New York students are frustrated. Classmates vented on TikTok. Teachers pushed back. One superintendent asked publicly — “Why should we use this test to grade our kids?”
The 2025 NY Regents Exam backlash was real and loud. But one question actually matters: can a harder Regents exam drag down your GPA?
The answer is more nuanced than a simple yes or no. Here’s what you need to know.
What Sparked the NY Regents Exam Backlash?
The 2025 Earth Science and Biology Fiasco
New York students flooded TikTok in June 2025 with complaints about the Earth Science Regents exam. They claimed it had questions about cheetahs and toll payments — not Earth Science.
One eighth grader told FOX 5 NY: “The test felt like a reading comprehension test. Weather wasn’t covered — and we spent months on it.”
NYSUT President Melinda Person released a formal statement. She said off-curriculum questions create confusion and are fundamentally unfair to both students and teachers.
New Exams, New Problems
June 2025 introduced three brand-new exam formats simultaneously. Life Science: Biology and Earth and Space Sciences replaced older exams. A redesigned Geometry Regents also launched that same session.
Students had studied under the old curriculum. Launching three new tests at once was always going to cause problems. And it did.
Who Pushed Back — and How Hard
Jericho School District Superintendent Hank Grisham was direct: “The kids mastered material that was not accurately tested. Why should we use this test to grade them?”
His district normally lets strong Regents scores boost a student’s final grade. After the 2025 Earth Science exam, they refused to count it for anyone.
Individual districts have real power here. Some used it. Yours might too.
Does a Harder Regents Exam Actually Lower Your GPA?
How Regents Scores Are Calculated (Most People Get This Wrong)
Your Regents score is not just the percentage of questions you got right. There’s a built-in protection system most students don’t know exists.
NYSED converts raw scores to scaled scores through a statistical equating process. Each exam administration gets its own unique conversion chart. A harder exam produces a more generous curve.
That’s the theory. In practice, the curve only works when difficulty is predictable — not when questions come from outside the curriculum entirely.
The Raw Score vs. Scaled Score Reality
| Exam | Raw Points to Pass | Total Raw Points |
|---|---|---|
| Algebra II (Jan 2026) | ~26 | 86 |
| Geometry (Jan 2026) | ~35 | 80 |
| ELA (Jan 2026) | ~30 weighted | 56 |
| Living Environment (Jan 2026) | ~41 | 85 |
On Algebra II, you only need 26 out of 86 raw points to pass. You can miss most of the exam and still clear the 65 threshold.
The equating process is designed to prevent widespread failures. But it cannot fix questions that were never part of what students studied.
The GPA Connection: What Schools Actually Control
Here’s what most students miss. Your Regents score and your course GPA are usually two separate things. Your GPA comes from teacher-assigned grades — classwork, tests, and projects.
Schools can show all Regents scores on your transcript or just the highest score per subject. Some districts let a strong Regents score optionally boost your final course grade.
That’s a local policy — not a state mandate. Ask your school counselor exactly how your district handles it.
What the State Is (and Isn’t) Saying About Score Protection
The Safety Net Provisions
New York has safety-net options for students who fall slightly below the passing mark. Students scoring between 52–64 may qualify for an appeal depending on their overall record and diploma pathway.
NYSED’s public stance after the 2025 controversy was firm: the exams are well-aligned. Hundreds of NYS teachers helped develop them, and the process is industry-standard.
NYSUT disagreed. So did multiple district superintendents across the state.
The Bigger Shift: Regents Exams Are Being Phased Out
Here’s the context that changes everything. The Board of Regents voted in November 2024 to phase out mandatory exams. Starting September 2027, students will no longer need to pass five Regents exams to graduate.
Students can still choose to take them to earn a Regents or Advanced Regents Diploma. That distinction will show on their transcript and matter to colleges.
Students who skip the exams won’t have that credential. Colleges and employers will be able to see who earned it and who didn’t.
How Colleges Actually View Regents Scores
For SUNY and CUNY applications, Regents scores are taken seriously as state-level proficiency markers. They carry real weight in-state.
Prestigious out-of-state schools treat them as secondary. They prioritize overall GPA, AP coursework, and SAT/ACT scores over Regents results.
Research consistently shows high school GPA predicts college success better than standardized tests. Admissions officers already know this. One bad Regents score won’t sink a strong applicant.
What Students and Parents Can Do Right Now
- Ask your district’s policy. Does your school factor Regents scores into your course grade? One question, one conversation — it changes everything.
- Know your retake windows. Exams run in January, June, and August. Each administration uses a completely new set of questions.
- Target 85+, not just 65. Mastery-level scores earn a special transcript annotation. Worth the extra prep for college-bound students.
- Report curriculum mismatches. If your exam included off-curriculum content, document it. Teacher and principal feedback reaches NYSED and influences future exams.
- Confirm your diploma pathway. Entering 9th grade post-2024? Talk to your counselor. The “Portrait of a Graduate” framework changes the rules starting 2027.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the NY Regents exam score affect my GPA?
Your Regents score appears on your transcript but is usually separate from your GPA. GPA comes from teacher-assigned course grades. Some districts allow a high Regents score to optionally boost your final grade — check with your counselor.
What happens if I fail a Regents exam?
A failing score (below 65) doesn’t automatically hurt your GPA. You can retake the exam in January, June, or August. Students scoring between 52–64 may qualify for a safety-net appeal depending on their diploma track.
Were the 2025 Regents exams harder, and did NYSED adjust scoring?
Educators and students reported off-curriculum content on the 2025 Earth Science and Biology exams. NYSED defended its process. The built-in equating curve adjusts for difficulty — but it can’t compensate for material students were never taught.
Are Regents exams going away entirely?
Not entirely. From 2027–28, they’re no longer required for graduation. Students can still take them voluntarily to earn a Regents or Advanced Regents Diploma, which matters especially for SUNY and CUNY admissions.
Should I still take Regents exams when they become optional?
For SUNY and CUNY applicants, yes — the Regents Diploma signals real academic achievement. For highly selective out-of-state schools, the impact is smaller. A mastery-level score (85+) never hurts either way.
Meet Deepkant Shrivastava, he has been writing content since 2020. Over the years he has worked across more than ten websites — mostly covering job updates, career guidance, and government schemes — which gave him a solid grip on how to break down complicated topics for everyday readers.
At NextExamNews, he writes guides, exam updates, and result-related articles covering major about various exams. He tries to keep every article easy to read and straight to the point.
On the personal side, he is currently in performance marketing domain and learning AI and finding ways to bring both into his content creation.