What a CTE Diploma Means to Me

     At the end of their high school tenures, NYC high school students are awarded one of two diplomas; a Regents diploma or an Advanced Regents diploma. The difference between the two comes down to their benefits and requirements, with the Advanced Regents diploma being more attractive to college but requiring more work. All NYC high school students must complete a certain amount of credits and pass certain Regents to graduate. Both Regents and Advanced diplomas require 44 credits; 35 of them being 8 English, 6 Math, 8 Social Studies, 6 Science, 2 Arts, 1 Health, and 4 PE credits; as well as passing ELA, one Science, and one additional regents.
     When it comes to credits, LOTE and Electives are what make the two different. For and Advanced diploma, a student must get 6 LOTE and 3 Elective credits, while a Regents diploma only requires 2 LOTE and 7 Elective credits. An Advanced diploma requires passing scores on all three Math regents, Living Environment and one other science regents, and the LOTE regents while a Regents diploma requires less exams, with only 1 math, 1 science, and no LOTE regents required for graduation.
     While these requirements are normal for an average NYC high school students, those who pursue a CTE endorsement have a bit more different requirements. Students taking a CTE track in high school study a career path involving technology, such as Web Design. When they graduate, these students recieve and endorsement on their high school diploma, recognizing their abilities and skills in the industry their CTE track was about. Because taking a CTE course means taking additional classes in high school, getting an Advanced diploma is slightly easier. Instead of 6 LOTE credits, only 2 must be achieved and no LOTE regents is necessary. However, in addition to regular high school requirements, CTE students must fulfill CTE requirements to get their endorsement which boil down to: 7 CTE credits, 1 CFM credit, 1 industry certification exam, and a meaningful enhanced WBL experience.
     One might choose to take a CTE course during high school for its various benefits, one of which being the aforementioned excuse from having to get 6 LOTE credits and taking the LOTE regents. Besides this, another benefit is being able to replace any regents, except ELA, with an industry certified exam, meaning these can also be counted as the additional required exam for both Regents and Advanced diploma. Getting an endorsement has the benefit of making students more attractive and competitive candidates for jobs out of high school. The endorsement tells employers that the student is knowledgeable and ready to work in a professional environment, helping students land potentially well paying jobs out of high school. There is also the benefit just of learning amazing technological skills, for example, Web Design teaches you elements of design, coding with HTML/CSS and JavaScript, and making websites, which can be useful for a professional setting but also can just be good to know in a personal setting.
     So far, I've completed 2 years of my CTE course and am about to complete the final year. I've completed all but 7 requirements for Web Design, being senior year CTE Expo, field trip, career day, employabillity profile, CFM course, and final portfolio. To address the title, a CTE diploma would mean to me a long awaited award for all my hard work over 3 years. It would mean recognition that I went on a long, tasking journey and have gained skills necessary to be successful in the industry. It would mean an opportunity for me in the future to start making money and live off my own doing.