New York State has had a statewide curriculum-based external exit examinations system since 1877, governed and regulated by its board of Regents. Regents examinations originally served to guarantee that high school graduates were prepared to enter university; other, local examinations were available to the non-college bound. The Regents examinations evolved from the mid-1990s to serve a number of other uses including mandating high school graduation requirements and accountability for teachers and schools. This article concentrates on changes to the Regents examinations as local high school diplomas were phased out and Regents Diploma requirements increased, to ascertain whether those changes have altered the balance of the Regents examinations' purposes and uses.