STATE OF ARKANSAS
PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL
GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS
21 units of credit must be earned by a student in grades 9-12 in order for that student to be entitled to graduate from an Arkansas public high school. These same standards apply to students who want to participate in the Home Ed graduation. Of the 21 units, 18 must be comprised of academic credit as stated by the following: (1 unit = 2 semesters)
- English - 4 units to be taken in 9th, 10th, 11th, 12th grades
- English Language Arts - 1/2 unit (English, Journalism, Grammar, or Communications)
- Oral Communications - 1/2 unit
- Social Studies - 3 units, including:
- World History - 1 unit
- US History - 1 unit
- Civics or Government - 1/2 unit
- Mathematics - 3 units, including:
- Algebra - 1 unit
- Geometry or its equivalent - 1 unit
- All students must take a math course in grade 11 or 12 and complete Algebra 2.
- 1 unit from the following options (Transitions to College Math, Pre-Calculus, Trigonometry, Statistics, Computer Math, Algebra III or Advanced Placement Math).
- Effective for the graduating class of 2009: 4 units of mathematics will be required.
- Science - 3 units (4 units for special, more rigorous Smart Core), including:
- Physical Science - 1 unit
- Biology - 1 unit
- Chemistry - 1 unit
- Physics - 1 unit
- Physical Education - 1/2 unit
- Foreign Language - 2 units (2 consecutive years of same language recommended for college entrance)
- Health and Safety - 1/2 unit
- Fine Arts - 1/2 unit (art, dance, drama, music)
- Technology - 1 unit
- Career Focus - (homeschool students can do electives instead of career focus)
- Electives - any additional units
It is important to note that high school graduation requirements and college entry requirements may not be the same. For college entry, the more academic and upper-level classes taken, the better. Those students who are interested in going to college would benefit from 4 units of social studies, science and math, and at least two consecutive years of foreign language. Only courses actually taken during grades 9-12 can be transcripted.