The Graduation Program is designed to support all students in acquiring attributes by the time they complete Grade 12, in the areas of intellectual, human and social, and career development.
Background
The Ministry of Education undertook a review of the BC Graduation Program in 2002. The year-long review included consultations with thousands of parents, students, educators, community members and former students who had not completed high school. It also included reviews of academic literature, position papers and graduation requirements in other jurisdictions. As a result BC’s Graduation Program was implemented in 2004.
Scope
British Columbia’s Graduation Program 2023 includes Grades 10, 11 and 12.
Graduation Requirements
The B.C. Certificate of Graduation or "Dogwood Diploma" is awarded to students who successfully complete the provincial graduation requirements.
Students require a minimum of 80 credits to graduate.
Of these 80 credits:
- At least 16 credits must be at the Grade 12 level, including a required Language Arts 12 and Career Life Connections
- At least 28 credits must be elective course credits
- 52 credits are required from the following:
> Career-Life Education (4 credits), and Career-Life Connections (4 credits)
> Physical and Health Education 10 (4 credits)
> Science 10 (4 credits), and a Science 11 or 12 (4 credits)
> Social Studies 10 (4 credits), and a Social Studies 11 or 12 (4 credits)
> A Math 10 (4 credits), and a Math 11 or 12 (4 credits)
> A Language Arts 10, 11 and a required 12 (12 credits total)
> An Arts Education 10, 11, or 12 and/or an Applied Design, Skills, and Technologies 10, 11, or 12 (4 credits total)
In addition, students must also complete three graduation assessments:
- The Grade 10 Numeracy Assessment was introduced in 2018
- The Grade 10 Literacy Assessment was introduced in 2019/20
- The Grade 12 Literacy Assessment will be introduced in 2021/22
