# Did your High School offer the option to graduate early?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-high-school-offer-the-option-to-graduate-early/612076>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [February 7, 2012, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-high-school-offer-the-option-to-graduate-early/612076 "2012-02-07T15:41:29Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\
**Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-high-school-offer-the-option-to-graduate-early/612076/21 "2012-02-08T17:58:39Z")

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No. I graduated at 16 but only because I moved from the UK.

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**Author:** ![2ManyTacos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/2/3da27b/32.png) [@2ManyTacos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2ManyTacos)\
**Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-high-school-offer-the-option-to-graduate-early/612076/22 "2012-02-08T18:36:37Z")

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Although my high school allowed students to take local JC classes via concurrent enrollment, students weren’t able to graduate early. Still, it was set up in such a way that students could get ahead in credits and leave before the end of the school day; that’s how it panned out for me, and during my 11th and 12th grade years I only had to take five classes as opposed to six (and if I hadn’t taken early release in my junior year I would’ve been able to get away with four classes in my final year).

Technically, _every_ high schooler in CA can graduate early if they pass the [California High School Proficiency Exam.](http://www.chspe.net/) The problem with that test, though, is that it really isn’t advertised (or at least it certainly wasn’t at my HS) so even finding out that that option EXISTS takes a bit of luck and effort on the students’ part. I knew about that test going into HS, and in hindsight I wish I would’ve just taken it and enrolled at my JC so that I would already be altogether _done_ with school by now; I was just deluded into thinking that the typical four-year university path immediately post-HS would pan out for me, and instead I’m only just now starting at the JC level. Still fine, mind you, just a few years later than I probably would’ve liked.

I don’t know if other states offer similar options to students.

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**Author:** ![Dr.Woo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7c8e57/32.png) [@Dr.Woo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Woo)\
**Post date:** [February 8, 2012, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-your-high-school-offer-the-option-to-graduate-early/612076/23 "2012-02-08T20:42:51Z")

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I graduated in January 1971. It really wasn’t that big a deal - I even missed a semester during my junior year and got only minimal credit for that period.

I did, however, spend 4 freaking hours per day, 5 days a week for 7 weeks doing World History the summer before my sophomore year. It was absolute torture, but I was able to graduate early.

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