NJ Graduation Requirements
See printable version of this page. Please note that there are links in the document to PDFs on the New Jersey Department of Education website that may not be accessible. If you are unable to access these PDFs, please call 973-509-4010 for more information.
The State of New Jersey graduation requirements are as follows
Earn at least 120 credits. MHS requires 122 credits.
20 credits of courses in Language Arts Literacy.
15 credits of courses in Mathematics.
15 credits in Social Studies with at least 10 credits in U.S. History.
15 credits of courses in Science including Biology.
5 credits in World Languages
2.5 credits in Financial Literacy
3.75 credits per year of Health and Physical Education.
5 credits in the Visual and Performing Arts
5 credits in Career Education & Life Skills (Practical Arts)
*All students must achieve proficiency on an NJDOE assessment*
On August 3, 2016, the State Board of Education approved updated state regulations for the high school graduation assessments requirements in both English language arts (ELA) and mathematics for the Classes of 2016 through 2021, and beyond. These new state regulations (N.J.A.C.6A:8-5.1) became effective on September 6, 2016.
The Class of 2021 and Beyond - Starting with the Class of 2021, students will three pathways to meet the high school graduation assessments requirements:
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- Achieving passing scores on high-level NJSLA assessments;
- Achieving certain scores on alternative assessments such as the SAT, ACT, or Accuplacer; or
- The submission by the district of a student portfolio through the Department's portfolio appeals process.
Each school year the NJDOE will determine the proficiency level needed on the assessments to meet the requirements.
It is important to note that our students have always been able to meet graduation requirements through an alternative assessment or pathway to graduation throughout New Jersey's forty-year history with a statewide assessment program, and will continue to be able to do so.
In this document, you will find charts containing the list of assessment requirements in both ELA and mathematics for the high school graduation Classes of 2017 through 2021.
Note: * "Eligible" is defined as a student who is enrolled in a high-school level course for which there is a PARCC test and receives a valid score. This includes all of these courses: Algebra I, Geometry, Algebra II, ELA 9, ELA 10, and ELA 11.
*The NJDOE has stated that there are no set testing requirements outlined for the class of 2023. Graduation requirements are reviewed and updated annually by the NJDOE and this may change for the class of 2024 and beyond.*