Education system in the Slovak Republic

Secondary education is provided by the following types of schools:

1. Gymnasium (gymnázium) provides general secondary education and prepares for futher study at universities and other higher education institutions (secondary school leaving certificate - vysvedčenie o maturitnej skúške). Study lasts 4-5 years (based on grade 8 or 9 of basic school) or 8 years (based on grade 4 of the basic school).
    
   
2. Specialized secondary school (stredná odborná škola) prepares students mainly for vocational education and for study at higher education institutions (secondary school-leaving certificate - vysvedčenie o maturitnej skúške) after 4-year courses and 2-3 -year- courses at postsecondary level (absolventský diplom).
    
   
3. Secondary vocational school (stredné odborné učilište) prepares students for occupations requiring vocational education in duration of 1-4 years (vysvedčenie o záverečnej skúške - certificate on final examination) and výučný list-(apprenticeship) as well as for more demanding occupations in duration of 4-5 years (secondary school-leaving certificate - vysvedčenie o maturitnej skúške).
   

Secondary school-leavers with secondary school leaving certificate (vysvedčenie o maturitnej skúške) issued after successful completion of 13, exeptionally 12 years of schooling fulfill general requirements for admission to higher education institutions.

As a rule, higher education institutions require admission examination.

Higher education system

Higher education institutions provide education at three levels:

1. the study leading to Bakalár's degree which lasts 3 years, exceptionelly 4 years (architecture, fine arts and design).
   
2. the study leading to the Magister's and Inžinier's degrees which lasts usually 5 years, exceptionelly 4 years (teacher education, dramatic art) or 6 years (fine arts and design, architecture), for holders of Bakalár's degree 2 years, and Doctor's studies in the fields of medicine and veterinary science, which last 6 years.
   
3. the PhD. study after completing a dissertation examination through the defence of a dissertation.

1. the degree of "bakalár" (abbr. "Bc.") in Bakalár's programmes.
   
2. the academic degree of "magister" (abbr. "Mgr.") in Magister's programmes, in the fields of art the academic degree of "magister umenia" (abbr. "Mgr. art.")
   
3. the academic degree of "inžinier" (abbr. "Ing.") in technical, agricultural and economic fields of Inžinier's programmes, and in the fields of architecture and town-planning the academic degree of "inžinier architekt" (abbr. "Ing. arch.").
   
4. the academic degree of "doktor medicíny" (abbr. "MUDr.") in medicine and the academic degree of "doktor veterinárskej medicíny" (abbr. "MVDr.") in veterinary medicine.

Holders of the academic degree of "magister" may take examina rigorosa, which also include the defence of a dissertation. Upon successfully completing it, higher education institutions shall award to the students the following academic degrees:

1. the degree of "doktor prírodných vied" (abbr. "RNDr.") in natural sciences.
   
2. the degree of "doktor farmácie" (abbr. "PharmDr.") in pharmacy.
   
3. the degree of "doktor filozofie" (abbr. "PhDr.") in the humanities and art.
   
4. the degree of "doktor práv" (abbr. "JUDr.") in law and security courses with legal concentrations.
   
5. the degree of "doktor pedagogiky" (abbr. "PaedDr.") in teacher training and sports.
   
6. the degree of "doktor teológie" (abbr. "ThDr.") in theology.

PhD. study is the highest form of higher education. The aim of PhD. study is to prepare for independent creative scientific-research work or excellent work of art by acquiring comprehensive theoretical knowledge and mastering the methods of scientific or artistic work demonstrating them in a given scientific (artistic) project, thus providing the PhD. student with the highest degree of higher education in the respective scientific discipline or field of art.

PhD. study also may be organized by external educational institution. It is a scientific workplace of the Slovak Academy of Sciences or other institution of science, education, research, technology or art that is vested, by the Ministry of Education and upon the proposal or statement by the Accreditation Commission, with the right to provide PhD. study at least in one scientific discipline or field of art.

Faculties or higher education institutions, in case the higher education institution is not divided into faculties, award to the graduates of PhD. studies in the scientific disciplines the degree of "philosophiae doctor" (abbr. "PhD."), and to the graduates of PhD. studies in the fields of art, the degree of "artis doctor" (abbr. "ArtD."). The scientific-academic and artistic-academic degrees are shown in abbreviation after the candidate's name.

Grading system

Grading system generally used by higher education institutions:

• výborný (Excellent)
  
• veľmi dobrý (Very good)
  
• dobrý (Good)

In some subjects, the achievements are prescribed and assessed at the level of credit (zápočet) and marked credit (klasifikovaný zápočet). In this case, the achievement requirements in individual subjects are lower than in the case of examinations.

Academic year

The academic year starts on September 1st of the current year and it ends on August 31st of the next year. It consists of 2 semesters (winter and summer) with two respective examination sessions after each semester. The organization of the academic year is defined by the statute of the faculty or the statute of the higher education institution, in the case the university is not divided into faculties.

List of higher education institutions

Akadémia policajného zboru v Bratislave
Akadémia umení v Banskej Bystrici
Ekonomická univerzita v Bratislave
Prešovská univerzita v Prešove
Slovenská poľnohospodárska univerzita v Nitre
Slovenská technická univerzita v Bratislave
Technická univerzita v Košiciach
Technická univerzita vo Zvolene
Trenčianska univerzita v Trenčíne
Trnavská univerzita v Trnave
Univerzita Komenského v Bratislave
Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre
Univerzita Mateja Bela v Banskej Bystrici
Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika v Košiciach
Univerzita Sv. Cyrila a Metoda v Trnave
Univerzita veterinárskeho lekárstva v Košiciach
Vojenská akadémia v Liptovskom Mikuláši
Vojenská letecká akadémia generála Milana Rastislava Štefánika v Košiciach
Vysoká škola múzických umení v Bratislave
Vysoká škola výtvarných umení v Bratislave
Žilinská univerzita v Žiline