Graduation Requirements

You will graduate from Northfield Mount Hermon with a wide range of fulfilling experiences, some academic, some athletic or artistic, many of them social or service-related. The actual combination depends on you–the talents and interests you arrive with, the goals you set for yourself while you're here, and the plans you make for your future.

 

Of course with so many great opportunities to choose from, it’s helpful to have someone guide you through your choices. To this end, your advisor (we call them DLs) will help you with both long-range planning and specific course selection, all the while really getting to know you, the subjects you love, the activities you live for, and the dreams you can’t wait to realize.

 

As you begin your planning, here are the things you need to know:

 

Special Program Opportunities 

The Northfield Mount Hermon school year is divided into two semesters. You’ll have to be in residence throughout your career at the school; exceptions will be made if you’re participating in programs sponsored or approved by the school. And when you are a senior, you’ll have to be enrolled for the entire school year even though you may have fulfilled subject graduation requirements before the spring semester. 

It is important to distinguish between absolute graduation requirements and specific grade-level requirements. A graduation requirement (e.g., Algebra II) is one that is required of everyone, regardless of how many years you are enrolled at NMH. A grade-level requirement (e.g., Humanities II) is required only of those students who are at NMH for that grade.

 

Although most NMH students go beyond them, below are listed the minimum requirements for graduation.

 

You must earn at least four credits in English and take at least one full-credit English course per year.

 

If your first language is not English, in the fall you enroll, you’ll have to attend an orientation to academic life at NMH. During this orientation your English language skills will be tested and you will be placed in either ESL or English classes. Your placement in ESL or English will determine which graduation requirements you need to meet and when. ESL students must pass a minimum of one major course in non-ESL English at the 400 level (senior English).

 

You must pass Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II.

 

To graduate, you must successfully complete a second-level course.  If English is not your native language you are exempt from the NMH foreign language requirement if you have successfully completed at least one year of formal study of your own language at the secondary school level. If you are in our ESL program you are exempt from the NMH foreign language requirement.

 

To graduate you must have one credit in biology, and two credits in lab science (one of which may be biology).

 

To graduate you must have two credits, one of which must be in US history; one-half credit may be in social science. A ninth-grade US history course taken prior to arriving at NMH does not satisfy the US history requirement. All three- or four-year students are required to take HIS 211, topics in world history, as part of Humanities II.

 

If you are a four-year student, you must earn two credits; the required Humanities I and II fulfill this requirement but additional religious studies electives may be taken during the junior and/or senior years.

 

If you are a three-year student you must earn one and one-half credits. If you are entering as a sophomore, you will fulfill one of these credits with the required Humanities II program. The remaining half-credit course must be taken as an elective during your junior or senior year.

 

If you are a two-year student you must earn one credit, taken from the elective courses.

 

If you are a one-year student you must earn one-half credit, taken from the elective courses.

 

If you are an ESL student, you must fulfill the religious studies requirement that matches the number of full years you are NOT enrolled in ESL. For example, a four-year senior who is in ESL classes for two years and whose junior year is the first year with no ESL course, must satisfy the same religious studies requirement as a student enrolled at NMH for two years.

 

If you are a four-year student you must take the ninth-grade Arts Foundations course; in addition, you must take one half-credit major course or two cocurricular courses in the arts.

 

If you are a three-year student you must take two half-credit major courses or one half-credit major course plus one cocurricular course in the arts.

 

If you are a two-year student you must take one half-credit major course in the arts.

 

If you are a one-year student you must take one half-credit major course or one cocurricular course in the arts. 

When you are in the ninth and tenth grades you will participate in at least one athletic activity each year. Any term that you are not in an athletic activity, you will take a physical education class.

 

For juniors, seniors, and postgraduate students, you’ll participate in one athletic activity and take two physical education classes in the other two terms or participate in two athletic activities with no physical education class required the second term. You must earn a passing grade in all but one term of participation and must pass the spring term of the senior year. Grades for PE/A classes are determined by skill, knowledge, attitude, and attendance. Being a member of a performing dance company or taking a dance class fulfills your physical education obligation for the terms you are enrolled in those programs. Participation in the outdoor education program satisfies the physical education requirement for juniors, seniors, and postgraduates for the terms you are enrolled. 

Our cocurricular requirements get you out into the world and take you beyond academic challenges. Most qualifying activities fall into five broad categories:

Participation requirements are specific to your grade level, as described below. You can meet the requirement in a term either by taking one full cocurricular activity or two half cocurricular activities. You’ll be expected to participate in one or more options for at least four to five hours per week and you may opt to participate in more activities as your interest and schedule allows.

 

For ninth- and tenth-grade students: In each of the three terms you’ll choose at least one cocurricular option, with an athletic team commitment in at least one of the three terms.

 

For 11th-grade, 12th-grade and postgraduate students: In two out of the three terms, you’ll choose at least one cocurricular option, choosing an athletic team commitment in at least one of the two terms.

You must participate in the program with a passing grade each semester you live at NMH. You’ll be evaluated on attitude, dependability, performance, and punctuality at the job site. For example, you’ll merit a grade of “satisfactory” when you are rarely absent or late and perform tasks adequately with minimal supervision. However, if you receive a grade of “unsatisfactory” for any semester, including spring semester of the senior year, you must correct this deficiency in accordance with the conditions listed in a current version of the Work Program Guidelines.

 

A full-credit course is equivalent to a year’s work in a traditional system and earns one academic credit. Some courses are half-year equivalents that are completed in one semester and earn one half credit. You will take courses totaling three credits each semester.

 

The registrar evaluates your previously earned high school credits as they relate to the subject area requirements described above. In sequential disciplines such as mathematics, language, and the fine arts, credit for previous courses will be reviewed by each department for placement.

 

NMH Summer Session offers academic courses, many of which are full-year equivalents and earn one credit.

 

NMH is committed to your understanding a variety of world cultures. To that end, international programs are a very important part of the NMH curriculum. The Center for International Education oversees programs that travel to Brazil, Ireland, New Zealand, Turkey, and Uruguay. You can apply to these selective programs after you have lived at NMH for more than one year. Each program is not offered every year. Check the curriculum [2.4] for current availability. The Center for International Education also oversees the special option of the Humanities II curriculum, which travels to either Brazil or South Africa, which you can apply to even if you are a new student.

 

At NMH you have the opportunity to get experience through apprenticeships, or off-campus work that is monitored and evaluated by an on-site mentor. In addition to your work, you’ll create a written report, which will be evaluated by an NMH faculty advisor.

 

You can apply for an apprenticeship the spring semester of your senior year and you may earn academic credit depending on the nature of the project and the time commitment. A full-time apprenticeship requires 40 hours per week and earns three academic credits. If you have a full-time apprenticeship, you won’t live on campus during the apprenticeship but you’ll still have to pay full tuition, room, and board for the semester you are away. You are also expected to pay for any expenses, including transportation, housing, and meals, associated with the apprenticeship. You’ll have to complete the application for a full-time apprenticeship and get it approved before the end of the spring semester of the year preceding your proposed apprenticeship. If you are a one-year senior or postgraduate, you are not eligible for a full-time apprenticeship.

 

Final approval for an apprenticeship proposal by the director of studies is contingent upon three factors: first, the securing of a faculty advisor with expertise related to the apprenticeship; second, the successful completion of an application packet by the specified deadline; third, the construction of a syllabus in which you specify the academic work to be completed during the apprenticeship.