Education in Spain: school stages, Selectividad and university entry
A guide to schooling in Spain, Bachillerato, the university access exam known as Selectividad, how admission marks work and vocational training.
In short
Education in Spain is shared between the national government and the seventeen autonomous communities. The national ministry sets the basic framework, such as the school stages, the core subjects and the rules for the exam that opens the door to university, while each community runs its schools, adds part of the curriculum and, in several of them, teaches in a second official language alongside Spanish. School is compulsory from the age of six to sixteen. Students who want to enter a Spanish university usually finish Bachillerato and then sit a university access exam, known in everyday speech as Selectividad. Vocational training is a well-established second route.
School stages
- Educaci贸n Infantil: Early years education for children from birth to six, in two cycles. The second cycle, from three to six, is widely available in public schools and is not compulsory.
- Educaci贸n Primaria: Six years, from about six to twelve. Pupils study Spanish language and literature, mathematics, natural and social sciences, a foreign language, physical education and arts, plus the co-official language in regions that have one.
- Educaci贸n Secundaria Obligatoria (ESO): Four years, from about twelve to sixteen. It completes compulsory education. Students who pass receive the Graduado en Educaci贸n Secundaria Obligatoria and can then choose Bachillerato or vocational training.
- Bachillerato: Two optional years, from about sixteen to eighteen, in which students follow a pathway such as sciences, humanities and social sciences, or arts. Everyone takes common subjects, and the rest depend on the pathway.
- Formaci贸n Profesional: Vocational training at basic, intermediate and higher levels, combining classroom study with practical placements in companies.
The university access exam and grading
The exam that students take at the end of Bachillerato has had several names. It was called Selectividad for many years, later PAU, then EBAU or EvAU in different communities, and today it is generally called the Prueba de Acceso a la Universidad (PAU), although many families still say Selectividad. The papers follow a national framework and are prepared and marked by the universities of each community, so details such as the dates, the layout of the papers and the co-official language options can differ from one region to another.
The common part of the exam normally includes Spanish Language and Literature, History of Spain, a foreign language and a subject linked to the student's Bachillerato pathway, for example Mathematics for the sciences pathway. Students may also sit optional subjects to improve their admission mark for particular degrees. Mathematics papers focus on calculus, algebra, geometry, probability and statistics, language papers ask for text analysis, grammar and a literature question, and history papers ask students to explain events and use historical sources.
Marks are numerical. The mark of the access exam is combined with the average grade of the Bachillerato years, so the work done in school counts as well as the exam itself. A student must reach a minimum result in the exam to be able to use it for admission. The exact weighting and the way optional subjects are added are set in national regulations that have been updated over time, so check the current rules for your community.
University and college entry
Admission to public universities works through the admission mark. Each degree offers a limited number of places, and when there are more applicants than places the places go to those with the highest admission marks. Each year the last mark that gained a place on a course is published and is called the nota de corte, or cut-off mark. Popular degrees such as medicine usually have high cut-off marks, while others are lower. Applicants fill in an ordered list of degrees and universities through the admission platform of the community where they sit the exam, and some universities have extra tests for degrees in music, art or sport.
Students who finish Bachillerato elsewhere in Spain can apply to universities in other communities. People who have completed vocational training at the higher level can enter university directly through a separate admission route that does not require the access exam. There are also special routes for applicants over a certain age, for example over twenty-five, forty or forty-five, who do not hold the usual qualifications.
Studying in Spain as an international student
Students with a foreign school-leaving qualification usually need to have it recognised by the Spanish authorities before applying, and they may have to take part in an admission procedure for international students run at national level. Spanish is the language of most courses, and the universities usually ask for proof of Spanish, such as the DELE certificate from the Instituto Cervantes, unless the course is taught in English. Rules differ by country of origin, so check each university's international office and the national university portal.
Practising on GetMyMockTest
These are practice questions we wrote for study. They are not the official exams, and we do not claim they match an exam's current format. Free practice for Spain:
- Selectividad: mathematics, Spanish language and literature, history of Spain and the older Spanish-language history bank, with timed tests and flashcards.
- Spanish general knowledge: history and politics, geography and nature, and science, arts and culture.
- IELTS, Cambridge A-Level and IB Diploma: international exams that many Spanish and international applicants also take.