Accueil international - The French school system

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The French school system
In France, attendance in school is compulsory for children from the age of 6 to the age of 16, whatever the
child's origin, sex or length of stay in France.
The French educational system is organized in several levels corresponding to age groups and learning programmes.
As is the case for higher education, there exist schools in the public and the private sector. Education is free in the
public sector and subject to fees in the private sector, but the educational programme is the same in both, as this is
established at the national level.
There are several international schools in Grenoble.
In towns where there are several schools, your place of residence will determine where your child will go to school.
The French school system is structured in the following way:
Infant school (école maternelle) from age 3 to 6.
Primary school (école élémentaire) from age 6 to 11. It is made up of 5 levels : the CP (Cours Préparatoire),
the CE1 and CE2 (Cours Élémentaires 1st and 2nd years), and the classes of CM1 and CM2 (Cours Moyens 1st
and 2nd years).
Secondary school (collège) is made up of 4 classes, from the 6ème' to the 3ème' (finishing with the college
certification - le brevet des collèges).
The upper secondary school (lycée) is made up of 3 classes : 2nde', 1ère', and Terminale' (finishing with the
state baccalauréat' examination).
The school year begins in September and finishes at the beginning of June of the following year. It is divided
into terms (trimestres):
First term: September, October and November
Second term: December, January and February
Third term: March, April, May, June and beginning of July
School holidays:
All Saints vacation: end of October
Christmas vacation: end of December
Winter vacation: during February
Spring vacation: during April
Summer vacation: starting in July
Updated on January 24, 2014
Worth knowing
Free vaccination for children
University calendar and school holidays
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