Parents often ask me about the English Regents in the fall. Their child is taking it in January or June, and they want to know what the exam looks like, what score is enough, and how to help at home.
Here is the short answer.
The ELA Regents is New York State’s high school English exam. It has 24 multiple-choice questions and two writing tasks: an argument essay and a shorter text-analysis response. A scale score of 65 is the usual passing mark. The best practice material is free, straight from New York State, including real student essays that have already been scored.
Below, I explain each part, how the score is built, and the plan I give families in the weeks before the exam.
Table of Contents
What Is the English Regents?
The Regents Examination in English Language Arts (ELA) is a state exam in reading and writing. People call it the ELA Regents or the English Regents. They are the same test.
It mainly measures New York’s grade 11–12 English standards, with some grade 9–10 skills. In my experience, most NYC students take it in 11th grade, after most of their high school English coursework.
Right now, passing a Regents exam in English (or a state-approved alternative) is one of the testing requirements for a Regents diploma. For the full diploma rules, see NYSED’s graduation requirements page.
New York is reviewing those rules. As of September 2026, the state education department (NYSED) has proposed ending the requirement to pass Regents exams for a diploma. But NYSED says it is not eliminating the Regents exams, and the current requirements stay in effect for all students until any change is approved.
Which Version of the ELA Regents Will Your Child Take?
This matters, because a lot of material online describes the older exam.
NYSED’s current ELA exam is built on New York’s Next Generation English Language Arts Learning Standards. It was first given in June 2026. Exams before that were built on New York’s earlier (2014) standards.
NYSED’s schedules for January 2027 and June 2027 each list one English Language Arts exam. So every student in those sessions takes the same, current version.
| Administration | Testing period | ELA on the schedule? |
|---|---|---|
| January 2027 | January 26–29, 2027 | Yes |
| June 2027 | June 15–24, 2027 (no exams on June 18) | Yes |
The exact day and time are in the schedules on NYSED’s Regents examination schedules page. Your child’s school will confirm when to report, so always check with them.
The good news: the new exam is close to the old one. NYSED says Part 1 is similar to the prior exam and Part 2 keeps a familiar four-source format. The main changes are shorter reading sources, simpler directions, and rubrics revised for clarity.
What Is the Format of the ELA Regents?
Here is the format, from NYSED’s Educator Guide to the ELA Regents:
| Part | What your child reads | What your child does | How it’s scored |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part 1: Reading Comprehension | 3 texts (one literary text, one poem, one nonfiction text), about 2,600 words in total | Answers 24 multiple-choice questions | 1 point each, 24 points |
| Part 2: Argument Essay | 4 sources, about 2,400 words in total (one may be an infographic) | Writes an argument essay | Rubric score of 0–6, multiplied by 4 (up to 24 points) |
| Part 3: Text-Analysis Response | 1 text, about 1,000 words | Writes a response of at least two paragraphs | Rubric score of 0–4, multiplied by 2 (up to 8 points) |
NYSED calls it a three-hour test. Its suggested timing is 45–60 minutes for Part 1, 60–75 minutes for Part 2, and 30–45 minutes for Part 3.
A rubric is a scoring guide. It describes what an essay at each score level looks like. On this exam, both writing rubrics judge the same four things: the ideas and analysis, the use of evidence, the organization and style, and grammar and spelling (“conventions”).
On test day, the essays must be written in black or blue ink. Phones and other communication devices are strictly prohibited.
What Does the Part 2 Argument Essay Ask For?
This is the biggest piece of the exam. It is worth almost half the total points.
Your child reads four sources on one debatable question. Then they write a text-based argument. That means they take a side and support it with evidence from the sources, not from personal opinion alone.
The directions ask students to:
- State a clear claim (their position on the question).
- Use evidence from at least three of the four sources, and say which source and lines it came from.
- Explain how their claim differs from an opposing claim (the other side).
- Avoid simply summarizing the sources.
That “at least three” rule matters. Under the rubric, an essay that uses fewer than three sources can score no higher than a 3 out of 6. I have seen strong writers lose points this way simply because they ran short of time.
What Does the Part 3 Text-Analysis Response Ask For?
Your child reads one text. Then they write a response of at least two paragraphs.
They must do two things:
- Identify a central idea or theme. A central idea is the main point or message the text is built around.
- Explain how the author uses at least one writing strategy to develop that idea. A writing strategy is a tool the author chooses on purpose, such as imagery, tone, a comparison, or the structure of the piece.
The rubric rewards analysis, not summary. Retelling what happens in the text is the most common reason I see students score low here. The response has to explain how the author’s choice builds the idea.
How Is the ELA Regents Scored?
Your child’s answers become a weighted raw score. The multiple-choice points count once. The Part 2 rubric score is multiplied by 4. The Part 3 rubric score is multiplied by 2. The highest possible total is 56.
Each essay is scored by at least two trained raters, and a third rater settles scores that differ by more than one point. Teachers may not score their own students’ papers.
Then the weighted raw score becomes a scale score from 0 to 100, the final score your child sees. NYSED publishes a conversion chart for each exam, and each chart can be used only for that one exam. This is what people mean when they search for “the ELA Regents curve.”
