There is no single Canadian high school diploma. Education in Canada is a provincial and territorial responsibility, so the credential is issued by a province, and the name, the requirements and the office that holds the record all change when you cross a provincial line. An Ontario graduate holds an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD), issued against ministry requirements and recorded by the school board. An Alberta graduate holds an Alberta High School Diploma, issued by Alberta Education. A British Columbia graduate holds the B.C. Certificate of Graduation, universally called the Dogwood Diploma. A Quebec graduate holds a Secondary School Diploma (diplôme d’études secondaires, or DES), issued by the Ministère de l’Éducation. If you are trying to prove you finished high school in Canada, the first question to answer is not “what does a Canadian diploma look like” but “which province issued it”, because that determines who you ask.
Four provinces, four credentials
Canada’s four largest provinces show the two patterns the rest of the country broadly follows: a provincial ministry that issues the credential centrally and sells copies directly, or a ministry that sets the requirements and leaves the paper and the record with the school board.
| Province | Credential | Core requirement | Who issues it / holds the record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) | 30 credits, 40 hours of community involvement, the provincial literacy requirement, and 2 online learning credits | Requirements set by the Ministry of Education. The diploma comes through the school, and the student’s record stays with the school board |
| Alberta | Alberta High School Diploma | 100 credits including specific 30-level and 20-level courses, Physical Education 10 and Career and Life Management | Alberta Education, which issues diplomas and certificates twice a year, in the last week of February and the last week of July |
| British Columbia | B.C. Certificate of Graduation (Dogwood Diploma) | 80 credits, at least 16 of them at the Grade 12 level, plus three provincial graduation assessments | The Province of British Columbia, with copies ordered through StudentTranscripts Service |
| Quebec | Secondary School Diploma / diplôme d’études secondaires (DES) | 54 credits from Secondary IV and V, at least 20 of them from Secondary V, with a 60% pass mark per course | The Ministère de l’Éducation, through the Direction de la sanction des études |
Do not compare the credit totals. Thirty Ontario credits, 80 B.C. credits, 100 Alberta credits and 54 Quebec credits are four different units and not four different standards. An Ontario credit represents a full course of roughly 90 to 110 hours of instruction, while an Alberta course is worth 3 or 5 credits and a B.C. course a different number again. All four provinces are describing about the same thing, four years of secondary school with a required core and a set of electives. The number on the page is an accounting convention.
Ontario and the OSSD
Ontario’s requirements changed for students who entered Grade 9 in 2024. Students who started Grade 9 in 2023 or earlier need 30 credits: 18 compulsory and 12 optional. Students who started in 2024 or later also need 30, split as 17 compulsory and 13 optional, with a mandatory technological education credit and a STEM-related course added to the compulsory list. Everyone needs at least 40 hours of community involvement activities, a minimum of 2 online learning credits, and the literacy requirement, which means passing the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Test (OSSLT) or meeting the requirement another way through the school, where the Ontario Secondary School Literacy Course is the usual alternative. Students in the 2024 cohort onward must also score at least 70% on the financial literacy component of the Grade 10 career studies course.
Alberta and its 100 credits
Alberta’s Guide to Education sets the diploma at 100 credits, including English Language Arts 30-level, Social Studies 30-level, Mathematics 20-level, Science 20-level, Physical Education 10 (3 credits), Career and Life Management (3 credits), 10 credits from a defined group (Career and Technology Studies, fine arts, second languages, Physical Education 20 or 30, Knowledge and Employability courses, and others), and 10 further credits in any 30-level course other than the English and social studies courses already counted. Where a 30-level course has a diploma examination, the final mark is 70% school-awarded and 30% exam. Students who fall short of the diploma may receive a Certificate of High School Achievement instead, which is a different credential and says so on its face.
