6 Advantages of Having A High School Diploma
Does having a diploma really make a difference? It certainly can! While we all have different goals and talents, a solid education can open up doors to many opportunities. Besides offering the potential to qualify for more jobs, earning your high school diploma can also have a positive impact on your life. Alex Thome, Vice President of Penn Foster High School, explains, “Having a high school diploma can help you earn more, but what it really does is help remove major obstacles that might keep you from going to college, being more respected by your employer, or getting more career training. I think of our high school as a driver of hope and economic mobility – that's what our graduates and learners tell us.”
Benefits of obtaining a high school diploma
Here are 6 advantages of getting your high school diploma:
1. Earn a higher income
While money alone doesn't measure success, earning a higher paycheck can help you improve your quality of life, save money, and broaden your shopping, dining, and entertainment options, as well as simply being able to provide for your family. Healthcare costs are also a factor for many, one that can cause a large amount of financial stress. Here are some statistics that may interest you about having your high school diploma:
- You can earn on average $171 more a week with a high school diploma than without, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- The unemployment rate is higher for those without a high school diploma at 5.5% than with a diploma at 4%.
- 32% of jobs require a high school diploma.
The more education you have, the more money you have the potential to make. Employers like to know you have the basics under your belt, and a high school diploma shows them that.
Read more: Does Education Make a Difference in Salary? (How Learning More May Help You Earn More)
2. Be more competitive when you're applying for a new job
More and more jobs today require you to have a high school diploma or equivalent to qualify for employment. Employers want to hire someone who can put in the work, solve difficult problems, work well with others, and overcome challenges. If you have a high school diploma, you likely meet all of the above criteria and more. A high school diploma or its equivalent is also a must-have if you want to apply to college to further your education and prepare for a career you love! The good news? You can still go back to school as an adult!
Read more: Are Online High School Diplomas Legit?
3. Qualify for promotions at work
Even if your current job didn’t require you to have a high school diploma to get started, earning one can be necessary if you want to build a career and have the opportunity to advance – which can also mean earning more money. Advancing in many jobs means stepping into a leadership role, such as a shift supervisor or manager, and most employers want their leaders to have a high school education in addition to their work experience. In a Penn Foster survey, among employed learners, close to two in three feel their value as an employee has increased due to their additional education/training.*
Penn Foster graduate Kimberly Quinonez was only able to volunteer at her current place of employment before obtaining her high school diploma. Since earning this credential, she’s been on the books as a full-time employee and even received a promotion!
Read more: How to Decide if a Diploma or a GED is Right for You
4. Start preparing for a career in high school
Besides getting a credential that can be essential to starting a career, high school can help you actually take the first steps toward preparing for one! Through your standard and elective classes, you can narrow down your interests and learn more about what you’d like to do. In some elective classes, you can even start building the skills for your future career today!
Through an online high school, you can choose a high school diploma program that helps you develop skills you'll use in your career. Online high school graduate Jailey Hall says, "The electives I took were pretty hard but where it's a work at your own pace I was able to go back through and go through it as many times as I needed."
You can apply much of what you'll learn in real-life situations and prepare for a career like HVAC technician, dental assistant, or medical coder.
Read more: How to Choose an Online High School
5. Lifelong skills
High school classes can teach you more than just what’s on the test! Besides learning the basics like English, math, history, and science, you’ll also pick up skills you can use in real life. Through preparing for exams and studying, you can build skills like time management, critical thinking skills, and problem-solving skills that can make a difference when you move on to college or start building your career.
Penn Foster High School graduate, Sydney Zaremba Woodward shares her experience obtaining her high school diploma online: "It benefited me in such a way that I had to have critical thinking skills with coursework, how I was like writing papers, but it also transferred into the real world going around and using it on a day-to-day basis, which I never had to before when I was in a regular school."
6. Pride
Earning a high school diploma takes a great deal of hard work and dedication. You won't always master every subject right away, but overcoming these challenges grants you a priceless sense of pride and accomplishment.
Working parent Demetria Pruitt earned her high school diploma online because she wanted to build a better life for her family. She explains, “I would study during nap times and then I would go full-on to do my coursework at night when (my kids) were asleep...I would find some time to hop on and get some studying and work done.”
“Everything just seemed to fall in life after I got my diploma,” she says. "It felt good to inspire (my kids) to not give up on their goals.”
Read more: How to Stay Motivated and Graduate High School Online
Do you need a diploma to be successful?
There have been plenty of people who’ve been able to find success without graduating high school, especially in the past when a diploma wasn’t a minimum requirement for finding a good, stable job. But the road to success without that diploma can take a lot longer and sometimes be more of a struggle. While you don’t necessarily need a high school diploma to be successful, it is essential to make sure you can reach your goals in the most straightforward way possible.
Read more: Beyond Graduation: How High School Prepares You for Success
Is a high school diploma even worth it?
While there are many advantages to having your high school diploma, is going back to school to get it – especially as an adult – even worth it? Absolutely, it is! Having that high school credential on your resume can open the door to new job opportunities, college, technical school, and the potential to earn more money while pursuing a career you truly are passionate about. By working toward graduating, you can also build a lot of skills that are essential to almost every job, including
- Written and verbal communication skills
- Time management skills
- Problem-solving skills
- Decision-making skills
Earn your diploma on your schedule
Finishing your high school diploma doesn’t have to mean you should rearrange your schedule to go to physical classes. When you’re working full-time, have responsibilities at home, or have other things in your life that prevent you from finishing high school in person, a more flexible program can help you reach your goals. That’s where online high school can help! With flexible classes that you can do from home, whenever it works for you, you can graduate on your terms and be prepared to take the next step in reaching your goals. Reach out to an Admissions Specialist at 1.888.427.6500 to find out what you need to do to get started.
*Data from the Penn Foster Group 2024 Learner Profile survey.
