS.

4. Hanover High School’s Foreign Language Department will review cases wherein a student’s circumstances do not fit neatly into any of the categories described above; the department coordinator will present the department’s decision to the student and his/her counselor.

Dartmouth College's Application Information

 
Study Abroad
A student planning to live abroad for more than one quarter of the Hanover High School year and wanting to earn credit toward graduation during that time must:
  • obtain prior approval through the Counseling Department for this plan, and
  • enroll in a recognized secondary school in the country where they will be living.
Hanover High School will not grant credit for activities done abroad without prior approval. If the school the student plans to attend is not a recognized secondary school, the student should see their counselor for available options. Hanover High School will accept the foreign school’s evaluation and award appropriate credit for work done there.

When accounting for course credit and reporting grades on school transcripts and permanent records, Hanover High School reserves the right to differentiate between work done at Hanover High School and work done in a foreign school.
 
For courses in which the student was here only part of the term, the student will receive separate quarter grades as reported by the different institutions instead of a final grade.

Hartford Area Career & Technology Center
Academic credit through vocational education may be earned for courses studied at the Hartford Area Career & Technology Center. After completing two full years of study in a vocational school subject the following academic credits may be earned:

For 2 years of study in: 1 Credit In:
Allied Medical Services Science
Auto Technology Science
Building Trades Mathematics
Business Technology English
Career & Technology Exploration Math, English, Art
Collision Repair and Refinishing Math or Science
Computer Technology Application Mathematics
Cosmetology Science
Culinary Arts Science
Design, Illustration. and Media Arts Art
Engineering/Architectural I Design Mathematics
Human Services Social Studies (not history, government, or economics)
Industrial Mechanics and Welding Science
Natural Resources Science