SUNY Sullivan welcomes applications from students who do not have traditional high school diplomas and have pursued secondary education in a non-traditional manner.
Students must have a high school diploma or equivalent in order to pursue a degree program at SUNY Sullivan, as outlined on our admissions processes website. Absent a high school diploma, an equivalent can be pursued:
- By obtaining a High School Equivalency diploma, as is offered at our partner Sullivan County BOCES or similar comparable location; or
- By providing a high school equivalency from the student’s home school district, as outlined below.
Degree-Seeking Home Schooled Candidates
Students who are of the age of compulsory secondary school attendance in New York State (or their home states) must submit:
- an Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP), which outlines the four-year high school course of instruction that the student is fulfilling; and
- a letter of permission from the home school district’s superintendent that certifies the student’s IHIP as the equivalent of the four-year high school course of instruction (and as such, giving approval for the IHIP).
Such candidates are required to interview with the Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs prior to enrollment.
Students who are older than the age of compulsory secondary school attendance in New York State (or their home states) must submit one of the following:
- a letter of permission from the home school district’s superintendent that certifies completion of a program that is an equivalent of the school’s four-year high school course of instruction; or
- a High School Equivalency Diploma; or
- 24 credit hours earned from a 24 Hour-Credit Program; or
- A degree from a previous accredited institution; or
- Evidence of having passed five Regents exams, as outlined by the New York State Education Department (*proposed in September 2017, pending final approval).
Non-Degree Seeking Home Schooled Candidates
Students without a high school diploma who do not wish to pursue a degree are welcome to apply as non-matriculated candidates. For home schooled candidates who are of the age of compulsory secondary school attendance in New York State (or their home states), they must submit the requirements listed above. For those older than the age of compulsory attendance, no such information is required.
Candidates with Online High School Diplomas
Candidates who have obtained their high school diplomas through an online secondary school or system should be aware of SUNY’s policies regarding recognition of such degrees:
“If the individual is a resident of the state where the high school is located, then that state has jurisdiction over the individual’s high school completion. The Board of Regents does not approve correspondence study, including on-line, as equivalent to a high school diploma for New York State residents. Therefore, the acquisition of an on-line high school diploma is only an option for those individuals who are a resident of the state where such on-line high school is recognized by the state.
Until such time as the Board of Regents approves an on-line or correspondence study program as authorized to award a high school diploma, correspondence study and on-line diplomas are not valid for individuals who were New York State residents at the time they received the on-line diploma. The individual would have to have been a resident of the state issuing the on-line diploma. They would then need to reestablish residency in New York State prior to being eligible for TAP. Students who were residents of States -other than New York – when they received an online high school diploma and who later establish residence in NYS, should have a document from the prior residential state’s State Education Department which indicates that a diploma presented by the online high school is a valid high school diploma for its residents.”
As a result, such candidates are welcome to apply as non-matriculated students.