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Discover. Plan. Prepare. Apply.
 

Classes to take in High School

 

Don’t wait to make sure you’re taking the right classes.

 

Classes to take:
SUBJECT The most important part of your plan for college is graduating from high school. In order to do that, you’ll need to take these classes. You need to add these courses to get into Washington’s public four-year colleges and universities.
ENGLISH

3 years

English 9, 10, 11 or 12
Creative Writing
Composition
Literature

Add 1 year
MATHEMATICS

2 years

Algebra I and II
Geometry
Trigonometry
Integrated Math I, II, III and IV
Pre-Calculus
Calculus

Add 1 year

for science and technology majors or highly selective colleges add 2 years

SCIENCE

2 years

(one must be a (*) class)
Astronomy
Integrated Science
Oceanography
Physical Science
Physics*
Principles of Technology*
Biology*
Chemistry*
Earth Science
Environmental Studies
Geology

Add 1 year

for science and technology majors or highly selective colleges add 2 years

SOCIAL STUDIES

2.5 years

(including Washington State History)

Current World Problems
Economics
European History
Government and Politics
Native Cultures
U.S. History
World Studies

Add .5 year
FINE, VISUAL, PERFORMING ARTS-OR-ACADEMIC ELECTIVE

1 year

Band
Orchestra
Choir
Drawing
Photography
Drama, etc.
—OR—
Choose an extra class in
Language Arts
Mathematics
Science
World Language
Social Studies

Add .5 year

if you haven’t already met this requirement

WORK-RELATED EDUCATION

1 year

Accounting
Business Law
Communication Technologies
Desktop Publishing
Family and Consumer Sciences
Internship or Job Co-op
Keyboarding
Material Science
Record Keeping
Voc-Tech or Industrial Arts

 
ELECTIVES

5.5 years

Choose extra courses in any subject

 
HEALTH and PHYSICAL EDUCATION

2 years

Health
P.E.
Sports

 
WORLD LANGUAGE  

Add 2 years

must be same language; for highly selective colleges add 3 years

American Sign Language

French

German

Japanese

Latin

Mandarin (Chinese)

Russian

Spanish

Other world language

 

 

Related Info:

Develop an Action Plan
Develop Your Own Action Plan [PDF]
Earning College Credits Now
Four Steps to Graduation
Getting Job Skills Now
Graduation Requirements
High School Plan Worksheet [PDF]
Washington High School Graduation Requirements [PDF]
Tagged:
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What you can expect to make without higher education.
In 2005, the median income of a high school graduate or GED recipient was $24,435. That’s $16,699 less than they would have earned with a bachelor’s degree.

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