Pick a state and enter a birthday, or enter the grade a student is in now, to see the high school Class of year. Then add a college program and course load to estimate the month college ends.
| Stage | School year | Age on Sep 1 |
|---|
US schools run 13 grades from kindergarten through 12th grade, and a class moves up one grade each school year. The calculator uses one of two starting points.
Take the calendar year in which the current school year ends and add the grades still to come:
Graduation year = end year of the current school year + (12 − current grade)
A 7th grader in the 2026–2027 school year: 2027 + (12 − 7) = Class of 2032. A kindergartner counts as grade 0, so a kindergartner in 2026–2027 graduates in 2027 + 12 = 2039.
A child starts kindergarten the first fall in which they are already 5 on their state's cutoff date. Thirteen school years later, they finish 12th grade. With the common September 1 cutoff this gives a simple rule:
For example, a child born on March 10, 2015 turns 5 before September 1, 2020, starts kindergarten in fall 2020 and graduates in spring 2033. A child born on October 4, 2015 misses that cutoff, starts in fall 2021 and joins the Class of 2034. In Colorado, where the cutoff is October 1, that October 4 birthday still misses; an October 1 birthday would not.
Instead of a fixed number of years, the college estimate counts credits. It starts in the fall after high school (plus any years off), adds the chosen credits each fall and spring semester, and adds summer credits if you pick that load. The degree ends in the term where the running total reaches the program's credits: May for a spring term, August for summer, or December for fall. A bachelor's degree at 15 credits a semester ends in May four years later; adding 9 summer credits a year finishes in December of the fourth year, a semester early.
States grouped by the date a child must turn 5 by to start kindergarten that fall. Picking a state in the calculator applies its date automatically.
| Turns 5 on or before | States |
|---|---|
| July 31 | Hawaii, Kentucky*, Missouri*, Nebraska, North Dakota* |
| August 1 | Arkansas, Indiana, Nevada, Wyoming |
| August 15 | Tennessee |
| August 31 | Arizona*, Delaware, Kansas, New Mexico*, North Carolina, Washington, West Virginia* |
| September 1 | Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Wisconsin |
| September 2 | Utah |
| September 10 | Montana |
| September 15 | Iowa |
| September 30 | District of Columbia, Louisiana, Virginia |
| October 1 | Colorado, New Jersey |
| October 15 | Maine |
| December 31 | Vermont* |
| Set by district | Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio (age 5 by the first day of school), Pennsylvania |
* The statute says the child must be 5 before the following day (for example, before September 1). That is shown here as the day before, so Arizona's "prior to September 1" appears as August 31.
Source and limits. Compiled from the state statutes and regulations listed in the Education Commission of the States State K-3 Policies 2026 comparison (September 2026). Districts can grant early-entry waivers, private schools set their own rules, and laws change, so confirm the date with your school district before you enroll.
Birth date ranges for each high school class with a September 1 cutoff and an on-track path. In a state with a different cutoff, slide both ends of each range to that date.
| Graduating class | Born between | Senior year |
|---|---|---|
| Class of 2027 | Sep 2, 2008 – Sep 1, 2009 | 2026–2027 |
| Class of 2028 | Sep 2, 2009 – Sep 1, 2010 | 2027–2028 |
| Class of 2029 | Sep 2, 2010 – Sep 1, 2011 | 2028–2029 |
| Class of 2030 | Sep 2, 2011 – Sep 1, 2012 | 2029–2030 |
| Class of 2031 | Sep 2, 2012 – Sep 1, 2013 | 2030–2031 |
| Class of 2032 | Sep 2, 2013 – Sep 1, 2014 | 2031–2032 |
| Class of 2033 | Sep 2, 2014 – Sep 1, 2015 | 2032–2033 |
| Class of 2034 | Sep 2, 2015 – Sep 1, 2016 | 2033–2034 |
| Class of 2035 | Sep 2, 2016 – Sep 1, 2017 | 2034–2035 |
| Class of 2036 | Sep 2, 2017 – Sep 1, 2018 | 2035–2036 |
| Class of 2037 | Sep 2, 2018 – Sep 1, 2019 | 2036–2037 |
| Class of 2038 | Sep 2, 2019 – Sep 1, 2020 | 2037–2038 |
| Class of 2039 | Sep 2, 2020 – Sep 1, 2021 | 2038–2039 |
| Class of 2040 | Sep 2, 2021 – Sep 1, 2022 | 2039–2040 |
| Class of 2041 | Sep 2, 2022 – Sep 1, 2023 | 2040–2041 |
| Class of 2042 | Sep 2, 2023 – Sep 1, 2024 | 2041–2042 |
| Class of 2043 | Sep 2, 2024 – Sep 1, 2025 | 2042–2043 |
| Class of 2044 | Sep 2, 2025 – Sep 1, 2026 | 2043–2044 |
The typical grade, age and graduating class for each birth date range this school year, with a September 1 cutoff.
| Grade | Age during year | Born between | Class of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 5–6 | Sep 2, 2020 – Sep 1, 2021 | 2039 |
| 1st grade | 6–7 | Sep 2, 2019 – Sep 1, 2020 | 2038 |
| 2nd grade | 7–8 | Sep 2, 2018 – Sep 1, 2019 | 2037 |
| 3rd grade | 8–9 | Sep 2, 2017 – Sep 1, 2018 | 2036 |
| 4th grade | 9–10 | Sep 2, 2016 – Sep 1, 2017 | 2035 |
| 5th grade | 10–11 | Sep 2, 2015 – Sep 1, 2016 | 2034 |
| 6th grade | 11–12 | Sep 2, 2014 – Sep 1, 2015 | 2033 |
| 7th grade | 12–13 | Sep 2, 2013 – Sep 1, 2014 | 2032 |
| 8th grade | 13–14 | Sep 2, 2012 – Sep 1, 2013 | 2031 |
| 9th grade (freshman) | 14–15 | Sep 2, 2011 – Sep 1, 2012 | 2030 |
| 10th grade (sophomore) | 15–16 | Sep 2, 2010 – Sep 1, 2011 | 2029 |
| 11th grade (junior) | 16–17 | Sep 2, 2009 – Sep 1, 2010 | 2028 |
| 12th grade (senior) | 17–18 | Sep 2, 2008 – Sep 1, 2009 | 2027 |
A child born a few days before the cutoff is among the youngest in their class, while one born a few days after is among the oldest in the next class. That one-day difference shifts the whole timeline by a year, so families with summer and early fall birthdays look at the graduation year most closely.
Some parents of children born just before the cutoff choose to wait a year before kindergarten, often called redshirting. Others ask about early entry for a child born just after it; some states allow districts to test or waive the age rule. Either choice moves the Class of year, which you can model with the School path option. Repeating or skipping a grade later on has the same one-year effect.
The wording of the law also matters on the cutoff day itself. "On or before September 1" admits a child born on September 1, while "before September 1" does not, which is why the table above lists a few states one day earlier than their statute's date.