Education & child care

Child care

In France, school is mandatory for all children aged 6 to 16. The Ministry of Education defines France’s national educational curriculum. The school year lasts 10 months. It begins in early September and ends in late June or early July.

Many schools offer international school programs to enable children of any nationality to be taught within the French education system by offering them bilingual education.

At age 3, children attend Kindergarten (Maternelle). At 6 they attend Elementary School (Ecole Primaire, from “CP” to “CM2”).

Junior High School (Collège) starts from sixth grade until ninth grade, at the end of which students pass the exam “Brevet des Collèges” to access Senior High School (Lycée) and start their orientation program (Literature (L), Economics & Social Sciences (ES), Science (S), or Technology). Senior High School lasts 3 years. The “première” and “terminale” grades lead to the baccalaureate examination. The baccalaureate tests the knowledge and skills acquired by students by the end of their high-school years and is the first higher-education qualification.

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Primary & secondary education system in France

In France, school is mandatory for all children aged 6 to 16. The Ministry of Education defines France’s national educational curriculum. The school year lasts 10 months. It begins in early September and ends in late June or early July.

Many schools offer international school programs to enable children of any nationality to be taught within the French education system by offering them bilingual education.
At age 3, children attend Kindergarten (Maternelle). At 6 they attend Elementary School (Ecole Primaire, from “CP” to “CM2”).

Junior High School (Collège) starts from sixth grade until ninth grade, at the end of which students pass the exam “Brevet des Collèges” to access Senior High School (Lycée) and start their orientation program (Literature (L), Economics & Social Sciences (ES), Science (S), or Technology). Senior High School lasts 3 years. The “première” and “terminale” grades lead to the baccalaureate examination. The baccalaureate tests the knowledge and skills acquired by students by the end of their high-school years and is the first higher-education qualification.

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Enrolling your child at school

If your child is enrolled in a public school on the Côte d’Azur, your place of residence will determine the school, middle school or high school that your child will attend. Registrations can be done with the establishments directly.

Regarding enrollments in private schools, registrations should be done with the Head of the establishment.

For further information:

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International schools

In France, many schools deliver international school programs. Those programs allow children of any nationality to be taught within the French education system and benefit from a bilingual tuition at the same time.

The Côte d’Azur is the 2nd largest French region in terms of international schools after Paris. There are 18 schools with bilingual or international programs in 7 languages from kindergarten (from 30 months old) to high school (until 18 years old). The Higher education system in France offers many training courses with an international dimension: international partnerships, specialized Masters, multi-disciplinary programs…

Renowned language centers also provide their services to foreign students, and to companies wishing to improve the French level of their foreign employees.

Find out more about the international schools in France and in the region below:

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