This guide is for school and school board staff who are planning and delivering SHSM programs.

Tracking student progress

Your school must track the 5 components of an SHSM:

Step 1

Your school should:

  • set up a process to identify students who will participate in the SHSM
  • identify these students in your school's student management system

Your school board must record the SHSM student names in their student management system. This system records the completion of the 5 required components of an SHSM, including completion dates.

Step 2

Identify if students have already achieved any required SHSM components by:

  • meeting with the students
  • reviewing credit counselling summary sheets or any other board-generated reports

Step 3

Enter the information from steps 1 and 2 into your school’s student management system based on data from your board's student management system.

Step 4

Update the student's SHSM information throughout the semester to reflect their new credits and completed SHSM components.

If a student is attending your school only to obtain the 4 major credits in their SHSM, send a copy of their SHSM information to their home school. This is to ensure the home school knows if the student has completed the credits.

Step 5

Review the student's SHSM information in your board's student management system at least twice per semester to check progress on completing:

  • the bundle of credits
  • certifications and training
  • experiential learning and career exploration activities
  • reach ahead experiences
  • SPEs

Official documents

Students' SHSM achievement is recorded in the following official documents.

Official documentWhat it records
Provincial report cardThe school records the student’s SHSM sector and completion of the required bundle of credits in the "completion of requirements for graduation" section.
Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD)

We give an OSSD with an embossed SHSM seal to students who complete both the OSSD and SHSM requirements.

Students who earn the OSSD but not all SHSM components receive an OSSD without the seal.

If a student completes an SHSM after graduation, the school documents this on their Ontario Student Transcript (OST) and SHSM record.

Returning graduates are not eligible to obtain a second diploma.

Ontario Student Transcript (OST)

The school marks SHSM credits with an "H" in the "Notes" column.

Once the student completes an SHSM program, the school enters the SHSM name (for example, "Specialist High Skills Major–Manufacturing") in the "specialized program" box at the bottom of the OST. 

SHSM Record

Students who graduate with an SHSM seal on their OSSD also get an SHSM record from the school. This provides details regarding their achievement of the 5 required components:

  • bundle of credits
  • certifications and training
  • experiential learning and career exploration activities
  • reach ahead experiences
  • SPEs

The school gives the SHSM record to the student upon graduation and files a copy in their Ontario Student Record (OSR).

Recording partial completion of an SHSM

Use the notation "partially completed” on the SHSM record when a student:

  • opts out of the SHSM
  • transfers to another school
  • graduates without completing all the SHSM components

Your school should:

  • file a copy of the SHSM record with the notation "partially completed" in the student's OSR
  • forward it to the new school, if applicable

When a student starts an SHSM program in one school and then transfers to a new school, school boards should help the student complete the SHSM requirements for their program when possible.

The SHSM record is a key document for all students. For students who don’t complete all the required components of their SHSM by graduation, it shows which ones they completed.

Substitutions

Bundle of credits

A student who does not complete the required bundle of credits has not completed the requirements of the SHSM program and will not get the SHSM seal on their OSSD.

Compulsory credits

Your principal can approve substitutions of an English or Math compulsory credit in an SHSM bundle of credits if it:

Compulsory certifications and training courses

In exceptional circumstances, your principal may substitute a compulsory certification or training experience with an approved SHSM sector-specific elective certification or training

Your principal considers each substitution on a case-by-case basis. Students must complete the required number of certifications and training experiences for their SHSM sector.

Graduation from different sectors

Students who successfully complete all 5 required SHSM components in 1 sector are eligible to receive their OSSD with an SHSM seal upon graduation. A student can:

  • switch SHSM sector programs if their educational goals change
  • be enrolled in only 1 SHSM sector at a time
  • receive only 1 SHSM seal on their OSSD, even if they completed components in more than 1 SHSM sector

Checklist: recording student progress

Use this checklist to make sure you’re ready to track and record your students’ progress and completion of the 5 SHSM components.

  • Your school SHSM team has a procedure to track students' completion of the 5 SHSM components.
  • One or more school SHSM team members have are responsible for implementing procedures to track and document SHSM student progress.
  • Your team has processes for:
    • monitoring students' progress
    • supporting individual students
    • helping students select the courses they need to complete their SHSM
  • Your school’s guidance counsellors:
    • know what information is needed for a student to get a diploma with the SHSM seal
    • are responsible for checking that students have met all SHSM requirements
  • School staff know the procedure for tracking SHSM student progress.
  • Your school’s administrative team:
    • knows our reporting requirements and ensures accurate and timely submission
    • sets timelines for consolidating SHSM-related data (for example, enrolment and budget data)