In Poland, education is compulsory from the age of six till the age of eighteen. The first stage of education is primary school. The youngest children, those at the age of six, go to nursery, where they learn to read and write. Next, there are five grades of primary school. When children are thirteen, they have a final exam and after it, they start the next stage of their education which is gymasium. They spend there 3 years and at the end of the third year they again write the final test. Next, they go to secondary school which lasts three years. At the and of the third year, students take school-leaving exam called matura. It consists of written and oral parts. There are compulsory subjects, like mathematics or Polish, and also subject which students can choose. The results of the examination are important because they decide whether a student will be admitted to the university or not. After graduating from secondary school no one is obliged to proceed with his or her education. There are three options. If you are admitted to the university, you study for 3 years (to obtain BA degree) or 5 years (to obtain MA degree). You can also start to work after graduating from secondary school or work and at the same time study. You work during weekdays and have classes during weekends; the studies are called extramural.