British Columbia and the Dogwood
B.C. requires 80 credits, of which at least 16 must be at the Grade 12 level (including a Language Arts 12 and Career Life Connections), with 52 credits drawn from required subject areas and at least 28 from electives. On top of the credits, students must complete three provincial graduation assessments: the Grade 10 Numeracy Assessment, the Grade 10 Literacy Assessment and the Grade 12 Literacy Assessment. Adults 18 and over have a separate route, the Adult Graduation Diploma, described further below.
Quebec and the DES
Quebec awards the DES for 54 credits obtained in Secondary IV and V, at least 20 of them in Secondary V, passing at 60%. The compulsory list names subjects instead of counting credits. It covers Secondary V language of instruction, Secondary V second language, Secondary IV mathematics, Secondary IV science and technology, Secondary IV history of Québec and Canada, Secondary IV arts education, and Secondary V ethics and religious culture or physical education and health. Quebec students also receive an achievement record (relevé des apprentissages), the ministry’s official statement of results and credits, and it serves the purpose a transcript serves elsewhere.
What the document is, and what it is not
A provincial diploma is a single ceremonial sheet carrying the province’s or board’s crest, the graduate’s legal name, the credential, the date, and signatures, typically the minister’s and the principal’s or director’s. It carries no courses and no grades. That is why the diploma is almost never the document an employer, a college or an immigration file actually needs. What they need is the record behind it, whether that is the Ontario Student Transcript held in the Ontario Student Record, Alberta’s Transcript of High School Achievement, a B.C. transcript from StudentTranscripts Service, or Quebec’s achievement record. For the anatomy of the certificate itself, and how much of it is decoration rather than data, see what a high school diploma looks like.
The practical consequence of the province-versus-board split is worth stating outright. In Ontario, the ministry publishes the requirements but does not keep a national or provincial vault of graduates. The Ontario Student Record lives with the school board, which must retain most of it for 55 years after the student leaves (a few components are kept for five). In Alberta, British Columbia and Quebec, the province itself holds the record and sells copies directly. So the answer to “where do I write” is different in Ontario than it is anywhere else in the table above.
How to replace a lost Canadian high school diploma
Every province will replace the record. Not every province will reprint the certificate, and the ones that do charge for it. Fees below were read on September 13, 2026.
| Province | Where to ask | What you can get | Published fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario | The school you attended, or the board that holds your Ontario Student Record | A copy of the Ontario Student Transcript. Most boards will also process a duplicate diploma request on a signed records-request form | Set by each board and not by the ministry, so ask the board |
| Alberta | myPass, Alberta Education’s self-service portal | Official transcripts in English or French, additional copies of an awarded credential, and detailed academic reports | $20 per transcript, raised from $10 on June 15, 2026. Credential copies are priced in myPass at checkout |
| British Columbia | StudentTranscripts Service (a former student is anyone more than six months past their last course) | Transcripts and replacement secondary school certificates, including the Certificate of Graduation | $10 per transcript emailed to you as a PDF, and $10 per certificate ordered by mail |
| Quebec | Direction de la sanction des études, Ministère de l’Éducation, by online form, by mail, or at the counters in Québec City and Montreal | Copies of the DES and other certification documents, plus achievement records for Secondary I to III and IV to V | Not published on the request page, so confirm on the form before sending it |
Two Canadian wrinkles are worth knowing before you start. If you attended school in B.C. between 1974 and 1985, the province tells you to contact the secondary school directly rather than ordering online. And if your Ontario school has closed or your board has been amalgamated, which has happened to a great many Ontario schools since the 1990s, the record moved with the board and not with the building, so the successor board is the office to write to. The general sequence for a lost certificate, including what to have ready before you call, is in how to replace a lost diploma.
How US employers and colleges treat a Canadian diploma
A Canadian high school credential is a foreign credential in the United States, even though it is issued next door and usually written in English. Two things follow from that.
