Secondary Education is free in Mauritius since 1977 and, as from 2005, it became compulsory for all up to the age of 16. The provision of secondary education is regulated by the State through the Ministry of Education, Tertiary Education, Science and Technology (MOETEST).
Secondary Education in Mauritius is a 7-year cycle from Grade 7 to Grade 13. With the Nine-Year Continuous Basic Education (NYCBE)reforms (2016), ALL children having completed the first six years of basic education (Grades 1 to 6) in their primary school, move on to Grade 7 in a secondary school.
Grades 7 to 9 (or Lower Secondary Education) correspond to the last 3 years of the nine-year continuous basic education cycle.
Upon completion of their basic education, students pursue their secondary education in Grades 10 to 11, at the end of which they sit for the Cambridge School Certificate/ General Certificate of Education ‘O’ level examination.
Successful students move on to Upper Secondary Education in Grades 12 and 13 leading to the Cambridge Higher School Certificate/General Certificate of Education ‘A’ level examination.
Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) offers alternative pathways to students for post- Grade 9, post-Grade 11 or post-Grade 13 studies, leading to the award of National Certificates, National Diplomas or Higher National Diplomas in specific fields.
The number and types of secondary schools in Mauritius is shown below:
Enrolment in Secondary Schools stood at 105,321 for year 2020, with 51.025 boys (48.4%) and 54296 girls (51.6%). Around 43.1% of the secondary school population was in state schools, 56.9% in private (aided and unaided) schools (Source: Education Statistics, 2020).
English and French are compulsory core subjects within the Secondary School Curriculum. Teaching is carried out in English for all subjects, except for French, Asian and other languages.
