Missouri · high school · 2026-2027 school year
Missouri homeschool graduation requirements, diploma, and transcript
Trellis has no step-by-step law page for Missouri yet. The state's own statute and agency sources at the end of this page are the primary references.
Missouri's homeschool statute sets no required courses or credit hours. The parent issues the diploma, which is legally recognized; the state provides none for homeschoolers. Missouri does mandate at least 1,000 hours of instruction a year with named core subjects (Mo. Rev. Stat. § 167.031), but sets no required courses or credit hours for a diploma.
The short version
- Who sets the requirement: the state's graduation rules bind public schools, not homeschools. The parent issues the diploma.
- The reference standard: the public-school minimum is 24 credits, and that table is the common starting point a transcript is read against; colleges set their own expectations on top of it, below.
- What colleges actually look for: the universities in the table below publish their own course expectations.
- What a transcript must show: courses by year, credits, and grades, kept by the parent, with the same subject headings the reference table uses.
- Across states: compare what 51 flagship universities ask.
The public-school credit table, for reference
Missouri's public-school diploma requires 24 credits. A homeschool is not held to it. It is shown as the reference a transcript is commonly read against. A recruited athlete also registers with the NCAA Eligibility Center, which grades home-school core courses against its own worksheet, separate from this table.
| Subject | Credits | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| English | 4 | Public-school minimum (5 CSR 20-100.190), for reference only. |
| Math | 3 | Must pass Algebra I or Algebra II end-of-course exam. |
| Science | 3 | Must pass Biology I end-of-course exam. |
| Social studies | 3 | US and MO Constitution exams; civics exam. Government end-of-course exam required. |
| PE and health | 1.5 | 1 credit PE, 0.5 health (personal finance is its own half credit, on the Other row). |
| Arts | 1 | fine arts. |
| Electives | 7 | |
| Other | 1.5 | practical arts. Practical arts 1 credit plus the 0.5-credit personal finance course. |
Assessments in the public-school rules: Public-school students must pass end-of-course exams in Algebra I or II, Biology I, English II, and Government, plus constitution/civics tests; none of this applies to a homeschool-issued diploma.
What Missouri colleges ask a homeschooled applicant for
Missouri publishes a single statewide recommended college-prep core (CBHE), so meeting it satisfies the general expectation across the state's public universities even though each campus sets its own final admission line.
Years of each subject. 0 means the university lists no requirement in that subject; a dash means it publishes no figure for it.
flagship University of Missouri (Mizzou)
| Subject | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| English | 4 | 4 |
| Math | 4 | 4 |
| Science | 3 | 3 |
| Social studies | 3 | 3 |
| Foreign language | 2 | 2 |
| Arts | 1 | 1 |
17 required core units total (4 English, 4 math, 3 science, 3 social studies, 2 foreign language, 1 fine arts); all math must be Algebra I or higher.
Core GPA is calculated from English, math, science, social studies and foreign language grades plus the highest fine-arts grade. Mizzou's page adds a rule for home-schooled applicants: at least a 24 ACT composite or 1160 SAT, and no test-optional review. University of Missouri (Mizzou) requirements (source), checked 2026-09-01.
CBHE-recommended core curriculum (statewide, used by Missouri's public universities generally)
| Subject | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| English | 4 | 4 |
| Math | 3 | 4 |
| Science | 3 | 4 |
| Social studies | 3 | 4 |
| Foreign language | 0 | 2 |
| Arts | 1 | 1 |
3 additional units from foreign language/math/English/social studies/science/computer science
Coordinating Board for Higher Education's 24-unit recommended high school core; individual public universities set their own admission thresholds around it. CBHE-recommended core curriculum (statewide, used by Missouri's public universities generally) requirements (source), checked 2026-09-05.
Questions families ask
Does Missouri require a homeschool diploma?
Show answer
How many credits does a Missouri homeschool diploma need?
Show answer
Who signs a homeschool transcript in Missouri?
Show answer
What does University of Missouri (Mizzou) expect from a homeschooled applicant?
Show answer
How Trellis checks your transcript against this table
In Trellis, the courses you plan and the work your children check off become the transcript as you go. The graduation card reads that transcript against the table above and says, subject by subject, what is earned and what is still open, and it notices a course filed under the wrong heading before a college does. Nothing is retyped at the end of senior year.
Start your family's transcript Every state's pages