You have the scores. Which diploma do they add up to?
New York publishes three diplomas, five exam requirements, six pathways and a set of appeal routes, and it publishes them across a two-column PDF and a page of regulation. Put in the exams you have sat and the scores you got. This reads the requirements back at you: which diploma those results open, what is still missing for the level above, and the State page each answer comes from.
Check my examsNothing below has changed yet. A change is scheduled for the class of 2028. If you graduate in 2027 or earlier, the requirements on this page are the ones that apply to you, unchanged. If you graduate in 2028 or later, New York has said it intends to move to a single State diploma and stop requiring a prescribed set of Regents exams — it has not yet changed the regulation, and expects to put the amendments to the Board of Regents by February 2027. The State’s own words, with both sources.
Loading the State’s requirements…
Three diplomas, and what each one asks of you
Every diploma below asks for the same 22 credits. What changes between them is the exams, and for the top one, a sequence of courses on top.
Regents Diploma
In addition to successful completion of the appropriate units of credit, to earn a Regents or local diploma, students must pass one English language arts Regents Examination or NYSED-Approved Regents Examination Alternative; one mathematics; one science; one social studies; and one pathway.
Passing means 65 or above.
Regents Diploma with Advanced Designation
In addition to successful completion of the appropriate units of credit, to earn a Regents diploma with advanced designation, students must pass one English language arts Regents Examination or NYSED-Approved Regents Examination Alternative; three mathematics; one life science; one physical science; one social studies; and one pathway.
To earn the Regents diploma with advanced designation, students must also complete one of the three sequence options.
- Two additional credits in World Languages (for a total of three credits) and the locally developed Checkpoint B World Languages Exam
- A 5-unit sequence in the Arts
- A 5-unit sequence in Career and Technical Education (CTE)
A student exempt from the World Languages credit requirement who seeks a Regents diploma with advanced designation does NOT have to complete the 5-unit sequence in the Arts or CTE in lieu of the World Languages sequence.
Local Diploma
The local diploma covers the same five assessment requirements as the Regents diploma, reached through an appeal, a safety net, or a Superintendent Determination rather than through a score of 65 on every exam.
A local diploma is a full New York State high school diploma. It is not awarded for lower scores on its own: a student reaches it through one of the routes below, each of which requires a district decision.
The pathway, which is the requirement most families have never heard of
A student must either: earn the Seal of Civic Readiness; or pass an additional Regents Exam or NYSED-Approved Regents Alternative in a different course (English, mathematics, science, or social studies); or pass a NYSED-Approved Pathway Assessment (Arts, CDOS, World Languages); or successfully complete a NYSED-approved CTE program, including the associated 3-part technical assessment; or successfully complete all the requirements for earning the CDOS Commencement Credential; or successfully complete the Individual Arts Assessment Pathway (IAAP).
Read from New York State Diploma Requirements Applicable to All Students Enrolled in Grades 9-12 and NYSED — Multiple Pathways, both read 17 September 2026.
The 22 credits, which are the other half of every diploma
| Subject | Credits | How they are distributed |
|---|---|---|
| English | 4 | — |
| Social Studies | 4 | US History (1), Global History and Geography (2), Participation in Government (1/2), Economics (1/2) |
| Science | 3 | Life Science (1), Physical Science (1), Life or Physical Science (1) |
| Mathematics | 3 | — |
| World Languages | 1 | Students with disabilities may be excused from this credit if so indicated on their IEP, but they must still earn 22 units of credit to graduate. |
| The Arts (Dance, Media Arts, Music, Theater, and/or Visual Arts) | 1 | — |
| Physical Education | 2 | Participation each semester, 1/4 credit earned per semester. |
| Health | 1/2 | — |
| Electives | 3 1/2 | — |
| Total | 22 |
The credit requirements apply to all diploma types: local, Regents, and Regents with advanced designation. Read from NYSED — Graduation Requirements, read 17 September 2026.
Why this page will not tell you that you have graduated
This page reads the rules New York State publishes. It does not award, promise or deny a diploma. Your school district decides what you have earned, keeps the transcript the decision rests on, and may set graduation requirements in addition to the State's. Every appeal and every safety net on this page also needs your district's approval. What this page can do, and does, is read the published requirements honestly: the rule, the page it comes from, and the date we read it. Where the State has not published something, we say so rather than fill the gap.
