WORLDWIDE CULTUREL
EXCHANGE PROGRAM
High
School

ENGLAND MINISTRY OF EDUCATION

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT EXCHANGE PROGRAM

Primary education and the first level of secondary education (Primary Education and Lower Secondary Education) are within the scope of compulsory education. While compulsory education covers children aged 5-16, one of the biggest changes in recent years has been making education compulsory for two more years after the 11th grade (until the age of 18).

The stages in the England Education system are as follows:

Pre-school - not compulsory
Reception - not compulsory
Primary - compulsory
Secondary - compulsory
Further Education/ Sixth form-College - compulsory
Higher Education - not compulsory
GCSEs, which are course final exams, are held at the end of the 11th grade. Every student must pass a final exam in core courses. Although there is no mandatory upper limit on how many subjects to take the exam, it is common to take the exam in 5-6 subjects, as many vocational schools, universities, and even workplaces make recruitment based on success in GCSE exams.

In order to enter universities, it is necessary to take course completion exams called A Level at the end of the 13th grade. There are no lower or upper limits here either; the student chooses on a course basis and decides which courses to take the final exam. There is no central examination system for university entrance in the United Kingdom. Universities explain which courses and which scores should be obtained for each department and recruit students accordingly. The university may apply its own exams, especially for university departments that are very prestigious or in high demand.

England provides foreign high school students with the right to be exchange students for one or more years. Students are placed with volunteer families selected by the Ministry of State and attend the public high school closest to their homes. Exchange students can stay in this program for one or more academic years (11th and 12th grades).