First, no US government agency evaluates foreign credentials. The National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES), a trade association founded in 1987, says so explicitly and notes that it does not perform evaluations itself. Its 18 member organizations do. When a US college or licensing board asks for “an evaluation from a NACES member”, it is naming a private report, not a government one. The University of Florida, for example, accepts evaluations from any current NACES member for coursework completed outside the US. Policies differ by institution, and several large universities publish country-by-country requirement pages that treat Canadian secondary credentials more simply than most, so check the specific school’s page before paying for a report you may not need. Our guide to whether foreign diplomas are accepted by US employers sets out when an evaluation is worth the money.
Second, verification runs through the issuing province or board, not through a US database. A US background screener checking a Canadian high school does not query the National Student Clearinghouse. It contacts the board or the ministry, or it asks you for a transcript ordered from one of the offices in the table above. That is slower than a domestic check and it is the reason to order a transcript before you need it instead of after. For what that process looks like from the employer’s side, see do employers check high school diplomas and how employers verify international degrees. For what to hand over when the request arrives, see when employers ask for proof of education.
One small practical point is that Quebec documents issued in French usually need a certified translation for US use, while Ontario, Alberta and B.C. documents are already in English. Alberta will issue a transcript in either language.
Adult and equivalency routes, and the end of the GED in Canada
This is the part of the topic where most of the advice online is now wrong. The GED is no longer available in Canada. Pearson told Canadian jurisdictions it could no longer support the test on its existing technology, and testing wound down through spring 2024. It ended on March 31, 2024 in the Northwest Territories, and Alberta records the test as unavailable in Canada as of May 3, 2024. A GED earned before that date remains a valid credential, and Alberta’s myPass allows former test-takers to view or request their GED marks indefinitely.
What replaced it is the Canadian Adult Education Credential (CAEC), developed jointly by the provinces and territories that opted in and launched in spring 2024. In Alberta it is one of two routes to a High School Equivalency Diploma. The other does not involve a test at all. Anyone 18 or older who has been out of school for at least 10 consecutive months can apply to a high school principal, who confirms 60 credits of classroom instruction, made up of a math course (5 credits), a science course (3), English Language Arts 30-1 or 30-2 or Français 30-1 or 30-2 (5), one other 30-level course (5) and 42 further credits, and then adds credits for age on a published scale: 5 credits at 21 to 24, 10 at 25 to 29, 15 at 30 and over, plus up to 15 credits for approved adult education courses.
Elsewhere the picture varies, and you should check your own province’s page rather than a national summary:
- Ontario routes adults back through the boards, using adult day school, night school, online and independent study credits, each course running 90 to 110 hours, with Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition able to grant up to 26 of the 30 credits a mature student needs. That is a full OSSD and not an equivalency.
- British Columbia offers the Adult Graduation Diploma to learners 18 and over, which can combine secondary and post-secondary credits, alongside the standard Dogwood route.
- Quebec is not part of the CAEC. Its adult general education sector issues the DES, and the ministry separately issues a Certificate of Equivalence of Secondary Studies (CESS) and an Attestation of Equivalence of Secondary V Studies (AESS).
None of this is the US GED, which continues to operate in the United States. If that is the credential you hold or want, start with our guides to the high school equivalency diploma and US high school diploma requirements by state, which is the closest American analogue to the provincial table above. If you are weighing whether to finish the credential at all, the earnings picture is in salary by education level.
Replicas for display
Replicas for display, from ValidGrad. We print novelty replica documents for display purposes only, including a Canadian high school diploma maker and a matching Canadian high school transcript maker. You choose the wording, the layout and the paper, and it arrives ready to frame, whether for a wall in an office, for a copy of a certificate that lives at a parent’s house in another province, or for a keepsake after the original was destroyed. Current pricing and turnaround are shown on each product page.
A replica is a novelty item. It must never be used to claim a credential you did not earn, to satisfy an employer, a school or a licensing body that has asked for proof, or to answer a verification request. See our Terms. When a province or a board is asked to confirm a credential, the transcript and the ministry record are the only answers that work.
Frequently asked questions
What is a high school diploma called in Canada?