Questions students actually ask
How many Regents exams do you need to graduate in New York?
Five. In addition to successful completion of the appropriate units of credit, to earn a Regents or local diploma, students must pass one English language arts Regents Examination or NYSED-Approved Regents Examination Alternative; one mathematics; one science; one social studies; and one pathway. The fifth is the pathway, and passing an additional Regents exam in a different course is one of the six ways to meet it.
What are the requirements for an advanced Regents diploma?
In addition to successful completion of the appropriate units of credit, to earn a Regents diploma with advanced designation, students must pass one English language arts Regents Examination or NYSED-Approved Regents Examination Alternative; three mathematics; one life science; one physical science; one social studies; and one pathway. On top of that, to earn the Regents diploma with advanced designation, students must also complete one of the three sequence options. The three options are: Two additional credits in World Languages (for a total of three credits) and the locally developed Checkpoint B World Languages Exam; A 5-unit sequence in the Arts; A 5-unit sequence in Career and Technical Education (CTE).
What score do you need to pass a Regents exam?
65. That is the passing score the State publishes for a Regents diploma. A score below it is not automatically a failure of the diploma: New York publishes appeal and safety net routes, each of which requires the district's approval.
Is a local diploma a real high school diploma?
Yes. A local diploma is a full New York State high school diploma. It is not awarded for lower scores on its own: a student reaches it through one of the routes below, each of which requires a district decision.
Are the Regents exams still required to graduate?
Today, yes. Until specific changes are approved by the Board of Regents, the current graduation requirements remain in effect for all public school students in New York State. What the State announced on 14 September 2026 is a plan: beginning with students graduating in 2028, New York intends to move to one State diploma and stop requiring a prescribed set of Regents exams, with the regulatory amendments to be put to the Board of Regents by February 2027.
Which science exams count as life science and which as physical science?
For advanced designation the two science exams must include one of each, and for most exams the category is in the title NYSED publishes: Life Science: Biology, Physical Science: Chemistry, Physical Science: Physics. Earth and Space Sciences is the exception, because its title does not say, so the State says it in words: a course aligned to the Earth and Space Sciences standards is considered a physical science course. The earlier names carry the same categories, since NYSED's implementation schedule lists each new exam and the exam it replaces on one row. Living Environment is the life science, and Physical Setting: Chemistry, Physics and Earth Science are physical.
Every page these rules come from
- New York State Diploma Requirements Applicable to All Students Enrolled in Grades 9-12PDF marked "Updated May 2025". This is the chart the Board of Regents publishes as the current requirements. Read 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Graduation RequirementsRead 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Appeals, Safety Nets, and Superintendent DeterminationRead 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Multiple PathwaysRead 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Science FAQRead 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — High School Regents ExaminationsThe page that publishes the exam titles themselves, grouped under English Language Arts, Mathematics, Sciences and Social Studies. The science titles carry the category: Life Science: Biology, Physical Science: Chemistry, Physical Science: Physics, Earth and Space Sciences. Read 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Implementation Schedule for New Regents Examinations in Mathematics, Science, and English Language ArtsJanuary 2023 memo. Its table puts each new exam and the current exam it replaces on a single row, which is what ties an older exam title to the same category as its replacement. Read 17 September 2026.
- Diploma Requirements (Section 100.5 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education)Read 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — Current Diploma Requirements and the Graduation Measures InitiativeDated May 8, 2025. Read 17 September 2026.
- NYSED press release — NYSED Advances Next Phase of NY Inspires Education TransformationDated September 14, 2026. Read 17 September 2026.
- NYSED — FAQ on the Cancellation of the Regents Examination in United States History and Government (Framework)Read 17 September 2026.
Students enrolled in grades 9-12 in New York State public schools, as of 2026-09-17. Published by New York State Education Department (NYSED), Office of Standards and Instruction. GeniusPrep is an independent tutoring company and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the New York State Education Department.
If the question is what a raw score converts to rather than what it unlocks, the Regents score calculator reads the official chart for the session you sat, and the free tools hub has the rest.