English Composition 1
Self-paced online English Composition 1 course (ENG 101). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
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How to homeschool in Tennessee: high school and college courses
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
How to homeschool in Tennessee starts with choosing an independent home school, registered with your district, or a church-related umbrella school. The parent teaches and picks the curriculum. Plan 180 days a year, keep records, and in high school decide where college-level courses and the Dual Enrollment Grant fit. Check the current law with your district.
Step 1: choose independent or umbrella
The Comptroller's 2018 brief describes two options. An independent home school files an Intent to Home School form and registers with the local district. A church-related umbrella school enrols your child and notifies the district for you.
For high school the difference is mostly about records and the diploma. Independent families keep their own records and the parent issues the diploma. Umbrella schools keep the records and issue the diploma themselves.
Step 2: check the parent and time rules
Under the independent option, the brief says the parent needs a high school diploma or equivalent and teaches at least four hours a day for 180 days. Independent families also give the district their intent, the children's names and grades, the location, the proposed curriculum and the hours of instruction before each school year.
Under an umbrella school, the brief says a parent teaching grades 9 to 12 needs a diploma or equivalent, and the year is 180 days. Your umbrella school may add its own rules.
- Independent: diploma or equivalent; 4 hours a day, 180 days; notice to the district each year.
- Umbrella: diploma or equivalent for grades 9-12; 180 days; the umbrella school's own rules.
- Both: the parent teaches and chooses the curriculum.
Step 3: plan the high school years
Tennessee does not require home schools to follow state academic standards, so the high school plan is yours. Work back from the colleges your teen may apply to and check what they expect in English, maths, science, social studies and a language.
Keep a simple record for each course: what was studied, the materials, the grade and the credit given. That record becomes the transcript, whether you write it or the umbrella school does.
Step 4: add college courses
In the later years, home school students can take dual enrollment courses at a Tennessee college, and the Comptroller states they are eligible for the Dual Enrollment Grant. TSAC sets how many courses the grant funds and how much it pays, so check this year's figures.
Earlier in high school, or past the funded courses, some families add self-paced college-level courses at home. They count as high school credit as the parent or umbrella school decides. College credit comes only via a college transcript, so ask colleges in writing first.
Where UPI Study fits
UPI Study offers college-level courses such as English Composition 1 and 2, College Algebra, US History 1 and Introduction to Psychology. They are ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended. We are not a college and not accredited, so any college credit comes only via a college transcript, and only counts if the college agrees. Partner colleges such as Thomas Edison State University, University of the People and Newlane University consider such credit. The homeschool lifetime plan is $250 once.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Before you enrol, ask TSAC and the college about the grant's current limits, and ask each college on your teen's list in writing whether it reviews ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
Do I need a teaching licence to homeschool in Tennessee?
No teaching licence is mentioned for either option in the Comptroller's 2018 brief. Independent home school parents need a high school diploma or equivalent; umbrella school parents need one for grades 9 to 12. Check the current rules with your district.
Do homeschoolers in Tennessee take standardized tests?
The 2018 brief says independent home school students take standardized tests in grades 5, 7 and 9, with results reported to the district. For umbrella students the law is unclear and the umbrella school sets its own approach.
Who gives my homeschooler a diploma in Tennessee?
For an independent home school, the parent issues the diploma. For an umbrella school, the umbrella school issues it. Either way, keep a clear transcript of courses, grades and credits for college applications.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
English Composition 2
Self-paced online English Composition 2 course (ENG 102). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
College Algebra
Self-paced online College Algebra course (Math 111). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
Ask TSAC, your umbrella school if you use one, and the colleges on your list in writing first.
Sources
- Tennessee Comptroller, Office of Research and Education Accountability: Home Schooling in Tennessee (legislative brief, April 2018) (official)Home school students are eligible to enroll in dual enrollment courses and to receive the lottery-funded dual enrollment grant; two home school types (independent and church-related umbrella school); umbrella schools must belong to one of eight organizations in TCA 49-50-801(a); independent: Intent to Home School form and district registration, parent diploma or GED, parent keeps records and issues the diploma, 4 hours a day for 180 days, standardized tests in grades 5, 7 and 9; umbrella: school keeps records and issues the diploma, parent diploma or GED for grades 9-12, 180 days. Its 2018 grant amounts are out of date and are not used. Checked on 15 Nov 2026.