The Education in Slovak Republic

Legislation:

The Slovak education legislation is based on the Country’s Declaration of Human Rights, which includes the right to education. School education is basically free. Parents participate financially in provision of school materials. Infant, primary, secondary and higher education are regulated by laws, approved or amended respectively after 1989.

Structure of the educational process:

Nursery Schools - for children from 3 to 6, attended by more than 90% of all children aged 5 to 6

Primary Education (Elementary schools) - Primary education is compulsory. It lasts 9 years altogether and consist of two levels: first level (4 years) and second level (5 years)

Secondary Schools (High schools) - More than 98% of all students continue their education at one of the high schools - one of the three main kinds:

General High schools (gymnasium) - mostly cover 4-year high school education, but there are also 5-year high schools (bilingual) and 8-year high schools. The main goal of general high schools is to prepare students for further education at universities. In 1995 in the Slovak Republic there were 14 bilingual high schools concentrating on teaching English, French, German and Spanish languages. Eight-year schools accept a pupil after the 4th year at an elementary school. Beside the state high schools there are also private and ecclesiastical high schools.

Technical high schools prepare students to work in different industries such as industrial production, civil engineering, agriculture, trade and information services, health services applied and decorative art, hotel services etc. Secondary Musical Schools (Conservatory), Secondary Schools of Industrial Art and Girls Technical Schools also fall into this category. All of these schools concern themselves with developing secondary technical, artistic and social human resources.

Technical education establishments: prepare students for apprentice occupations. They formed the most powerful kind of high schools before 1989.

Artistic schools - allow those students with outstanding talent in a certain discipline to improve it and to develop it further. In the Slovak Republic, there are several main types of artistic schools at present: artistic elementary schools, technical secondary schools of applied arts, musical secondary schools (conservatoires), technical secondary establishments for artistic disciplines, universities with artistic direction.

Universities:

Universities are the highest educational and academic institutions. At present, there are 18 universities, 3 military colleges and a Police Academy in the Slovak Republic. As far as academic subjects are concerned, 8 universities concentrate on humanities, four are technical, three are focused on the arts and there is also a University of Economics, a University of Agriculture, a Veterinary University and others. All universities are, in the wording of the University Law of 1990, under the control and administration of the Ministry of Education, apart from the Police Academy and Military Colleges. As a result a Universities’ Council was set up, mainly to represent the interests of universities to the Ministry of Education. Everyone can study at university including foreign citizens if they comply with general requirements (High School Final Exams, good health etc.).

Study for master’s, medicine and veterinary degrees lasts from 4 to 6 years (8-12 semesters), study for bachelor degree lasts from 3 to 4 years (6-8 semesters), postgraduate (doctor’s degree) study lasts from 2 to 4 years (4-8 semesters).

Studying at university is free for Slovak citizens. There are certain fees for activities that do not fit into the educational process although there are some small charges (administrative costs, entrance exams, issuing of certificates, registering of students) Universities charge this independently.

For foreign citizens the fee is charged according to Regulation of "The Ministry of Education" on "financial and material conditions of foreign citizens studying in the Slovak Republic." If the applicant does not have a knowledge of the language he may ask for a language preparation course provided by the Centre of language and Academic Preparation of Foreign Students at Komensky (Comenius) University in Bratislava.

Contact Addresses and other sources of information on education:

Ministry of Education of the Slovak Republic

Ministerstvo Školstva Slovenskej republiky

Stromová 1

81330 Bratislava

Tel: +421 / 2 / 5477 3986

Fax: +421 / 2 / 5477 3966

www.education.gov.sk

Slovak Academic Information Agency

SAIA-SCTS
Ružová dolina 6

P.O. Box 42,

820 05 Bratislava 25