OSSD Compulsory Credits Requirements: Students who started Grade 9 in or before Fall 2023

Students need the following 18 compulsory credits to get their OSSD:

• 4 credits in English (1 credit per grade)1
• 3 credits in Mathematics (at least 1 credit in Grade 11 or 12)
• 3 credits in Group 1, 2 and 3 (1 credit in each group)
• 2 credits in Science
• 1 credit in Canadian History (Grade 10)
• 1 credit in Canadian Geography (Grade 9)
• 1 credit in the Arts2
• 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 and Citizenship

Of the 18 compulsory credits, students must earn one from each of the following groups:

Group 1:

• 1 additional credit in English (including the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course), or French as a Second Language³
• Native languages
• First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Studies
• Classical Studies and International Languages
• Social Sciences and the Humanities
• Canadian and World Studies
• Guidance and Career Education
• Cooperative Education⁴
• American Sign Language as a Second Language
• Langue des signes québecoise langue seconde⁵

Group 2:

• 1 additional credit in Health and Physical Education
• 1 additional credit in the Arts
• Business Studies
• 1 additional credit in French as a Second Language³
• Cooperative Education⁴
• American Sign Language as a Second Language
• Langue des signes québecoise langue seconde⁵

Group 3:

• 1 additional credit in Science (Grade 11 or 12)
• Technological Education
• 1 additional credit in French as a Second Language³
• Computer Studies
• Cooperative Education⁴
• American Sign Language as a Second Language
• Langue des signes québecoise langue seconde⁵

The following conditions apply to compulsory credit selections from the above three groups:

• ¹ 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.

• ² The Grade 9 Expressions of First Nations, Métis and Inuit Cultures course may be used to meet the compulsory credit requirement in the Arts.

• ³ 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.
  • Students who have taken Native Languages in place of French as a Second Language in elementary school may use a Level 1 or 2 Native Languages course to meet the compulsory credit requirement for French as a Second Language.         

• ⁴ A maximum of 2 credits in Cooperative Education can count as compulsory credits, selected from any of the above three groups
• ⁵ The Langue des signes québécoise langue seconde course is only available in French-language schools.