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There are two main options after basic school – upper secondary school (gümnaasium) or vocational secondary school (kutseõppeasutus). The Law on Basic Schools and Gymnasiums, passed in September 1993, establishes gümnaasium as the main structural unit of secondary education, replacing secondary school (keskkool).
An upper secondary school (gümnaasium) is a school, which provides opportunities to acquire general secondary education. An upper secondary school includes years 10-12. Most of upper secondary schools include years of basic school (põhikool) which provide opportunities to acquire basic education (põhiharidus).
The requirements of secondary education, i.e. the educational standards, are established in the national curriculums. The national curriculums determine the study objectives, duration of studies, the relationships of the national curriculum to the school curriculum, the list of compulsory subjects with number of lessons and contents, the opportunities and conditions for selection of subjects, the requirements to the students in terms of different study periods and graduation requirements. The Government of the Republic enforces the national curriculums.
The national curriculum establishes compulsory subjects and the minimal scope of their treatment (compulsory courses and compulsory themes). Schools establish their own study branches through the choice of optional subjects and courses and/or by intensified study in some compulsory subjects. The number of optional subjects and courses is determined by the national curriculum but the school, taking into consideration students' wishes and opportunities, determines the content of them. A school may have more than one study branch.
The upper secondary education lasts three years (grades 10-12). The weekly authorised maximum course workload at the upper secondary school is 35 hours. In addition to the compulsory subjects taught at this level, which are determined by the national curriculum and account for around 75% of total provision, the remaining 25% comprise subjects selected jointly by the students and the school. Certain subjects may be taught in more depth to some groups of students than others – schools can develop their own approach or course content in fields such as mathematics, languages, business etc. Currently there are schools with orientation to languages (French, English, German etc.), mathematics and others.
Admission to upper secondary schools is based on basic school graduation results. Schools that are obliged to offer services to an entire town or to the whole country establish additional criteria for admission in order to ensure that the limited number of study places are filled by students with best qualifications to fulfil the requirements of the curriculum. In most cases, supplementary tests are taken in basic subjects or in the subjects of the chosen field, which are followed by interviews with all students. The students who have been successful at regional or national subject contests are preferred at admittance.
The duration of academic year is from the start of study in one calendar year until the start of the study in the next calendar year. An academic year shall start on 1 September. An academic year consists of a period of study, an examination session and school holidays. A study period shall include not less than 175 days of study (35 weeks). The Minister of Education and Research determines school holidays and the time of examination sessions yearly. Autumn, Christmas and spring holidays divide a school year into four quarters. Autumn and spring holidays last usually a week and Christmas holidays last between 2 and 3 weeks.
In 2002/2003 academic years, there were 240 diurnal upper secondary schools in Estonia, 4 of them for children with special needs, and 15 schools for adults (evening courses or distance learning). 181 of them are located in towns (3 for children with special needs) and 59 in the country (1 for children with special needs).
The graduates from upper secondary schools are issued an Upper Secondary School Leaving Certificate and a National Examination Certificate. The National Examination and Qualifications Centre issues a National Examination Certificate. The school where the student is studying issues the graduation certificate. A National Examination Certificate is valid only together with an Upper Secondary School Graduation Certificate and vice versa.
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