It depends on the province. Ontario issues the Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD). Alberta issues the Alberta High School Diploma. British Columbia issues the B.C. Certificate of Graduation, known as the Dogwood Diploma. Quebec issues the Secondary School Diploma, or diplôme d’études secondaires (DES). There is no Canada-wide name and no federal education department that issues one.
Is an OSSD equivalent to a GED?
No. The OSSD is a full secondary school diploma earned through 30 credits, community involvement hours and a literacy requirement. The GED was a set of equivalency tests for adults who did not finish school, and it no longer exists in Canada. The closest Canadian equivalent to the old GED is now the CAEC, and in Alberta a High School Equivalency Diploma can also be assembled from credits and age without any test.
Can I still take the GED in Canada?
No. GED testing ended in Canada in spring 2024, on March 31, 2024 in the Northwest Territories, and Alberta records it as unavailable across Canada as of May 3, 2024. A GED earned before then stays valid, and Alberta test-takers can still pull their marks through myPass. New candidates take the Canadian Adult Education Credential instead, except in Quebec, which issues its own equivalence documents.
How do I get a copy of my Canadian high school diploma?
From the province that issued it, or in Ontario from the school board that holds your record. Alberta sells transcripts and credential copies through myPass, B.C. through StudentTranscripts Service at $10 per transcript or certificate, and Quebec through the Direction de la sanction des études. There is no federal office to write to.
Will a US college or employer accept a Canadian high school diploma?
Generally yes, with the transcript to go with it, and sometimes with a credential evaluation from a NACES member organization. Requirements are set school by school and employer by employer. No US government agency evaluates foreign credentials, so “recognized” always means recognized by the specific institution asking.
Sources
- Government of Ontario, High school graduation requirements. Credit totals, the 2024 compulsory-credit change, 40 community involvement hours, the OSSLT and online learning credits. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of Ontario, The Ontario Student Record (OSR) Guideline. Retention of most components for 55 years after a student leaves. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of Ontario, Adult learning: Ontario high school diploma. Adult credit routes, 90 to 110 hours per credit course, and up to 26 of 30 credits through Prior Learning Assessment and Recognition. Read September 13, 2026.
- Alberta Education, Guide to Education: Alberta High School Diploma graduation requirements. The 100-credit requirement and the compulsory course list. Read September 13, 2026.
- Alberta Education, Guide to Education: High School Equivalency Diploma. The two options, the 60-credit composition and the credits-for-age scale. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of Alberta, Graduation requirements, credentials and credits. Credentials issued twice a year, in late February and late July. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of Alberta, Student information and high school transcripts. Ordering through myPass and the transcript fee rising from $10 to $20 on June 15, 2026. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of Alberta, General Educational Development. The GED unavailable in Canada as of May 3, 2024, existing credentials still valid, marks available through myPass. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of the Northwest Territories, Canada and NWT discontinuing GED, introducing new equivalency exam. Testing ended March 31, 2024, and the CAEC was developed by participating provinces and territories. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of British Columbia, Graduation. The 80-credit total, 16 credits at the Grade 12 level, the three graduation assessments, and the Adult Graduation Diploma. Read September 13, 2026.
- Government of British Columbia, Transcripts and certificates: how to order. Fees of $10 per PDF transcript and $10 per certificate, and the 1974–1985 exception. Read September 13, 2026.
- Gouvernement du Québec, Achievement record in secondary school. The 54-credit DES requirement, the Secondary V minimum, the compulsory subjects and the 60% pass mark. Read September 13, 2026.
- Gouvernement du Québec, Request a transcript or a secondary school certification document. The documents the Ministère issues, including the CESS and AESS, and where to send the request. Read September 13, 2026.
- NACES, Members. A trade association founded in 1987 with 18 member organizations. NACES does not perform evaluations, and there is no US government agency that monitors credential evaluation services. Read September 13, 2026.
- University of Florida Admissions, International applicants. Evaluations accepted from any current NACES member. Read September 13, 2026.