Graduation & Beyond: Requirements, Future Planning
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- Wappingers Central School District
- Welcome!
Welcome to the WCSD Graduation Resources Website
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WCSD is prepared to support our students as they approach the exciting milestone of graduation!
Your child's school counselor is the best resource for future planning: Counselors work closely with students and parents to ensure future success, either in a career or on to college.
Take advantage of all the help your school counselors can offer!
John Jay HS School Counseling Office
RCK School Counseling Office
College Entrance Exams
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ACT Exam
The ACT is a standardized test that determines a high school graduate's preparedness for college. It covers five areas: Math, English, Reading, Writing and Science.
The SAT and ACT generally cover the same topics. Both ACT and SAT scores are used for college admissions decisions and awarding merit-based scholarships. Most colleges do not prefer one test over the other. Neither the SAT or ACT is harder than the other. Different students tend to do better on one test over the other.
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PSAT / NMSQT
The PSAT/NMSQT stands for the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test / National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, which students take as a sophomore or junior. High enough marks on the PSAT/NMSQT as a junior can help a student land a National Merit Scholarship.
There are two differences between PSAT 10 and PSAT NMSQT: The first is difficulty. The PSAT 10 is designed for sophomores, and PSAT NMSQT is designed for juniors, so the PSAT NMSQT is slightly harder.
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SAT Exam
Who takes the SAT?All college-bound juniors should take the SAT or the ACT, typically in the spring.Seniors often take the test again in the fall to try to improve their score.
Earning College Credit in High School
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AP Courses
Advanced Placement (AP) Courses give students the chance to tackle college-level work while they're still in high school—whether they're learning online or in the classroom.Through AP Exams, students can earn college credit and placement.
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DCC Courses
Both of our high schools offer a large number of Dutchess Community College (DCC) courses, which give our students an opportunity to earn SUNY college credits before they graduate from our District. To review all of our DCC electives:
- Visit our High School Course Handbook Page.
- Expand the course handbook link at the bottom of the page.
- Then search "DCC" in the course handbook to find links to all of our DCC electives within the catalog itself.
Vocational Career Exploration
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DC BOCES CTI Program
Dutchess County BOCES Career & Technical Institute (CTI) is open to all enrolled HS Juniors & Seniors who are academically eligible to participate in the CTI programs. For specific information about CTI please contact your child's School Counselor or visit the DC BOCES CTI FAQ website.
Military Service
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If you are looking for a career in the military after graduation, we invite you to visit the usa.gov military website.
New York State High School Diploma Requirements
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For a NYS High School Regents Diploma, all students must meet the following minimum credit criteria:
Credits: 22 units of credit distributed as follows:
- English Language Arts: 4
- Social Studies: 4
- Science: 3
- Mathematics: 3
- Health: 1/2
- Arts: 1
- World Languages: 1
- Physical Education: 2
- Electives: 3 1/2
For a NYS High School Regents Diploma, all students must pass five Regents Exams.
There are 4 core exams, one in each discipline:
- English
- Mathematics
- Science
- Social Studies
In Wappingers, we also have students take a second Social Studies Regents exam, which completes the required humanities pathway to graduation. In general, students must pass each exam with a score of 65 or better.
For all other Diploma types and their Graduation Criteria please visit the NYSED website.
