The Ministry of Education defines the requirements for the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD).
30 credits in total
Students must earn the following credits.
- 4 credits in English (1 credit per grade)*
- 3 credits in mathematics (1 credit in grade 11 or 12)
- 2 credits in science
- 1 credit in Canadian history
- 1 credit in Canadian geography
- 1 credit in the arts
- 1 credit in health and physical education
- 1 credit in French as a second language
- 0.5 credit in career studies
- 0.5 credit in civics
Students must also earn one credit from each of the following groups
- Group 1: additional credit in English, or French as a second language,** or a Native language, or a classical or an international language, or social sciences and the humanities, or Canadian and world studies, or guidance and career education, or cooperative education***
- Group 2: additional credit in health and physical education, or the arts, or business studies, or French as a second language,** or cooperative education***
- Group 3: additional credit in science (Grade 11 or 12), or technological education, or French as a second language,** or computer studies, or cooperative education**
*A maximum of 3 credits in English as a second language (ESL) or English literacy development (ELD) may be counted towards the 4 compulsory credits in English, but the fourth must be a credit earned for a Grade 12 compulsory English course.
**In groups 1, 2, and 3, a maximum of 2 credits in French as a second language can count as compulsory credits, one from group 1 and one from either group 2 or group 3.
***A maximum of 2 credits in cooperative education can count as compulsory credits.
Students must also complete 12 optional credits. The 12 optional credits may include up to 4 credits earned through approved dual credit courses.
40 Hours of Community Involvement Activities
Students must complete 40 hours of community involvement.
Provincial Literacy Requirement
Students must successfully complete the Grade 10 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) or the Grade 12 Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course (OSSLC) if unsuccessful with the OSSLT. Students will normally take the literacy test in Grade 10.