Education system
The education system in India consists of primary, upper primary, secondary, upper secondary and higher education. Primary and secondary schools are governed by the states. Education is compulsory for all children between the age of 6 to 14 which covers primary education (grades 1 – 5) and upper primary education / middle school (grades 6 – 8). However research shows that only around 70 – 80% of children this age actually attend school. The National Council for Education Research and Training (NCERT) sets the curriculum for the period of compulsory education.
Students then go on to secondary school to complete grades 9 and 10, although this stage of education is not compulsory and research shows that attendance figures for secondary school are relatively low. Students complete their final examinations towards the end of their secondary school education resulting in the award of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC), the All-India Secondary School Certificate or the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education, depending on the exam board. This is roughly equivalent to the UK’s GCSE’s (General Certificate of Secondary Education).
Upper secondary education is then completed in schools or colleges covering grades 11 and 12 if students wish to pursue this. At the end of this phase of education students complete the Senior Secondary Certificate (roughly equivalent to the UK’s ‘AS’ levels) which prepares them for entry into higher education.
The higher education system in India is the 3rd largest in the world, after that of China and the US. In total there are 416 universities which consist of 24 central universities, 251 state universities and 103 ‘deemed’ universities (higher education establishments of a sufficient standard to be deemed a university by the Indian National Government or the state) and also 20,677 colleges of higher education. Qualifications offered by these institutions include Bachelor’s degrees, Master’s degrees, Doctoral degrees and undergraduate and postgraduate diplomas.
