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The Education System in the United States

NOTE: There are differences within the education system of the United States because responsibilities and oversight for education take place at the regional or local level. However, the purpose of this document is to present a brief, general summary of education in the United States. The sources cited at the end of this section provide more specific details about education in the United States.

Preprimary:

  • Common name: Nursery school, prekindergarten, kindergarten
  • Ages of attendance: As early as age 3 to age 5
  • Number of years: 1 to 3
  • Start of universal enrollment: Does not begin in preprimary; see below
  • Compulsory: Generally no, but yes in some states

Primary:

  • Common name: Elementary school, grade school
  • Ages of attendance: 6 to 11
  • Number of years: 6
  • Start of universal enrollment: Age 6
  • Compulsory: Yes

NOTE: Based on the ISCED97, the first 6 years of schooling are
classified as primary in the United States. Students may attend 5- or
6-year elementary schools. Some students also attend elementary schools that include eight grades.

Lower secondary:

  • Common name: Middle school, junior high school
  • Ages of attendance: 12 to 14
  • Number of years: 3
  • Universal enrollment: Yes
  • Compulsory: Yes
  • Entrance/exit criteria: No

NOTE: Based on the ISCED97, the 3 years of schooling following primary school are classified as lower secondary in the United States. Students may attend 2- or 3-year junior high schools or middle schools. Some students also attend combined junior-senior
high schools.

Upper secondary:

  • Common name: High school, senior high school
  • Ages of attendance: 15 to 17 (graduation generally in the year of the student's 18th birthday, though this can vary depend- ing on a student's birth date and the state's kindergarten cut-off date)
  • Number of years: 3
  • Universal enrollment: Through age 16 (most students turn 18 during the last year of upper secondary school)
  • Compulsory: The average ending age of compulsory education in the United States is 17. This age varies across states, ranging from 16 to 18; the modal age is 18.
  • Entrance/exit criteria: There are not generally entrance exams, although some states have begun instituting exit examina- tions that are required to receive a diploma. College-bound students usually take the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) or ACT Assessment (ACT), privately administered standardized tests that partly determine college admittance. Admittance is also affected by previous grades, coursework, and other factors such as teacher recommendations and extracurricular participation.

Postsecondary and tertiary:

  • Common name: Community college, college, university
  • Ages of attendance: Varies
  • Number of years: Varies according to degree
  • Universal enrollment: No
  • Entrance criteria: Varies according to degree. Students in the United States usually take the SAT or ACT (see above) as part of the entrance requirements for higher education. Most colleges and universities set their own admissions standards, so the requirements vary substantially from institution to institution.

Common degree programs:

  • Certificate programs: Vocational programs of 6 months to 1 year offered in public community colleges and private for-profit trade schools.
  • Associate's degrees: 2-year programs offered in fields of study that prepare students for the labor force or entry into a 4-year college or university. Granted at vocational and technical institutes as well as community colleges.
  • Bachelor's degrees: 4-year academic programs at a college or university that prepare students for the labor force or graduate study.
  • Master's degrees: Graduate program at a university that requires
  • 2 years of study beyond the bachelor's degree and leads to a master's degree.
  • Professional degrees: Graduate programs such as medicine or law taken at a university medical or law school. Typically require 3 or more years beyond the bachelor's degree and result in specialized degrees such as the Medical Doctorate (M.D.) or Juris Doctor (J.D.).
  • Doctorate: Academic graduate program at a university typically requiring a minimum of 3 or 4 years of study and research beyond the bachelor's degree.

Sources:

Marlow-Ferguson, R. (Ed.) (2002). World Education Encyclopedia: A Survey of Educational Systems Worldwide, Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Gale Group.

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. (1996). Education at a Glance: OECD Indicators. Paris: Author.

Robitaille, D.F. (1997). National Contexts for Mathematics and Science Education: An Encyclopedia of the Education Systems Participating in TIMSS. Vancouver, Canada: Pacific Educational Press.

Miller, D.C., Sen, A., Malley, L.B., and Burns, S.D. (2009). Comparative Indicators of Education in the United States and Other G-8 Countries: 2009 (NCES 2009-039). U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.

Sherman, J.D., Honneger, S.D., and McGivern, J.L. (2003). Comparative Indicators of Education in the United States and Other G8 Countries: 2002 (NCES 2003-026). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC.

Snyder, T.D. (2011). Mini-DigestofEducationStatistics,2010 (NCES 2011-016). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC.

U.S. Department of Education. (2005). Education in the United States: A Brief Overview. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved December 15, 2010, from http:// www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/edus/index.html.