Regents

General Information

General Information

Regents High School examinations are mandatory exams administered in New York State by the New York State Education Department. High school students typically take these exams as the culmination to a year-long course in the corresponding subject. There are currently ten different Regents exams administered covering a variety of subjects.

NOTE: For the 2020-2021 school year, NYSED announced it is cancelling all Regent exams for grades 8-12, EXCEPT for those in Algebra 1, Earth Science, Living Environment, and English. Those exams will be given June 17-24, 2021. The August 2021 Regents exams will be cancelled.

Regents Exams Administered

Algebra 2/Trigonometry
Chemistry
Comprehensive English
Earth Science
Geometry
Global History & Geography
Integrated Algebra
Living Environment
Physics
U.S. History & Government

New York State Requirements

To receive a regular high school diploma, students in New York State must pass five Regents Exams with a score of 65 or higher: Integrated Algebra, Global History & Geography, U.S. History & Government, Comprehensive English, and any one science exam (Chemistry, Earth Science, Living Environment or Physics).

To receive an Advanced Regents Diploma, students must also pass an additional science exam and all three math exams (Algebra 2/Trigonometry, Geometry, and Integrated Algebra).

Format and Content

Most Regents exams are made up of a multiple-choice section and a free-response section (either essay or problem-solving format) and are three hours long. The Earth Science exam contains an additional laboratory component and the Foreign Language exams contain an additional oral exam component. The content of the exam varies depending on the subject.