Is Penn Foster a recommended school?

Answer 1

Sure, if you want to sit at home or work and not go to school. i know many people who didn't even go to high school but signed up for penn foster and went straight to college in 1 year finished all 4 years of high school. also they got financial aid, which is pretty good.

Answer 2

Penn Foster Career School is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), which is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency. Penn Foster Career School is licensed by the Pennsylvania State Board of Private Licensed Schools.

Penn Foster College is nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), a nationally-recognized accrediting agency which is approved by the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) and recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). In addition, the Penn Foster Veterinary Technician Associate Degree program is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA).

Penn Foster College is licensed by the Arizona State Board for Private Postsecondary Education. Penn Foster is authorized to grant Associate of Science degrees and Bachelor of Science degrees.

Penn Foster High School is regionally accredited by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools and nationally accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC). Penn Foster Career School (Penn Foster High School's parent school) is licensed by the Pennsylvania State Board of Private Licensed Schools. The school is registered with the NCAA Initial-Eligibility Clearing House.

Source: Wikipedia

From other contributors:

Yes it is accredited and here's the real truth
I sent an email to Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools asking them if Penn Foster is accredited by them and I'm going to copy and paste the email that they sent back to me.
The email I sent to them:
My question is Penn Foster high school claims to be accredited and I wanted to see if it is true. I'm a student of Penn Foster high school and I want to make sure they are accredited. The website states they are accredited by Middle states Commission on secondary school. PLEASE LET ME KNOW
The email they sent back to me:
The Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools accredits Penn Foster Career School located in Scranton, PA. The accreditation extends to the high school diploma and non-degree granting, post-secondary programs. The initial date of accreditation was 2002. Please visit their website for any additional information regarding the schools accreditation.
The Middle States Association is one of six regional accrediting agencies in the United States. We have 3500 members in the Mid-Atlantic region and at various locations around the world.
Sincerely,
Leslie A. Green
Information & Billing Assistant
Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools
3624 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
215-662-5603 x5039
267-284-5039 (Direct Dial)
215-662-0957 FAX
lgreen@css-msa.org
Penn Foster Career School is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools for our high school and vocational-technical programs.
Penn Foster Career School is accredited by the Accrediting Commission of the Distance Education and Training Council (DETC), which is listed by the U.S. Department of Education as a nationally recognized accrediting agency.
Penn Foster Career School is licensed by the Pennsylvania State Board of Private Licensed Schools.

In addition, Penn Foster Career School has been reviewed and approved as an Authorized Provider of continuing education and training programs by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).

Answer 3

Answer 1: No it is not. Penn Foster is nationally accredited.

Answer 2: The first answer is technically accurate, but incomplete. Here's the full answer...

Penn Foster College is only "nationally" accredited. However, Penn Foster High School is both "nationally" and "regionally" accredited; and so it's "national" accreditation, while nice, is trumped by its "regional" accreditation.

So, then, Penn Foster High School's diploma is as good as that issued by any regionally-accredited "in-classroom" high school in any local public school district anywhere in the United States. That it is earned online (instead of "in-classroom") makes not a whit of difference!

And please bear in mind that there is nothing categorically wrong with "national" accreditation... at least not at the college (post-secondary) level. Both "national" and "regional" accreditation are by agencies approved by the US Department of Education (USDE), and the USDE-sanctioned Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA). At he college level, either type of accreditation is generally acceptable; however, it's true that at least some employers, colleges/universities, and government agencies prefer "regional" accreditation. The CHEA "Higher Education Transfer Alliance" (HETA) program is intended to help the world understand that there's nothing inherently sub-standard about "national" accreditation, and that all accreditation, as long as it's blessed by USDE and/or CHEA, should be equally respected. But, alas, not everyone agrees. So, then, even at the college level it's safer to stick with schools that are "regionally" accredited; and Penn Foster College is not "regionally" accredited. It is "nationally" accredited.

At the high school level, though, only "regional" accreditation will do! Yes there are "nationally" accredited high schools out there; and they're better than no accreditation at all. However, few employers, most colleges/universities, and most government agencies will not accept a high school diploma that's not from a school that's "regionally" accredited. High school diplomas must be from "regionally" accredited schools. They simply must.

It matters not, mind you, if the school is of the "online" or "in-classroom" type. No one cares about that. But pretty much everyone wants to see high school diplomas that are "regionally" (and not "nationally") accredited.

Penn Foster High School is "nationally" accredited; but it's also "regionally" accredited. Therefore, it's "national" accreditation can sort of just be ignored, because its "regional" accreditation trumps.

Penn Foster's most direct competitor, Ashworth College, which is also "nationally" accredited at the college level, nevertheless also operates an online high school which is "regionally" accredited. Its called "James Madison High School," and it's quite good! Its high school diploma, too, is just as good as that offered by any regionally-accredited "in-classroom" high school in any local public school district anywhere in the United States.

REMEMBER: Whatever high school one chooses absolutely must be "regionally" accredited. It may be "nationally" accredited, too; but it should not only be "nationally" accredited. At the high school level, only "regional" accreditation will do.

Answer 4

Sure the school is real and regionally accredited stop listening to all of the stupid people on-line and search for information about the school with CHEA or the U.S. department of education. I did and found that most people get upset and post bogus stuff about Penn Foster because they can't pass the course!