Educational system in Bulgaria

Educational system includes: ◄ Nursery School ◄ Kindergarten ◄ Pre-school Year ◄ Primary Education ◄ Basic Education ◄ Secondary Education ◄ Higher Education

There nurses take care of them until they reach the required Nursery school: Children at the age of 2 to 3 go to nurseries. There nurses take care of them until they reach the required age for kindergarten. Kindergarten: When children are 3 they go to a kindergarten. There are usually four age groups: for 3, 4, 5 and 6 year-old kids.

Pre-school: When the children reach the age of 5 they must attend a pre-school programme either in a kindergarten or a school. Here they have classes which prepare the future pupils for their first year at school.

School Education: Level Age Grade Type of School Primary Basic 7 - 11 1 - 4 Primary School Basic 12 - 15 5 - 8 Basic school or Secondary school Secondary 16 - 19 9 - 12 Comprehensive schools Profiled Orientated Schools Vocational Training Technical schools (Profiled gymnasiums ) The age from 7 to 16 is the compulsory school age in Bulgaria.

Some facts Education at state-owned schools is free of charge. For the higher education students pay for it. The curriculum of Bulgarian Educational system focuses on ten main subjects: ● Bulgarian language and Literature, ● foreign languages, ● mathematics, ● information technologies, ● social sciences and civics, ● natural sciences and ecology, ● music, ● art, ● physical education and sports, ● domestics studies. From grade 2nd all the students start learning a foreign language. From grade 5th they start learning computer studies.

Some facts Excellent 6 Very good 5 Good 4 Satisfactory 3 Poor 2 The assessment is traditionally based on the following mark system: Excellent 6 Very good 5 Good 4 Satisfactory 3 Poor 2 The school year is divided into two terms with Autumn, Christmas, Winter, Easter and Summer holidays.

Some facts In Bulgaria the school year starts on 15 September and ends in May or June depending on the grade level of the students. Students have classes five days a week and usually study in two shifts (morning and afternoon). Each class lasts 45 minutes. Some facts As a tradition the 1st day school starts at 9 o’clock, with a special opening programme for the first grade kids, all the students, teachers and parents.

Primary and Basic school At the end of 4th grade in primary level and 7ht grade in basic level students must do an external evaluation tests in four core subjects – Bulgarian language, Mathematics, Natural Studies and Science Studies. Upon successful completion of grade 4 and 8 students obtain Certificate for Primary and Certificate for Basic Education.

Secondary School Secondary education includes comprehensive secondary schools, profiled and vocational gymnasiums. The admission to these schools is based upon grades from entry exams in Bulgarian and/or mathematics as well as grades in basic school. Students can enroll in profiled gymnasiums after the successful completion of grades 7 or 8. Usually, those who want to study languages, mathematics, or informatics in-depth apply to profiled school in 7th grade.

Students graduating from secondary schools must take exit exams in Bulgarian and another subject of their choice. This is so called “матура“ (matriculation). The results of these two exams is an entry for the higher education.

Higher education The types of higher education institutions are Universities and Colleges. ● Universities have three stages: Bachelor's (undergraduate –4 years ), Master's (graduate –5 years ), and Doctoral degrees. ● Colleges offer Proffesional Bachalor’s degree ( 3 years ). Some of the colleges are part of universities and use their equipment and facilities. The most famous universities in Bulgaria are: Sofia University, Plovdiv University, University of National and World Economy, Technical University of Sofia.

Some facts Every school has a patron name and an official school day. The 24th May is a very important day in Bulgaria. This is the official Day of Bulgarian Education, Culture, Science and Slavonic script. Traditionally there are schools parades in every town or village with music and songs, where every school goes through the center holding their school flag and the portraits of our prominent people – the two brothers Cyril and Methodii who wrote the Slavonic script , writers, poets, cultural workers from our history.

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