Here is how the two charts for the current exam compare so far:
| Administration | Weighted raw score needed for a 65 | Weighted raw score needed for an 85 | Highest weighted raw score |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 2026 | 29 | 45 | 56 |
| August 2026 | 28 | 44 | 56 |
The performance levels on these charts:
| Scale score | Performance level |
|---|---|
| 85–100 | Level 5 (highest) |
| 75–84 | Level 4 |
| 65–74 | Level 3 |
| 55–64 | Level 2 |
| Below 55 | Level 1 |
Is a 70 good on the English Regents? A 70 passes. It falls in Level 3, which NYSED says meets the requirements for a Regents diploma. But it is below two marks worth knowing:
- 75 is the start of Level 4. It is also the English Regents score CUNY uses as one way for students to show they are ready for college-level English, though CUNY’s standards can change.
- 85 is the start of Level 5, the top level.
Some students with disabilities can use a score of 55–64 toward a local diploma, and some students can appeal a score of 60–64. These are set by NYSED’s rules, so ask your child’s school.
For how Regents scaling works across all subjects, see our post on Regents exam scores. When results come out, our guide on how to check your Regents scores explains where to look.
Where Can You Find Free Official ELA Regents Practice?
This is the most useful section of this post.
NYSED posts past ELA Regents exams for free at nysedregents.org/hsela. For each recent exam, you’ll find:
- The exam itself
- The scoring key, with the multiple-choice answers
- The rating guide, split into parts, with the rubrics for Part 2 and Part 3
- The conversion chart, to turn the weighted raw score into a scale score
The rating guide holds the real treasure: anchor papers. These are real student essays that NYSED has scored, at every score level, with notes explaining why each one earned its score. Part 2 anchor papers run from 6 down to 1, and Part 3 from 4 down to 1. The rating guides also include practice papers, which are extra scored essays. NYSED uses them to train the people who score the exam.
I tell parents this is the single most helpful thing they can show their child. Most students have never seen what a 6 looks like next to a 3 on the same prompt.
Which exams to use:
- June 2026 and August 2026 match the current exam exactly. Save one of them for a final full practice.
- Older exams are still very good practice. They have the same three parts: 24 multiple-choice questions, an argument essay from four sources, and a text-analysis response. Just remember the reading sources were longer and the rubric wording was different.
NYSED’s High School ELA page also posts the Educator Guide and a Written Response Sampler for the current exam. Our list of free Regents prep resources for NYC students collects more options in one place.
How Should Your Child Use Past Exams at Home?
The biggest mistake I see is students practicing only the multiple choice, because it is easy to check. Here is the plan I recommend for the four to six weeks before the exam:
- Take one full past exam under real conditions. Three hours, pen for the essays, no phone.
- Score the multiple choice with the official scoring key.
- Compare each essay to the anchor papers. Read the anchors at each level, then decide honestly which level your child’s essay is closest to. The notes beside each anchor explain the difference.
- Turn the total into a scale score using that exam’s conversion chart.
- Pick the weakest task and practice only that. For Part 2, write just the claim and one body paragraph with evidence from three sources. For Part 3, practice naming a central idea and a writing strategy in the first few sentences.
- Repeat with a new exam every week or two.
Keep time in mind, too. If your child keeps running out of time on Part 2, that is the first thing to fix.
Conclusion
The ELA Regents has 24 multiple-choice questions, a source-based argument essay, and a text-analysis response. The Part 2 essay counts the most. A scale score of 65 passes, 75 starts Level 4, and 85 starts Level 5. The raw score needed changes with every exam, because NYSED publishes a new conversion chart each time.
The January 2027 and June 2027 sessions both use the current exam, first given in June 2026. The best preparation is free: NYSED’s past exams, scored with its own keys, rating guides, and anchor papers.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is the English Regents hard?
It depends on the student. The exam mainly measures 11th–12th grade standards, and in my experience the writing is what trips most students up. A student who has practiced both essays against the anchor papers is usually well placed. No amount of practice guarantees a particular score, though.
2. How long is the ELA Regents?
NYSED describes it as a three-hour test.
3. What score do you need to pass the ELA Regents?
A scale score of 65 is the usual passing score. On the current exam, it took a weighted raw score of 29 out of 56 in June 2026 and 28 in August 2026.
4. What happens if my child fails the English Regents?
Students can generally take a Regents exam again at a later administration. In fact, NYSED’s traditional appeal process requires a student to have taken the exam at least twice. Some may also be eligible for an appeal or a safety net under NYSED rules. Our guide on how to recover from a failed Regents exam walks through the next steps.
5. What grade takes the ELA Regents?
The exam mainly measures grade 11-12 standards. In my experience, most students take it in 11th grade.
6. When are ELA Regents scores released?
On exam days, NYSED posts the scoring key, rating guide, and conversion chart at set times. Teachers then score the essays, and your child’s school calculates the final score. Ask the school when results will be shared.
If your child is taking the ELA Regents in January or June and would benefit from structured practice on both essays, Khan’s Tutorial’s Regents group classes are a good next step.