In US high schools, why do some students graduate in their junior year instead of senior? (universities, tuition)
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If students have the proper coursework to graduate they are entitled to do so. Many times minimum requirements don't strictly take four years to complete, other times schools have "off periods" and some students choose to take more classes instead, other times students take classes online or opt into summer school.
The why is more complicated as the reasons students choose to do this are quite varied.
If students have the proper coursework to graduate they are entitled to do so. Many times minimum requirements don't strictly take four years to complete, other times schools have "off periods" and some students choose to take more classes instead, other times students take classes online or opt into summer school.
The why is more complicated as the reasons students choose to do this are quite varied.
Yep. I could have chosen to take additional courses during the school year or otherwise taken summer school classes (I'm pretty sure I would have been allowed to do so in NYC where I went to high school, but why would I?), which would have enabled me to graduate earlier. And my school had a winter graduation and a summer graduation. Even without doing that, I was far enough ahead of the curve--as were most on-target students--that by senior year I was only taking 3-4 classes a day and finishing school well before 11AM. Many of my classmates used this extra time to take on parttime jobs during the school year.
Many decades ago, we were told this was allowed so that a student in a family that was very poor would be able to go to work before the end of the last term, and earn an income as long as they met the minimum education accomplishment. This also benefited farm families where the student could supply needed labor during difficult times. Or a student who needed to be self supporting.
Clearly we all benefit by having more opportunities to learn, but this allowance for people in great immediate need of an alternative to spending time in school, provided some flexibility. It is rarely requested.
I'm not sure how it was done in my school. In theory, 4 years of English are required, so if someone graduated after their junior year, what happened to that 4th year or Eng. lit? I can see fitting in the required science classes and other requirements for graduation, in lieu of electives probably, but taking senior year English concurrently with junior year would be a heavy load. So I don't know how they did it, but nearly each year, there was one student who graduated a year early, and was accepted to university on that basis.
But to comply with state law, such students had to return to HS on graduation day a year after entering college, in order to graduate with their class as seniors. They weren't full-fledged seniors if they left HS and entered college after their junior year, but universities accepted them.
Some students here can accelerate and leave high school a year early, or even two, if in the 9th, 10th, and 11th grades they can pass enough of the right Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses. Because those are college level courses, they'll typically count as fulfilling whatever subject requirements districts may have for graduation.
Several schools here do this and offer students the chance to earn an associates degree (a two-year AS or AA) and start college work -- either at the high school or at can actual college--during 11th or 12th grade. Needless to say only very committed top students choose this route. Few are ready to fully enroll in college at 16, and most stay in high school the last two years to take some mix of high school, AP, IB, or college courses.
This can save families tons of college tuition money -- especially if this smart kid is seriously thinking about medical, law, business, or graduate school.
I'm not sure how it was done in my school. In theory, 4 years of English are required, so if someone graduated after their junior year, what happened to that 4th year or Eng. lit? I can see fitting in the required science classes and other requirements for graduation, in lieu of electives probably, but taking senior year English concurrently with junior year would be a heavy load. So I don't know how they did it, but nearly each year, there was one student who graduated a year early, and was accepted to university on that basis.
But to comply with state law, such students had to return to HS on graduation day a year after entering college, in order to graduate with their class as seniors. They weren't full-fledged seniors if they left HS and entered college after their junior year, but universities accepted them.
I think in some places they do it by taking summer classes and/or online courses. Both my kids, for example, wound up having to take a couple of the mandatory courses online because they couldn't fit the courses they needed and all the required courses into the normal school schedule. I think a pretty good percentage of the college bound kids were doing this.
With that said, these online courses were not exactly challenging. Oldest stretched it out over several weeks while my youngest crash did his in about 2-3 days including an all nighter. Both got A's but admitted they didn't learn anything. Basically, they were just filling a square that the school required them to fill.
The downside however, that even though they school allowed dual enrollment, they also limited it, making it tough to get two years of college credit. The kids who did took a lot of college classes over the summer.
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Meet the requirements for HS graduation and get out ASAP, if you desire.
I took 2 classes / day while in HS, but had done student aid for several classes prior to senior yr. I only needed the hours, all academic requirements were completed before senior yr.
BTW, my kids took ZERO summer courses in HS or College, as they were working FT.
They took 16-19 Credit hrs of college during the free HS, currently limited to 12 credit hours (free), but a few incremental $ will pick up the extra hours needed to fully enter U as a Jr straight from HS. About 20,000 students / yr participate in this college instead of HS program. Many states have similar options.
Last edited by StealthRabbit; 05-21-2023 at 09:49 AM..
Heck here in south Texas they can attend the local community college. Several graduate with their associates degree before they even get their high school diploma.
I'm not sure how it was done in my school. In theory, 4 years of English are required, so if someone graduated after their junior year, what happened to that 4th year or Eng. lit? I can see fitting in the required science classes and other requirements for graduation, in lieu of electives probably, but taking senior year English concurrently with junior year would be a heavy load. So I don't know how they did it, but nearly each year, there was one student who graduated a year early, and was accepted to university on that basis.
But to comply with state law, such students had to return to HS on graduation day a year after entering college, in order to graduate with their class as seniors. They weren't full-fledged seniors if they left HS and entered college after their junior year, but universities accepted them.
For us it depended on the university you planned on attending. What were their requirements.
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