Primary and secondary education

How is Egyptian primary and secondary education organised? To which Dutch diplomas can you compare Egyptian diplomas?

• Primary and secondary education in Egypt
• Basic education certificate
• Preparatory education certificate of Al-Azhar
• Secondary school technical diploma
• General secondary education certificate
• Secondary education certificate of Al-Azhar

Primary and secondary education in Egypt

Primary education lasts 6 years and is intended for children aged 6 to 12.

Secondary education lasts 3 years. There are different types of secondary education:

• general secondary education / شهاده اتمام التناوية العامة
• religious secondary education / شهادة التانوية الأزهرية
• technical secondary education / دبلوم المدارس الثانوية نظام الثلات سنوات (صناعي - زراعي - تجاري)

These different types of secondary education each have their own diplomas. Below, we describe the diplomas we often see.

Basic education certificate

Pupils get this diploma when they pass the national exam of lower general secondary education. In Egypt, primary education and lower secondary education together are called ‘basic education’.

• Duration i : 6 years (primary education) + 3 years (lower secondary education).
• Content: general education subjects.
• Function of the diploma: access to all types of upper secondary education and secondary vocational education.
• Diploma: Basic education certificate / شهادة إتمام الدراسة الإعدادية .

The official length of the full-time programme (not part-time) without study delay.

We compare a Basic education certificate to 2 years of HAVO i .

Senior general secondary education ( hoger algemeen voortgezet onderwijs , HAVO). A HAVO diploma is awarded upon successful completion of a 5-year programme of general secondary education.

Preparatory education certificate of Al-Azhar

This is the diploma of lower religious secondary education.

• Duration: 3 years.
• Content: mainly the same as the content of the Basic education certificate , with extra religious subjects.
• Admission requirements: completed primary education.
• Function of the diploma: access to all types of upper secondary education.
• Diploma: Preparatory education certificate of Al-Azhar / الشهادة الاعدادية الأزهرية .

We compare a Preparatory education certificate of Al-Azhar to 2 years of HAVO.

Secondary school technical diploma

This is the diploma of upper technical secondary education. Students are taught at a technical secondary school.

• Duration: 3 years (grades 10-12).
• Content: subjects concerning agriculture, commerce or industry. Since the school year 2022-2023, 2 specialisations have been added: hospitality and technology.
• Admission requirements: a Basic education certificate with study results that do not give access to general secondary education.
• Function of the diploma: access to secondary vocational education if students obtained their diploma with a final result of at least 70%. In some cases, access to higher education is also possible.
• Diploma: one of the following diplomas:
  • Secondary school technical diploma in agriculture / دبلوم المدارس الثانوية نظام الثلات سنوات زراعي
  • Secondary school technical diploma in commerce / دبلوم المدارس الثانوية نظام الثلات سنوات تجاري
  • Secondary school technical diploma in industry / دبلوم المدارس الثانوية نظام الثلات سنوات صناعي
    Please note: from 2025 onwards, we will see the first diplomas in the new specialisations (hospitality and technology).

  We compare a Secondary school technical diploma to an MBO i diploma level 2 or 3. This depends on the content of the study programme.

  Secondary vocational education ( middelbaar beroepsonderwijs , MBO). MBO prepares pupils for the professional practice or further study. This type of education follows on from VMBO; its duration will depend on the chosen qualification. MBO comprises 4 levels (I-IV). Read more on the website of SBB.

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  General secondary education certificate

  This is the diploma of upper general secondary education. Students get the diploma when they pass the national exam / شهاده التنوية العامة .

  • Duration: 3 years (grades 10-12).
  • Content: in the 1st year, all students take the same general education subjects. From the 2nd year onwards, students choose a programme of study and a corresponding subject cluster for which they take subjects. They can choose from the following programmes of study:
    • the general (academic) programme of study with 2 possible subject clusters: literature / أدبي or (natural) sciences / علمي ; or
    • the technical programme of study with 3 possible subject clusters: agriculture / زراعي , commerce / تجاري or industry / صناعي .

    We compare a General secondary education certificate to a HAVO diploma.

    Secondary education certificate of Al-Azhar

    This is the diploma of upper religious secondary education. Students are taught at a school that is affiliated to the Al-Azhar institute.

    • Duration: 3 years (grades 10-12).
    • Content: the subjects can be divided into 3 groups: religious education, Arabic language and general education.
    • Admission requirements: a lower secondary education diploma.
    • Function of the diploma: access to higher education.
    • Diploma: Secondary education certificate of Al-Azhar / شهاده التنوية الأزهرية .

    We compare an Al-azhar secondary school certificate to a HAVO diploma.