Graduation Requirements

Group of students posing together

Part 1: Coursework

It requires a minimum of 24 units of coursework to graduate from a Denver Public School. At George Washington High School we have outlined the following course of study in which those credits may be earned:

DEPARTMENTCourse NameCredits
ENGLISHEnglish 11 Unit
English 21 Unit
Additional English Courses2 Units
TOTAL ENGLISH UNITS4 UNITS
MATHEMATICSIntegrated Math 11 Unit
Integrated Math 21 Unit
Integrated Math 31 Unit
Upper Level Math Course1 Unit
TOTAL MATH UNITS4 UNITS
These are the minimum requirements for math, students may take more advanced courses to satisfy graduation requirements.
SCIENCEEarth Science, Biology, Chemistry, or Physics2 Units
Additional Science Courses1 Unit
TOTAL SCIENCE UNITS3 UNITS
SOCIAL STUDIESCivics0.5 Units
US History1 Unit
Additional Social Studies Courses1.5 Units
TOTAL SOCIAL STUDIES UNITS3 UNITS
PHYSICAL EDUCATIONTOTAL PE UNITS1 UNIT
These credits may be waived by successfully participating in an athletic sport season (one season would waive 0.5 units). The waivers may only be earned in grades 9-11. 
FINE ARTSTOTAL FINE ART UNITS1 UNIT
ELECTIVESAcademic Electives1 Unit
Additional Electives7 Units
TOTAL ELECTIVE UNITS8 UNITS

Part 2: ICAP

Students will continue to work with their counselors, teachers and families to develop, update, and complete their Individual Career and Academic Plans (ICAPs). Through this personalized career and academic planning tool, students are empowered to evaluate all aspects of their path to college and career, including goal setting, college opportunities, academic planning, financial literacy and financial aid, and 21st-century skills. This framework creates an attainable roadmap for students, so they are able to visualize how exploring possibilities and achieving milestones translates to their future college and career aspirations. At the end of their senior year, they will turn in the completed plan to fulfill the ICAP requirement. To access your ICAP, log in to Student Portal and click on the “My ICAP” button. Learn more information.

Part 3: Competency

In order to graduate from DPS, every student will demonstrate competency in English, math and/or career readiness by completing one or more items in the competency menu below.

COMPETENCY DEMONSTRATION OPTIONSENGLISHQualifying ScoreMATHQualifying Score
ACCUPLACER: Accuplacer is a multiple-choice exam that tests students’ math, reading, writing and computer abilities to ensure they are placed in a college class that matches their skill levels.241 ReadingOR236 Writing255 AR or230 QAS or245 AAF
ACT (AMERICAN COLLEGE TESTING): The ACT is a national college entrance exam that measures four subjects: English, reading, math and science. The highest possible score for each subject is 36.1819
ADVANCED PLACEMENT (AP) EXAMS: Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level classes you can take in high school. At the end of the semester, students are encouraged to take the AP exam, which tests how they may perform at the college level. Scores range from 1 to 5.22
CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT: Concurrent Enrollment allows students to simultaneously earn college and high school credits. Students are able to enroll in college courses for free, saving them both time and money. Many Concurrent Enrollment credits are transferable to a two- or four-year degree program.C-C-
DPS CAPSTONE: With the Capstone option, students build a portfolio of work throughout their high school experience to show what they’ve learned and how it applies in the real world. For students who elect a Capstone Portfolio to fulfill the competency requirement, schools will help students track their progress.DPS APPROVED ARTIFACTS
INTERNATIONAL BACCALAUREATE (IB) EXAMS: IB schools focus on international perspectives of learning and teaching, while supporting students in fully exploring their home culture and language. Students enrolled in the IB Diploma Programme will take exams to test competencies. The highest score is 7.44
SAT (SCHOLASTIC APTITUDE TEST): The SAT exam shows colleges how prepared you are for college by measuring key skills in math, evidence-based reading and writing, and an optional essay. It is scored on a 200 to 800 point scale, with a “perfect” score being 1,600.470500
ACT WORKKEYS NATIONAL CAREER READINESS CERTIFICATE: ACT WorkKeys is an assessment that tests students’ job skills in applied reading, writing,mathematics, and 21st-century skills. Scores are based on job profiles that help employers select, hire, train, develop and retain a high-performance workforce.BRONZE OR HIGHER
ASVAB (ARMED SERVICES VOCATIONAL APTITUDE BATTERY): ASVAB is a comprehensive test that traditionally helps determine students’ eligibility for careers in the military; however, the assessment is an option for students even if they don’t plan to enlist in the military. ASVAB tests arithmetic reasoning, word knowledge, paragraph comprehension, and mathematics knowledge.31 (COMPOSITE)