Age requirements for free and compulsory education help policymakers ensure that students receive the benefits of early education and support a reduction in dropout rates. Depending on the state, students are required to attend school for as few as nine years and up to 13 years. However, exemptions exist on both sides of the K-12 spectrum to support students with circumstances outside of compulsory attendance requirements. Some common exemptions include home instruction, mental or physical conditions that make attendance infeasible, or completion of equivalent high school requirements. This resource provides a national comparison of school age requirements for both free and compulsory education across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Unless otherwise noted, all information in this resource was gathered from state statutes and constitutions only. [View the full "50-State Comparison: Free and Compulsory School Age Requirements" here: https://www.ecs.org/50-state-comparison-free-and-compulsory-school-age-requirements/.]